People experiencing mental health crises are better served by specialists than police, whose presence can instead escalate potentially fatal situations, an internal review has found.
NSW Police released the findings of a major review into the force's response to mental health incidents within the community on Thursday after a series of deadly confrontations involving officers.
The review has sparked renewed calls for immediate action, saying people with mental illnesses cannot afford to wait.
Police across the state respond to more than 60,000 mental health incidents annually, a 60 per cent increase since 2018.
But in most of those call-outs, no offence had been committed and there was no threat of violence, the review noted.
While police were best equipped to respond to incidents involving criminality and public-order concerns, other health professionals were able to provide more appropriate care for people experiencing mental health crises, it said.
Police Minister Yasmin Catley said there was a consensus that people with mental health issues needed appropriate medical care.
“This is a complex issue and it’s important we have the right processes and support in place to address mental health incidents within the community," she said.
“We want to explore an alternate model so police can respond to crime first and foremost, and those experiencing mental ill health can receive the right care.”
The report also acknowledged police could sometimes escalate a situation involving a person with mental illness and "increase the potential of adverse outcomes".
In 2023, the police watchdog found half of all NSW police-involved deaths or serious injuries related to a person experiencing a mental health crisis.
Premier Chris Minns said a new response to mental health crises was needed but recruiting experts would take time.
"I can't click my fingers and bring about that change overnight because we'd need to recruit people to do the job," he said on Thursday.
"It's very difficult to do that when they're in short supply."
NSW Police and health officials are working through the report's findings to develop options for an alternate response to mental health-related incidents.
A specialist Mental Health Command has also been set up to provide advice and oversight within police ranks.
Greens MP Sue Higginson criticised the government for its slow response.
“The review that has been released today is five months old and identifies, in no uncertain terms, that police should not be responding to mental health incidents," she said.
"Yet this government has no plan to change things.
"This review feels like a lead balloon - it does nothing other than talk about the problems."
In April, an inquest into the death of Todd McKenzie, who was shot three times while having a psychotic episode, found police were not adequately equipped to deal with mental health calls.
Mr McKenzie's death was one of a series of recent cases involving deadly police interactions with people during mental health-related episodes.
In September 2023, Krista Kach died after being tasered and hit with a bean-bag round following a 10-hour stand-off with police in Newcastle.
Four months before that, 95-year-old Clare Nowland, who had dementia, died after police tasered her at a Cooma nursing home.
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