4 ms·

UK: policing is a bit different here but police officers do often refer people to what is left of Social Services and the local hospital when needed. In your l

UK: policing is a bit different here but police officers do often refer people to what is left of Social Services and the local hospital when needed. In your location, if urgent intervention was required to help a relative in a situation like the one outlined in the grandparent post, what agency would be the best one to contact?

peteretep 9y ago
> UK: policing is a bit different here That's an example of typical British understatement, too.
Nexxxeh 9y ago
Our policing is done by consent. Also the police are arguing (I would wager correctly) that they're taking the brunt of the effective cuts to mental health provisioning in the NHS. Over here (England and Wales) if someone was an immediate danger to themselves or others, I'd call 999 and be put through to the Police operator and explain. If the person I was calling regarding wasn't an immediate danger, in theory I'd ring 111, but in practice I'd ring Mind because I've had extremely negative experiences with NHS Direct.
Broken_Hippo 9y ago
I'm from the states: Mental health situations are difficult. The only real options are calling an ambulance and/or the police (the police will often come with the ambulance). I was able to contact the hospital directly with my ex (he was schizo-affective), but that did depend on him being calm enough to willingly come with me. Folks are often jailed on public disturbance and other charges instead of being taken to a facility - many facilities don't have enough space either.
_jal 9y ago
To be frank, my response would depend on resources. If the person in crisis were insured, white, and living in a nicer part of town, I'd get them to one of the local hospitals. If they didn't have the resources required to ensure someone would care and I thought it was something the person could get through, I'd recommend sedatives and try to find an appropriate charity. The only time I'd ever call the police where I live now is if the situation were already life-or-death. There are places with departments where the cops aren't such wildcards, but I don't live in one of those, and every time I've been involved in a situation where cops were introduced into it, at best they were useless.

peteretep 9y ago

> UK: policing is a bit different here That's an example of typical British understatement, too.

Nexxxeh 9y ago

Our policing is done by consent. Also the police are arguing (I would wager correctly) that they're taking the brunt of the effective cuts to mental health provisioning in the NHS. Over here (England and Wales) if someone was an immediate danger to themselves or others, I'd call 999 and be put through to the Police operator and explain. If the person I was calling regarding wasn't an immediate danger, in theory I'd ring 111, but in practice I'd ring Mind because I've had extremely negative experiences with NHS Direct.

Broken_Hippo 9y ago

I'm from the states: Mental health situations are difficult. The only real options are calling an ambulance and/or the police (the police will often come with the ambulance). I was able to contact the hospital directly with my ex (he was schizo-affective), but that did depend on him being calm enough to willingly come with me. Folks are often jailed on public disturbance and other charges instead of being taken to a facility - many facilities don't have enough space either.

_jal 9y ago

To be frank, my response would depend on resources. If the person in crisis were insured, white, and living in a nicer part of town, I'd get them to one of the local hospitals. If they didn't have the resources required to ensure someone would care and I thought it was something the person could get through, I'd recommend sedatives and try to find an appropriate charity. The only time I'd ever call the police where I live now is if the situation were already life-or-death. There are places with departments where the cops aren't such wildcards, but I don't live in one of those, and every time I've been involved in a situation where cops were introduced into it, at best they were useless.