Emergency departments should not be default option for people with mental health crisis, says report

Hospital emergency departments should not be seen as the default option or “holding pen” for vulnerable people experiencing a mental health crisis, the College of Emergency Medicine has said, after a survey highlighted poor service provision for people detained under section 136 of the Mental Health Act.1

Recently the plight of people experiencing a mental health crisis who are detained in police cells has received much attention.2 3 The college pointed out that an emergency department was also a poor environment for such people, as the noise and bustle can be agitating, frightening, and disorienting to vulnerable people. In addition, confidentiality is usually …