Respect for those on the front lines of dealing with a mental health crisis can only deepen after watching the dashcam videos accompanying the Star Tribune's recent "A Cry for Help" series on police responses to calls for assistance.
"Harrowing" barely begins to describe it as panicked family members sob and scream in the chaos. Police officers on the scene do rapid-fire calculations to protect themselves and the community while trying to aid the sometimes-violent person having a breakdown.
The complexity of this assignment, with the potential life-or-death consequences of the decisions officers must make, is not to be underestimated. That's why Minnesota policymakers, law enforcement and mental health advocates must work together to ensure that officers have the training needed to strike the delicate balance these wrenching response calls require.
The three-day series, which began a week ago, performed a valuable public service by spotlighting the urgent need in Minnesota for specialized mental health crisis training for officers. According to the stories, those who are mentally ill are sadly overrepresented in fatal encounters with police. Law enforcement also increasingly appears to be the first phone call made when a loved one is in crisis — a troubling development that underscores the scarcity of community treatment options in Minnesota and elsewhere to prevent someone from reaching the crisis point.
"Minnesota's police officers and sheriff's deputies are spending more time than ever responding to mental health calls,'' the series reported. "A Star Tribune survey of nine of the state's largest law enforcement agencies found that such calls have increased an average of 34 percent in the past six years.''
Breaking down the data for one agency provides further clarity on how common these calls are. The Minneapolis Police Department responded to 4,344 "emotionally disturbed person" calls in 2014 and 4,700 such calls in 2015, according to a records query.
The Star Tribune Editorial Board sympathizes with officers thrust repeatedly into medical emergencies where the person needing help doesn't act rationally and may try to hurt those providing aid. Police shouldn't just have to rely on experience to develop a personal repertoire of best practices to defuse a crisis and get everyone to safety.
State law does not require mental health intervention training, though some agencies do provide it. That is a gap requiring exploration by legislators. A bill that would have required four hours, a minimal amount of time given the high stakes of crisis intervention calls, and developed a curriculum for such training regrettably failed to pass the state House after clearing the state Senate. It merits reconsideration.
Many police departments around Minnesota have strengthened their officers' training. These efforts should inspire others to do the same. The St. Paul Police Department's ongoing collaboration with community mental health professionals to get repeat callers and others the medical assistance they need is a particular standout.
Sue Abderholden, executive director of the Minnesota chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, points out the need for another reform. There are county-run mental health crisis lines, but awareness lags. State lawmakers approved a measure in 2015 implementing one central number to call — the 911 emergency approach — to smooth access to medical care or augment the crisis intervention with a mobile team of mental health professionals. Regrettably, state officials have yet to launch the one-number system.
Lawmakers won't be back for their regular session until 2017. The important issues raised by the Star Tribune's series merit ongoing consideration in the months ahead and action upon their return.
