Who Should Step-up for Mental Health?
A recent decision by the Metropolitan Police to stop attending 999 calls linked to mental health service provision raised queries and concerns about how such issues are dealt with in the UK.
On the surface this may seem like another poor decision by the Met under its new Commissioner, Sir Mark Rowley. After all, the aim of the police is to protect the public, not simply catch criminals.
There is, however, a bit more to this story than meets the eye.
For a start, it is wrong to say that this is a complete halt on responses to 999 calls relating to mental health. Where there is an immediate threat to life, officers will still go out and respond.
Secondly, this approach is not exactly new. In 2020, the force in Humberside brought in a policy called ‘Right Care, Right Person’ where staff from the mental health charity, Mind, would work from police control rooms and answer calls. A recent review showed that not only did this save approximately 1,100 police hours a month but it also ensured that those with mental health issues received better and more timely care.
The idea was that Right Care, Right Person would be implemented nationally but that is still yet to happen and so Rowley has taken the decision to effectively implement it himself with a self-imposed deadline of 31st August.
As Rowley surmised in his letter to health and social care services:
“We are failing Londoners twice.
"We are failing them first by sending police officers, not medical professionals, to those in mental health crisis, and expecting them to do their best in circumstances where they are not the right people to be dealing with the patient.
“We are failing Londoners a second time by taking large amounts of officer time away from preventing and solving crime, as well as dealing properly with victims, in order to fill gaps for others.
“The extent to which we are collectively failing Londoners and inappropriately placing demand on policing is very stark.”
Ultimately mental health is, as the name suggests, a health issue. This is not to say that the police have no role whatsoever but, instead, more responsibility should be given to those with the proper training.
This is also a funding problem. It is embarrassing that the government has to rely so much on the charitable sector to meet basic mental health outcomes. There needs to be a realisation that further investment at this stage not only frees up police time but can also free up hospital time later on by intervening before issues develop.
Once again, the podcast is up to date so no new episode this week. In the next few days there will be a new judgment about how charities use premises so expect a new episode this time next week.
Make a difference today,
Marcus