More than 4,200 people have turned to Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare’s (HDGH) Mental Health and Addictions Urgent Crisis Centre since it expanded to round-the-clock operations a year ago, a milestone hospital officials say is easing pressure on emergency departments while giving people in crisis a dedicated place to seek help. The Mental Health and Addictions Urgent Crisis Centre (MHAUCC), located at 1030 Ouellette Avenue beside Windsor Regional Hospital’s Ouellette Campus, has operated 24 hours a day, seven days a week since July 2025, offering walk-in mental health and addictions crisis care, a crisis phone line, and voluntary drop-offs by police and Essex-Windsor EMS. Between July 2025 and May 2026, the centre recorded 4,222 visits. During that time, staff completed 713 addictions consultations and scheduled 1,184 psychiatric consultations. More than one-quarter of all visits — 1,145 — occurred overnight between 8 p.m. and 8 a.m., highlighting the demand for after-hours care. “The purpose of today is to get the message out that in our downtown, we have a 24/7 urgent care centre,” said HDGH president and CEO Bill Marra. “It’s essentially an emergency room centre for anyone experiencing a mental health or an addictions crisis.” Marra said the centre gives people quick access to a multidisciplinary team that includes nurses, social workers, addictions counsellors, and psychiatric support. “It’s keeping people out of the regular ER, its diverting ER traffic, it’s keeping people out of jail. It’s keeping people out of a grave frankly, and it’s keeping people safer,” he said. Hospital officials said 720 patients were referred to the crisis centre from local emergency departments over the first 10 months of 24-hour operations, while EMS brought 192 patients directly to the facility and Windsor police made 27 voluntary drop-offs. Another 479 clients were connected with HDGH’s Withdrawal Management Services program. Marra told CTV News that the organization was encouraged by the demand but believes more people could benefit from the service. “We know we can do more,” he said. “We know that there are still people presenting in the traditional emergency department.” One of the biggest surprises, Marra added, was the number of overnight visits. “We had to do better as a region to provide 24/7 access,” he said. “God knows where they would have ended up or what they would have done in those cases.” Windsor Police Chief Jason Crowley said the centre gives residents an option that didn’t previously exist. “This service exists and they don’t need the police. They don’t need an ambulance to bring them here. They can walk in themselves,” Crowley said. He said the specialized centre is producing better outcomes by ensuring people are connected to follow-up care while allowing officers to return to frontline duties more quickly. “Our priority one response time is as low as it’s ever been,” Crowley said. “It’s allowing that capacity for our officers to get back on the road and serve this community.” Essex-Windsor EMS Deputy Chief Slawomir Pulcer said the centre has also improved patient transfers for paramedics. “When crews get in here, they’re able to transfer care to the healthcare workers and they’re able to get on the road much quicker,” he said. Windsor Regional Hospital clinical vice-president Kristi Cecile said the partnership has helped divert mental health patients from the emergency department to more appropriate care. “We’re really collaborating with Hôtel-Dieu Grace Healthcare and seeing the impact to reduce some emergency department avoidance,” Cecile said. “The 24-hour service has definitely provided some improvements.” Marra said the service currently operates on about $2 million annually using repurposed funding. While the organization may eventually seek additional provincial funding, he said the focus remains on increasing public awareness that help is available at any hour. “We want people to know this service is here,” he stated. “If you’re experiencing a mental health or addictions crisis, you can walk through the doors any time, day or night.”
