The Schizophrenia Society of Saskatchewan held a grand opening on Wednesday for its new location in downtown Regina.
"It allows us to have a warm and welcoming environment for individuals and family members effected by mental health and we are able to conduct in house now and more frequent and at a larger capacity," said Jamie Eng, executive director of the Schizophrenia Society of Saskatchewan.
Shaun Schiller works at the organization and was diagnosed with the illness in 1992. He said centers like the Schizophrenia Society and education are key for breaking down stereotypes about the illness.
"There is a stigma around that people are violent or crazy but what I’d like people to understand it's nothing to be ashamed of, it's a brain disease," said Schiller.
One in five, or about 200,000 people, in Saskatchewan live with mental illness. The society said of that 200,000, there are about 10,000 people who live with schizophrenia.
The Regina Police Service was at the grand opening on Wednesday. The service has a crisis team they call PACT or the Police and Crisis Team. The crisis team is dispatched for mental illness-related calls. An officer and a mental health worker go out together to diffuse the situation and find long-term support for the individual.
"We understand that people who have mental health challenges many times come into contact with police but it's not because they're criminals,” said Regina Police Chief Evan Bray.
“They might find themselves in crisis, and we need to find that ways to help people and to understand supports are available in the community so that we can work together.”
