Australia

After reading the article, and as someone who's been in a situation where my partner was mentally unwell, which led to police involvement, I wholeheartedly agree with the article. Mental health staff (acute care) were also on the scene, but the behaviour of the police only escalated the situation and made it more difficult for my unwell partner, for myself, and for the trained mental health staff. We all commented afterwards about how poorly they handled the situation and how we wished that they at least had better training... but the reality is that they're not experienced in mental health. They should have taken a back seat, let the mental health professionals do their job, and only been there for the protection of others, not to escalate the situation and essentially incite further danger and harm to all involved. It was clear that their need for a power trip just made everything harder for everyone. There needs to be some kind of reform.