‘Resource shortages’ in B.C.’s system for mentally disordered prompts dire safety warning

Those responsible for assessing some of B.C.'s most dangerous mentally ill patients are warning that budgetary belt-tightening is putting the public at risk.

An annual assessment by the board responsible for assessing some of British Columbia’s most dangerous and mentally ill individuals warns resources are so scant, the public is at risk.

The British Columbia (Criminal Code) Review Board Annual Report for the 2024/25 fiscal year was submitted to the attorney general last week and warns in its first line that “resource shortages in the past fiscal year have meant the board continues to be challenged to meet its mandate to protect the public and meet the needs of mentally disordered individuals in B.C.”

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The Review Board assesses accused people who’ve been found not fit to stand trial or found not criminally responsible on account of a mental disorder, and determines when they have improved to the point they are either fit to stand trial, or can be released to less restrictive accommodations.

The message from chair Brenda Edwards is a study in frustration. She notes she repeatedly made the same warnings the previous year and that last year the situation deteriorated.

Not only do forensic patients no longer have residential drug treatment options in B.C., they have even fewer places to live under supervision, and their community reintegration is not possible – all while the province’s only forensic psychiatric hospital is full and “a tension begins to build.”

A complex problem

The board members deciding the patients’ futures must be senior lawyers, psychiatrists, psychologists, psychiatric nurses or others with relevant backgrounds, and the low pay to carry out assessments means turnover and recruitment are problems.

So is the fact that in-person assessments are the norm, requiring board members travel to the Colony Farm Psychiatric Hospital from various parts of the province, delaying assessments and keeping some patients in top security conditions they may no longer require.

Independent MLA Elenore Sturko, a former RCMP officer, called the current system a failure since it doesn’t properly manage dangerous people, some of whom have been charged with murder.

“We’re dealing with people who can pose one of the most significant risks to public safety if they do not receive treatment, and according to this document there are many that are not receiving the adequate care and treatment that they need,” she said. “We are in a dire situation.”

A cross-ministry effort

Both Attorney General Nikki Sharma and Health Minister Josie Osborne say they have discussed the concerns of the Review Board chair and are working together to address their responsibilities in a complicated and interconnected situation.

Sharma has already been communicating with the federal attorney general in an effort to make hearings more efficient with virtual board hearings, which the report urged her to do.

Osborne told CTV News the province’s focus on involuntary care dovetails with the growing need to address those who are both violent and mentally ill.

“It’s so important that we continue to build out this continuum of care for people experiencing, severe mental illnesses, experiencing substance use disorders, and ensuring that as they leave the criminal justice system or as they leave treatment centers, supports are there for people,” said the health minister. “That’s why our government continues to expand and recovery services and supportive housing.”