Matt Doocey: Mental Health Minister says the police will still respond to mental health callouts

The Government is assuring police will still respond to mental health callouts when needed.  

The Mental Health Foundation has launched a petition asking police to stop scaling back on attending mental health callouts.

A four-phase reduction plan was announced in November.

Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey says the programme addresses the handover - not the response. 

"People with mental health issues - they don't want to sit in emergency departments with police officers sitting there with tasers. They want a mental health response, and that's what we're working on."

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Mental health. The Mental Health Foundation wants the cops to
keep going to mental health callouts for a little bit longer.
At the moment, police are changing their policies in conjunction
with health officials. The plan is only half working though
police aren't responding to as many callouts, but no other
service has yet been set up to replace them, so

(00:21):
there's a gap. According to the Mental Health Foundation, at
least Matt Doocey is the Mental Health Minister with me now, Minister,
good afternoon, afternoon, Ryan, is there a gap.

Speaker 2 (00:31):
At the moment. We've got two things underway and quite
often they're getting conflated. We've got to shift from a
police led Triple one response to a multi agency response.
What that means is that in your time of mental
health crisis, when you call Triple one, quite often you're
getting a criminal justice response, not a mental health response.

(00:53):
And so the government's committed to rolling out more mental
health coresponse teams. That's a four to five year pro
based on what we saw in the United Kingdom with
the humber Side model, so we're going to be building
out those response teams over time. What we also have
is the Police Mental Health Change Program. These are about

(01:14):
changes in the emergency department. The first change November last
year was about streamlining voluntary handovers.

Speaker 1 (01:23):
Come up and then I hate to interrupt you. I
hate to interrupt you, but the question was quite simple.
Is there a gap between the things that you're describing?
Is there a gap between what the health officials are
hoping to respond to and what the police have stopped
responding to.

Speaker 2 (01:39):
Well, that's why I'm saying, Ryan. Quite often those two
work programs get conflated with the police change program. That
is about the handing over in emergency departments. That's about
standard operating procedures that have been worked on. Now the
response I get when I go into emergency departments, they're
telling me that the relationship has going good. They actually

(02:01):
welcome the joined up working clear roles and responsibility.

Speaker 1 (02:04):
So I know you want to assure people, but you're
at the moment you're not making sense. So let's just
back the train up for a second. So is there
any work that police are not going to be doing
that they used to?

Speaker 2 (02:19):
No? Well, quite often now when people call Triple one
for a mental health crisis, sometimes they sadly don't get
a response. Sometimes they get a police lead response and
we've been piloting mental health coresponse teams. In years to come,
we would like to see mental health teams go out
in that time of urgency, so that will be built

(02:41):
out over it.

Speaker 1 (02:42):
But in the meantime, nothing's changed. Police are still doing
exactly as they always have.

Speaker 2 (02:47):
Yeah, so police have been very clear if there's a
risk to the individual or people around them, they will
be going out. So nothing has changed. But what is
also happening at the same time and quite often, is that.

Speaker 1 (03:00):
Only if there's a risk. Has that changed? Was it
only if there's a risk to their life?

Speaker 2 (03:05):
Now police are still going out. Sadly in New Zealand,
sometimes people call Triple one and don't get a response.
So that's why we're building out that long term program
where it gets conflated, and this is my point RNs.
There is the Police Mental Health Change Program that is
about streamlining handovers and emergency departments. Started off in November

(03:28):
with the voluntary handing over and a few weeks time
they'll move to a sixty minute handover. That is about
prioritizing people so when they go into emergency departments. Quite
often the feedback to me is people with mental health issues.
So they don't want to sit in emergency departments with
police officers sitting there with tasers. They want a mental

(03:48):
health response and that's what we're working on.

Speaker 1 (03:52):
Right, So what's the Mental Health Foundation on about? Then?
I think that their wires cross completely, haven't they. I
mean they're saying there's a gap and you're saying there's
no gap at all. In fact, police are doing absolutely
nothing different.

Speaker 2 (04:03):
Yeah, and this is my point. I think at times
people are getting the two programs conflated. There is a
need for better mental health response. That's while we're building
out the co response teams. But the change program is
just better streamlining of handovers in the emergency department.

Speaker 1 (04:19):
All right, Monster, appreciate your time. It's Matt Doucer, who's
the Mental Health Minister.

Speaker 2 (04:23):
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