The development of a mental health screening tool and referral pathway for police custody

Time spent in police custody should present an opportunity for the early identification of mental ill health. However, this stage of the criminal justice system (CJS) is currently the least developed in terms of its links with health and social services. In England, police custody sergeants administer a standardized risk assessment tool to determine a detainee's need for health-care and/or risk reduction measures while detained. Specialized mental health services are often reliant on this process to generate referrals; however, previous research has shown this to be ineffective. The aim of this study was to develop an improved mental health screening tool and referral pathway to better identify individuals with mental ill health in police custody.

Mental health professionals, police officers and service users across six sites throughout England took part in qualitative interviews, controlled feedback consultations and an action learning group.

By combining a previously validated CJS mental health screening tool with elements of the custody risk assessment, the Police Mental Health Screening Questionnaire (PolQuest) was created. It is accompanied by a referral pathway that outlines services' responsibilities, expected actions and response times.

The study resulted in a screening tool, referral pathway and training package. PolQuest is expected to facilitate the mental health screening of all adult detainees; improve the early identification of mental ill health; aid timely access to services; provide clear indicators for referral; and reduce ambiguity in the roles and responsibilities of staff across a range of criminal justice and health-care services.