The pilot project aims to treat mental health patients in Montreal at home rather than in the ER

Quebec hopes to scale up a new model of care for emergency room patients experiencing mental health crises.

The model has been at Notre Dame Hospital in Montreal for several months, and on Monday, Health and Social Services Minister Lionel Carmant announced plans to expand the measures to other hospitals.

A “brief intervention team” now cares for patients in crisis who need stabilization.

The measure, Carmant said, would free up beds for serious psychiatric conditions.

“They can stay in an intensive short intervention unit for 48 to 72 hours, so you can avoid hospitalization,” he said.

The goal is to make hospitalization a last resort.

All patients discharged from the hospital will be monitored in the community to ensure no one explodes.

Those who need it can access what's known as “home psychiatric hospitalization,” where a nurse, psychiatrist, or social worker visits a patient three times a day for six to eight weeks.

“It prevents long hospitalizations and helps the team monitor what's happening at home with patients. And it leads to better interactions between the family and the care team,” Carmant explained.

The pilot project began in January, and Notre Dame Hospital said about 90 percent of those receiving home care did not return to the ER.

Dr. Cedric Andres, chief of psychiatry at Notre Dame Hospital, explained that the help people receive is also targeted.

“We are treating the right patient at the right time, in the right place. This is the difference. Therefore, the quality of medical care will increase significantly,” he said.

Advocates in Quebec have often criticized the lack of mental health resources and long wait times.

Notre Dame has hired about 10 staff members for its brief intervention team and another 40 for its in-home hospitalization team.

Carmant said he hopes other hospitals can do the same.

“Well, these are innovative recruiting initiatives. People are excited about these new programs. And the team here is a great team and has done a great job and has been able to hire elsewhere without undermining their services,” he said.

Carmant said he hopes to expand such programs to hospitals across the province.