Ambivalence About Receiving an Emergency Dispatch Following Crisis Line Contact: A Needed Yet Imperfect Intervention

Veterans Crisis Line (VCL) responders may initiate emergency dispatches when individuals are at high risk for suicide, risk cannot be reduced, and self-transportation to emergency care is not possible. The purpose of this study was to understand veterans' experiences of emergency dispatches following a crisis line contact.

Forty veterans (29 men; 11 women) who contacted VCL and received an emergency dispatch were recruited. Participants completed semi-structured interviews exploring their experience of the VCL contact and receiving a dispatch. Transcriptions were analyzed using descriptive thematic analysis.

Individuals who received an emergency dispatch recognized that VCL provides a resource that helped them cope with overwhelming distress and suicidal thoughts when they had nobody to turn to while connecting them with healthcare, which may have saved their lives. They also noted that there were problems with police involvement that reduced autonomy, were perceived as hostile, and may have prevented them from contacting VCL again.

VCL is meeting a core need for veterans who are at high risk for suicide by facilitating coping during crises and connection with care. However, policy makers, responders, and researchers need to consider the potential negative impact of police involvement and consider alternative responses.