Middleton, who is a registered mental health nurse, said a review of the Mental Health Act in 2018 found that it was not fit for purpose, it also mentioned that the use of compulsion, seclusion and restraint was disproportionately high for Māori and Pacific people.
“We’re operating in a space where the legislation of our compulsory treatment which is the framework by which the police and many systems are structured is damaging and harmful.”
Middleton said the present approach meant someone who could be very paranoid or reactive and might have other historic trauma had to deal with police in a “potentially heated environment”.
“By taking that person off the streets that person has already entered a coercive process, they’ve been detained by the police, which is not the best start for anyone to get well.
“It’s the sort of thing some people never recover from.”
Middleton said part of the reason Te Oranganui was hiring a cultural lead to be a part of Hāpai Mauri Tangata was because of the negative impact mental health systems have had on Māori and Pacific people.
“People who have been through the experience of compulsory mental health treatment, picked up by the police, waiting in the cells for three or four hours, then assessment, then treatment, it’s traumatising.”
Whanganui Police Area Commander Neil Forlong said mental health-related events had increased by 73 per cent over the past five years.
“We’re acknowledging that health professionals are far better equipped to deal with these situations than a police constable.”
Forlong said there was a huge demand on services with a large number of calls not being related to criminal activity but from people who were “really worried” about family or friends.
“It has been a cause of demand for our services that we can really improve on, while we dealt with it the way we dealt with it, we need to start thinking a little differently about the way we do things.”
A mental health specialist was stationed at Whanganui police station in 2022 for a trial run of the process and Forlong said this was an “outstanding success”.
“It’s a huge advantage to the police.”
Other trials are also being run by the New Zealand Police in Taranaki and Wellington.
Te Oranganui Mātaiwhetū (CEO) Wheturangi Walsh-Tapiata said the police genuinely wanting to form relationships with groups of other people from the community was a positive development.
“I think we are behoven to supporting whānau and if that means we have to work a whole lot more collaboratively then that’s what we should be doing.”
Walsh-Tapiata said there had been a significant gap that left the police with very few options when handling people with mental health issues.
“Albeit it is still very fresh, very new for us, but we are feeling very excited about the future.”
The two-and-a-half-year funding for Hāpai Mauri Tangata was secured through a Proceeds for Crime bid: a pool of funding the Ministry of Justice acquires from cash and assets seized by the police from crimes.
The New Zealand Police, Balance Aotearoa, Te Whatu Ora Whanganui and Te Oranganui worked collaboratively to produce the request.
The jobs currently being advertised by Te Oranganui for the project are clinicians for mental health, family harm, alcohol and drug and a cultural lead.
These will be joined by an information analyst and two peer support workers from Balance Aotearoa.
