According to Lieutenant Patrick Vega of the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office, the need for training local law enforcement in handling cases of mental illness has only recently increased.
“Over the last five years the number of Baker Acts and Marchman Acts have increased, here in Santa Rosa (County),” Vega said.
Baker Acts involve individuals who are either voluntarily or involuntarily detained for mental health services, evaluation or treatment, while Marchman Acts involves those dealing with substance abuse.
Which is why there is a continuing need for Crisis Intervention Team, or CIT, training. This form of training educates law enforcement on how to deal with individuals dealing with mental illness.
Since 2007, first responders from several local law enforcement agencies consisting of both the Santa Rosa and Escambia county sheriff’s offices, police officers from Pensacola, Milton and Gulf Breeze police officers are just some of the first responders to take part in the training, which occurs quarterly with assistance from the Lakeview Center.
“This gives us the understanding of what is possibly going on,” Vega said. “It’s all about interpersonal skills, it’s about listening, it’s about understanding and recognizing what is going on.”
Like Vega, Lakeview CIT coordinator Mary Carter said Lakeview continues to see growing numbers in both Baker and Marchman Acts.
Just some of the training comes from a first responder detecting the signs of mental illness by simply having a conversation with an individual.
“It really takes listening to someone to know something is not right,” Carter said.
In addition to asking a person about medications, law enforcement is also encouraged to give the individual in question some boundaries along with the opportunity to process what is happening, she said.
Another growing concern is the number of school age children dealing with mental health issues. Which is why Vega finds it important that area school resource officers undergo CIT training.
Vega said the CIT training consists of the many different aspects of handling cases involving mental health, which also involve dealing with individuals diagnosed with autism, dementia or those who are under a great deal of mental distress.
One example are those reeling from the economic downturn, Vega said.
“A lot of people lost everything that they had, they had to go through these crises, but they weren’t mentally ill,” Vega said. “They were just reaching a breaking point.”
CIT training continues to benefit the department, according to Vega. Who estimated only four instances this past month in which force was used in more than 50 cases involving mental illness.
However, Vega insists there are instances when CIT training cannot be utilized.
“Even with these illnesses, the potential for violence is still there and the bottom line is, you do what you got to do to protect yourself and the community and that is something a lot of people don’t realize.”
Another issue is how mental health is conceived in today’s society, he said.
“The problem is that mental illness still has the stigma attached to it, nobody wants to talk about mental illness,” Vega said. “If you speak to one person, I can guarantee you either they either have someone in their family that is mentally ill or they know somebody in their inner circle that has mental illness, but nobody wants to talk about it.”
Plus officers are more likely the first to come in contact with a person dealing with mental illness than a certified mental health specialist, Vega said. Those suffering from a mental illness are more likely to be incarcerated than receiving proper treatment.
However with CIT training and other resources available regarding awareness, the key is making everybody aware.
“The more we can get the word out about mental illness and how to recognize the signs and symptoms of it, the better off the community is going to be to begin with,” Vega said.
This training is being conducted with no funding, he said. All of the instructors volunteering their time and the officer are undergoing the training during a regular shift.
“We are still missing out on the officers working on their shifts, however I think the return is far greater,” he said.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Mental illness training aids SRSO