A crazy idiot? Police description of mentally unwell person

[unfairopinionmaybe]

I'm really not sure if I'm being unfair. NC'd for this post...

Police officer in full uniform at a hospital (I had taken a relative) stepped outside but still within hearing range of general public

Described the patient we were aware he was accompanying on a personal call he was making as "a crazy idiot who said they needed to be sectioned" to who they were talking to on the phone

I felt really upset at the attitude, the person clearly was unwell and I don't think it would have upset me so much had I heard it from someone not in police uniform (it's a difficult job, and I'm sure very stressful) but in uniform and next to the hospital they'd bought the unwell person to, within hearing of general public- I felt oddly uncomfortable/upset at the attitude towards an incredibly vulnerable and unwell individual they'd accompanied

Other officers seemed very compassionate and somewhat protected the dignity of the person whilst this one was calling them "a crazy idiot" so I don't mean to slate all police officers but I felt like had they said it out of uniform- whatever, have whatever private opinions you want but in uniform isn't there a duty to be respectful if anyone will hear you and you're discussing someone who is mentally unwell enough to need to be escorted to hospital? I'm not really sure if I felt so angry because it was actually an awful thing to say or because I felt like the police need to be super conscious of their attitudes towards very vulnerable individuals especially when overheard by the public after recent cases and they were letting their colleagues who seemed to be doing a great job down whilst showing a lack of empathy towards someone pretty sick

Why would you think it didn't ?

Do you think police officers aren't capable of doing inconsiderate and thoughtless things and then not wanting to apologise for them ?

I mean, we aren't talking a mass conspiracy theory here.

Generally I avoid the police where possible so the interaction I have with them is pretty limited, but I have learnt from experience they aren't exactly open to criticism.

Like most people I think the police have a tough job, and if I have issue with them I would prefer to chat to them about it and discuss the issue rather than take their number and report them. But experience tells me that isn't necessarily going to result in a positive outcome.

As a mother of someone with serious and ongoing MH issues and having had to deal with the police a lot - I have my upmost sympathy for them (and a brother in the police). The police shouldn’t be dealing with the MH issues to the level they are. But the MH system is on its knees in the community and Hospitals. The police have to step in. It’s a known fact and they should behave accordingly regardless if their personal opinion.

In uniform, on duty, you shouldn’t be making such comments where the public can hear you. There are professional expectations on their behaviour and this cops fell short if it. Imagine the family of the person overhearing that as they came in?

Yes I’d complain. He needs to be made aware of the public’s opinion and to be more mindful and careful in the future.

As for posters saying the police must know if someone’s putting it on etc - not always. And they aren’t trained to be MH experts.

my son is a high functioning paranoid schizophrenic who is treatment resistant (ie it doesn’t work - but he has an injection weekly). He can pretend / mask his paranoia etc quite well to others and they think he’s better etc. I often get told ‘he seems ok’. He’s not. It’s the calm front folks get. Not the madness swirling just below the surface.

crazy idiot - it was cruel, unprofessional and unnecessary. He could have just stayed he was guarding a MH patient and awaiting them to be assessed.

Probably they thought I was an asshole and it wasn't worth it.

But I can at least hope it made them think about their behaviour a bit more.

Do you know for sure that he was actually referring to the patient as "a crazy idiot who they said needed to be sectioned"? - given that you could only hear one half of the phone conversation.
The other person on the other end of the phone could have asked "Who called you to this incident?"
I don't know as I wasn't there but I am aware that sometimes, in life, things aren't always what they seem - though sometimes, they are!

Yes, this.

@GasPanic
🤣

I agree with what you’re saying the services are stretched but it’s still unacceptable. I work for the NHS and for years I worked on a gastro ward with very little staff. A lot of our service users were alcoholics who had this type of behaviour, constantly in hospital for nothing basically but to call them a ‘crazy idiot’ in my uniform would be highly inappropriate. I would expect someone to put a complaint in

A lot of our service users were alcoholics who had this type of behaviour, constantly in hospital for nothing basically
And you don't get why someone who's being ridiculously stretched just to provide basic services should find their patience wearing thin when faced with this nonsense; over and over again?

Fgs OP you're offended on someone else's behalf and think you should make a complaint? Get a grip.

You have to ask yourself as well, why are so many people mentally unwell? It didn't used to be like this.

Thats such a good point. That could be exactly the conversation. Just because the OP has interpreted a brief one side of the conversation the way she has doesn't mean it's the right interpretation.

If nothing else for that reason alone I wouldn't report it

You say about 'other officers' OP so I guess there were at least 3. Then that makes me think that this man was challenging to deal with. And challenging in this circumstance could be something that put both his and the officers safety at risk.

Yes, it's not ideal that you heard this but you've just had a couple of seconds in what would have been a long ordeal for all involved. Plus you don't know what's happened before this call or the context.

Unfortunately the lack of MH services and funding for police has led us to where we are now - people needing the correct support and intervention not getting it and people on the front line that are placed in situations they are not professionally trained to deal with whilst feeling completely burnt out.

I don't know why people keep using the term "mental health" to describe what is probably a serious psychiatric issue.

As for the police officer, they have enough to deal with and are regularly put at risk by people who would be safer in a secure hospital of some kind. Deinstitutionalization has a lot to answer for.

I can remember dealing with a young male who had a mental health breakdown. He climbed onto a roof and proceeded to strip the roof of tiles, throwing them into the road causing damage to people's cars, houses etc.

The police were heavily criticised by the community for treating this guy with dignity and respect in getting him down. Keeping him calm by offering him food and water and allowing him to come down and get the help he needed.

The amount of derogatory comments being shouted at him by the public/crowd was unreal. As was the backlash the police officers received at the scene by the public.

People can be idiots and also have poor MH, the two are not mutually exclusive.

Heard a policeman having to deal with this aggressive arsehole in A&E a few weeks ago. The guy was being horrendous to the policeman. How he held it together I don't know. If he had used those words on the phone outside I would not have blamed him. Get on with your life and don't make a fuss when you've only seen a tenth of the picture!