Reinstate a Mental Health Unit in Medway 

The police currently spend up to a third of their time dealing with mental health cases. One of the major drivers behind the number of cases is that getting referred for treatment at a place that is accessible is extremely difficult.

In Medway, referrals for Mental Health assessment are sent out of area; the closest place of referral is Dartford. The simple fact is that many patients will not take up the referral for a variety of reasons. This results in patients seeking solace from the law, who are duty bound to act, but this means committing an offence to bring attention to the situation.

The current system encourages patients to either commit offences, or it drives patients to other ways of calling out for help, often using extreme means to do so. Self harm and suicide are the end results of a failure to treat mental illness or respond to calls for help.

This situation should not continue. If patients presenting were referred to local services in a straightforward way, much waste would be taken out of the system and health care would be provided at the point of first contact, instead of later on in more harmful ways.

The rules affecting police treatment of mental health cases are changing. If services are not available and the duty for the police is removed, these patients will be left with only  extreme measures to get the help that they need.

Medway Liberal Democrats are campaigning to reinstate a mental health unit in Medway. We believe that Medway needs these services. If you agree, sign our petition.