Warning: This story describes suicide.
Hotel Dieu Grace Healthcare CEO recommends expansion of the Mental Health and Addictions Urgent Care Center (MHAUCC) following recommendations from coroner’s office in response to Chad Romanik’s death agreed.
Romanik shot himself in 2017 after a confrontation with Windsor police. That came just days after police rushed Romanik to the emergency room at Windsor Regional Hospital in critical condition.
The SIU determined in 2018 that there were no reasonable grounds to charge the officers involved.
Recommendation for Hotel Dieu Grace Healthcare and Windsor Regional Hospital to consider the feasibility of expanding MHUACC to “provide 24-hour coverage for people in crisis”, jury decided after inquest The conclusion was reached on Wednesday, one of 15 non-binding recommendations.
The center currently offers walk-in services for people 16 and older who “don’t feel comfortable waiting for local mental health or addiction support,” and is open from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.
“We understand the merits behind this recommendation and certainly agree with it,” Bill Mara, CEO of Hotel Dieu Grace Healthcare, said in a statement.
“It will take some time to work with our partners, the Ontario Health Team, Ontario Health Western and service providers to resolve this.”
Mr Mara said he believed the recommendations made at the inquest were a “sound plan”.
“At the end of the day, it’s a strategy,” he says. “There is no single recommendation he makes that will create dramatic change and solve everything by itself.”
Chad Romanik died on September 15, 2017, after a confrontation with police. (Dan Tekema/CBC News)
CBC spoke with Mara about the idea of providing 24/7 care at MHUACC in 2022.
Windsor police ‘grateful’ to jury’s recommendation
There were several recommendations aimed at Windsor Police. These include incorporating Romanik’s two calls to 9-1-1 into scenario-based training, and working more closely with hospitals and police to determine which mobile crisis teams to deploy strategically. It included recommendations that could be used to determine the Crisis call.
“I would like to thank the jury for their time and dedication to this inquest,” Deputy Chief Justice Karel Degraaf said in a written statement.
”[We] We welcome this opportunity to review existing procedures and policies to ensure we are providing the best possible police service to our communities, including those facing mental health crises. ”
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