As noted on the Vancouver Police Department website:

Car 87 teams a Vancouver Police constable with a registered nurse or a registered psychiatric nurse to provide on-site assessments and intervention for people living with mental illness. The nurse and the police officer work as a team in assessing, managing, and deciding about the most appropriate action, which may include referrals for community-based mental health follow-up or emergency intervention.

The Car 87 program is a partnership between the Vancouver Police Department and Vancouver Coastal Health’s Access & Assessment Centre’s Crisis Response Team (formerly Mental Health Emergency Services). The Car 87 program started on a trial basis in 1978 and was formalized in 1987.

In addition to Car 87, the Access & Assessment Centre operates a telephone crisis line where nurses assist callers in crisis, provide information pertaining to resources and triage situations to the appropriate resources: Car 87, ambulance or police as required.

Car 87 can be reached via the Access & Assessment Centre’s 24-hour crisis line at (604) 675-3700 or via 9-1-1.