Did you know that the Police are taking the overflow of mental health patients?

[Hatstrategicallydipped]

No, you're not put into a police cell and given valium but.......

If you're suicidal and an ambulance can't get to you for hours, the police are sent around to sit with you until an ambulance gets to you.

They can also accompany you to A&E if you're willing to go.

They have told me that they receive absolutely no training on dealing with Mental Health patients - yet, there they are - my knights in shining armour.

I've had the unfortunate privilege of dealing with a few over the past 2 weeks. They have been absolutely lovely to me. Chatted, listened to music I forced on them etc. Desperately tried to get the services I'm engaged with to act. Constantly ringing the services for updates, checking in with their sergeants etc.

For a 'force' that has no training, they do an awesome job. I just wanted to get that out there. I'm very grateful to them for the support they have given me over the past couple of weeks.

However!!

They should not be forced to sit with a suicidal patient for hours. There should be a dedicated mental health emergency call-out service.

I don't think that most people know how shambolic Mental Health services actually are for people in crisis and I suspect nobody knew that the police are really the first point of support?

I've experienced this professionally (both me and DH), very extensively, and also looked at it academically. It's a terrible state of affairs, as the Police are not the correct people to be helping people in MH crisis (save for the more extreme situations where their powers are needed). The law has recently changed to restrict Police involvement but it's not worked out as appropriate services do not have the resources.

@Hatstrategicallydipped may I suggest that if you felt the Police were good- and from experience they generally do a good job in these circumstances- that you contact the relevant Force to thank the officers? You dont need names, just the generals of the incident and they will work it out. I/DP have done this several times and it's really welcomed by the officers/Force.

hope things improve for you.

to you, OP and very best wishes for your continuing recovery. And thank you so much for posting this, I did not know this at all - so for all the police officers out there helping people like this

By the way, sounds like you were really appreciative at the time, just meant something done formally (even a call) so it can go to their Sergeant/be on their record!

I'm sorry you're having problems, OP. But it's so good to hear that the police are being so kind and empathetic. That's excellent.

(Oh, and another one saying that @DappledThings was trying to be helpful and kind. I don't know why others read her post differently)

Dappledthings definitely was just trying to help. I didn’t read their post as rude or snippy in the slightest.

Another one saying @DappledThings was just explaining, nothing aggressive about it OP. Just so you wouldnt feel like people were being "difficult" on purpose on here! So dont worry about it.

I'm glad you felt supported by the police - it's always so uplifting in times of crisis to be reminded that actually people by and large are good.

Hope everything works out for you x

@DappledThings

Sorry, I never said that it was a new thing. I don't know why there are about 10 posts telling me that it's not a new thing

It's the present tense in your subject:
Did you know that the Police are taking the overflow of mental health patients? sounds like something new.
Do you know that the Police take the overflow of mental health patients? sounds ongoing.
I'm sure someone can better explain the precise grammar, is one of those perfect and one imperfect or something? I forget.

Just to be clear this is absolutely not a pedantic SPAG post and there's nothing wrong with how you phrased the question but you asked why people thought you thought it was new and that's how I read it.

How on earth was this post remotely helpful?

She was correcting my grammar - without an ounce of knowledge.

Never did I suggest that this was a new thing. And why post such crap?

It's like coming on to a thread where a poster says

I've been feeling suicidal vs I'm suicidal.

The point is the same.

If some saddo can only correct the tense that I'm using rather than read the content of what I'm saying, then I have no fucking idea why they would decide to comment.

She seemed to think that my use of 'are taking' to mean that this was a new thing. It has always been thus.

Talk about utterly missing the fucking point!!

There is absolutely nothing within the use of 'are taking' to suggest that this is a new phenomenon. It's splitting hairs with someone who is suicidal. Pointless and bullshite to be frank.

I'm sorry you felt that way about my comment. I did specifically say it wasn't a SPAG correction. I was literally answering your question about why people kept saying it isn't new.

I thought you wanted to know why people were asking you that and I was giving you the answer. A lot of people read it the way I did which wasn't wrong but it made the conversation divert from what you wanted it to be to you having to reiterate that you know it isn't new.

I really wasn't trying to do anything other than give you a helpful answer to a question you posed. I thought it would lessen your understandable frustration about people missing the point.

I'm sorry it has upset you. It wasn't a grammar correction for no reason. It wasn't even a grammar correction, it was an explanation of why so many people misunderstood.

Honestly @Hatstrategicallydipped, @DappledThings was only trying to suggest why people were misunderstanding the angle you were coming from, there really was so malice intended!

Hope you are feeling a little better after being unwell.

If people can't read plain correct English, then I'm afraid that there is nothing that I can do.

@PrimeraVez

Honestly *@Hatstrategicallydipped, @DappledThings* was only trying to suggest why people were misunderstanding the angle you were coming from, there really was so malice intended!

Hope you are feeling a little better after being unwell.

No malice?

Is that how you treat a suicidal person? Ask them to clarify what tense of English they are using?

Any fucking wonder the police are left dealing with suicidal patients!

No malice?

Is that how you treat a suicidal person? Ask them to clarify what tense of English they are using?

That isn't what I did. I am very sorry for how you are feeling, I simply wanted to help you by answering a question you asked. I thought this would be helpful to you as it would stop people focussing on that one tiny aspect of your post.

I'm not sure I'm going to convince you of that but it really wasn't criticising your grammar or asking you to change it. It was just attempting to answer your confusion about why people were telling you it wasn't new.

I hope you continue to get all the help you need.

Yes I knew this! My sister is a cop. She’s naturally empathetic and gets sent to lots of sensitive cases - mental health issues, domestic violence, anything involving kids, sexual assault etc.. it’s a part of her job she loves but which can take a toll on her mental health.

@Hatstrategicallydipped

Any fucking wonder the police are left dealing with suicidal patients!

That poster wasnt having a dig.

Is this what you want from this thread, to get upset and angry over 1 post you've taken the wrong way?

Hope you get the help you need for your troubles.

Op you've taken the post the wrong way.

@DappledThings was trying to help you and you've completely missed that and aren't listening to everyone else who has pointed that out to you.