Mental illness is considered a stigma in society, where there is lack of education and society deems mental health to be “bad.” Individuals who are diagnosed with a mental illness do not receive proper accommodations when it comes to a crisis call. Inappropriate resources or neglect are placed on behalf of enforcement.
How can we help those who are hurting mentally? There is the Mental Health and First Aid Act (MHFA) that would highly benefit the community, the mentally ill, enforcements and clinicians. The MHFA requires programs to train individuals to accomplish safe de-escalation of crisis situations, recognition of the signs and symptoms of mental illness, and timely referral to mental health services in the early stages of mental disorder development. The MHFA also requires the Substance Abuse & Mental Health Servies Administration (SAMHSA) to ensure that grants are equitably distributed geographically and to pay particular attention to the mental health training needs of rural areas.
Consider a family member having an episode, in which they are distressed with an emotional breakdown and poor coping skills. As a concerned family member, you call 911 to assist with the dysregulation occurring. You would want law enforcement to assist in calming your family member, bring safety to all involved and provide appropriate care. You would not want law enforcement to take your family member to jail, use excessive force or make the situation fatal.
The MHFA policy will benefit communities, law enforcement and clinicians regarding appropriate care. The benefits of this policy will allow clinicians and enforcement to collaborate on assessing individuals and providing resources. Clinicians and enforcement will be able to determine if a psychiatric facility, emergency room, jail or crisis-intervention is needed. Persons experiencing mental illness will be able to receive coordination of care instead of being denied, ignored or taken to numerous facilities. Organizations are not necessarily knowledgeable of the MHFA, which is another benefit of providing trainings and mental health knowledge to all.