Latest / Early Edition with Ryan Bridge / Steve Watt: Police Association President on the beginning of phase three of the Mental Health Callout Changes programme

Transcript

Steve Watt: Police Association President on the beginning of phase three of the Mental Health Callout Changes programme · Early Edition with Ryan Bridge

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: So Police and Health New Zealand are pressing ahead with
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: phase three of their mental health response changes, shifting more
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: responsibility onto health teams and away from police, and it
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: means that police will no longer be involved in mental
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: health callouts eventually, unless there is an immediate safety risk.
• 0:15
  Speaker 1: So I'm joined now by Steve Watt, who is the
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: Police Association President GADATA.
• 0:20
  Speaker 2: Steve Marina.
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: Is this whole scheme working the slow withdrawal?
• 0:25
  Speaker 2: Look, it absolutely is and it's a good news story
• 0:28
  Speaker 2: for not only our members but members of the public
• 0:31
  Speaker 2: and also those that are suffering from mental health issues
• 0:35
  Speaker 2: about getting the response that they need, which is mental
• 0:38
  Speaker 2: health clinicians. And that's alleviating the pressure being put on
• 0:42
  Speaker 2: place so we can spend more time out there doing
• 0:45
  Speaker 2: what we do best.
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: The fear is that we're going to end out with
• 0:48
  Speaker 1: some people being left behind.
• 0:49
  Speaker 2: Are they No, not at all, And that's why this
• 0:53
  Speaker 2: has been a phased approach to allow Health New Zealand
• 0:57
  Speaker 2: to head the services of bail so that as we
• 1:01
  Speaker 2: slowly withdraw from this mental health arena, the services are
• 1:05
  Speaker 2: in place so that no one's getting left behind.
• 1:08
  Speaker 1: Our officers relieved at the changes.
• 1:11
  Speaker 2: Oh, absolutely you know, it frees up roughly half a
• 1:13
  Speaker 2: million police hours each year that we're spent responding to
• 1:19
  Speaker 2: mental health call outs. So that's time that can be
• 1:21
  Speaker 2: better spent elsewhere within the community doing what we do best.
• 1:27
  Speaker 1: So what happens the first time someone harms himself and
• 1:30
  Speaker 1: police weren't there to respond. Do you think that responsibility
• 1:34
  Speaker 1: should rely on the police?
• 1:37
  Speaker 2: No? Look, we'll always turn up to those jobs where
• 1:40
  Speaker 2: life is in danger or being threatened, so there's no
• 1:44
  Speaker 2: you know, there's a reduced risk that we are still
• 1:48
  Speaker 2: there to respond to those jobs that require us.
• 1:50
  Speaker 1: All right, And police are now not automatically involved in
• 1:53
  Speaker 1: missing persons from mental health facilities, So how does that
• 1:57
  Speaker 1: pose a risk to the community.
• 2:00
  Speaker 2: No, not at all, look, and it's not actually withdrawing
• 2:03
  Speaker 2: from that. There's still a process in place where those
• 2:07
  Speaker 2: missing persons from mental health can be reported to us.
• 2:10
  Speaker 2: We'll make an assessment as to whether our services are
• 2:13
  Speaker 2: required or not, so there is still the ability there
• 2:16
  Speaker 2: to have police respond in those circumstances.
• 2:19
  Speaker 1: All right, Well, Steve, carry on with the good work,
• 2:21
  Speaker 1: and I thank you for your time today. Steve, what
• 2:23
  Speaker 1: is the Association? The Police Association President? For more from
• 2:27
  Speaker 1: Early Edition with Ryan Bridge.
• 2:29
  Speaker 2: Listen live to News Talks at B from five am weekdays,
• 2:33
  Speaker 2: or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio