ABSTRACT

The role of police in conducting wellness checks has received considerable public attention in Canada in recent years. Drawing upon data from both the computer-aided dispatch and records management systems of a mid-size police agency in Western Canada, we identify and then descriptively assess all wellness checks conducted in 2020 (N = 1,114 events). As part of our exploration, we explore the nature of these events, the characteristics of those involved, and the responses of the police. Our results reveal a series of patterns regarding the characteristics and outcomes of these events, including by ‘official’ versus ‘unofficial’ status. Our results also shed insight into the challenges of using police data for these kinds of research questions. By providing researchers, practitioners, and policymakers with an empirical analysis of wellness checks, we hope to contribute to evidence-based decision-making about these events moving forward.

摘要

近年来，警察在进行健康检查方面的作用在加拿大受到了相当多的公众关注。利用来自加拿大西部一家中型警察机构的计算机辅助调度和记录管理系统的数据，我们确定并描述性地评估了 2020 年进行的所有健康检查（N = 1,114 次事件）。作为我们探索的一部分，我们探索了这些事件的性质、相关人员的特征以及警方的反应。我们的结果揭示了关于这些事件的特征和结果的一系列模式，包括“官方”与“非官方”状态。我们的研究结果还揭示了将警察数据用于此类研究问题所面临的挑战。通过为研究人员、从业者和政策制定者提供健​​康检查的实证分析，