Impact of change to mental health call-outs assessed

SAM VOLPE on how a study will examine a controversial shift in policy by police forces across the country

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A £1.3M Newcastle-led study will examine the impact of moves by police forces to no longer attend mental health call-outs.

The change to policy, called “Right Care, Right Person”, means that when there is not an immediate risk to life or of crime, police call handlers will advise a caller about other agencies they can contact rather than send officers.

That could be, for example, the ambulance service or mental health crisis teams.

The change has been backed as a way of ensuring that the best professionals to handle a given situation are made available to those in mental health crisis, but the policy's implementation has been criticised over the months since it was brought in, including by coroners.

Now, a new study called PIONEER-MH - led by professors at both of Newcastle's universities and the Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Trust - will examine how the policy is “affecting people in crisis”. It will look at “whether the changes are improving safety, access to care and outcomes”.