Building on mental health training for law enforcement: strengthening community partnerships
International Journal of Prisoner Health
ISSN: 1744-9200
Article publication date: 11 September 2017
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to describe the current state of law enforcement training related to the high number of interactions with persons with mental illness, and to recommend next steps in preparing law enforcement to effectively meet this challenge.
Design/methodology/approach
The authors reviewed the current literature on relevant law enforcement training programs, focusing primarily on crisis intervention team (CIT) training, and used the case example of California to identify opportunities to improve and enhance law enforcement preparedness for the challenge of responding to persons with mental illness.
Findings
Broad-based community partnerships working together to develop programs that meet the local needs of both those with mental illness and law enforcement, the availability of mental health treatment centers with no-refusal policies, and a coordinating person or agency to effectively liaise among stakeholders are critical enhancements to CIT training.
Originality/value
As increasing attention is paid to adverse interactions between police and vulnerable populations, this paper identifies policies that would build on existing training programs to improve police responses to persons with mental illness.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
This paper received funding support from the University of California Criminal Justice & Health Consortium. The authors declare no conflicts of interests.
Citation
Campbell, J., Ahalt, C., Hagar, R. and Arroyo, W. (2017), "Building on mental health training for law enforcement: strengthening community partnerships", International Journal of Prisoner Health, Vol. 13 No. 3/4, pp. 207-212. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJPH-10-2016-0060
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2017, Emerald Publishing Limited