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What if mental health workers responded to emergency calls? | Leslie Herod

Visit to get our entire library of TED Talks, transcripts, translations, personalized talk recommendations and more. When you report an emergency in the US, police, firefighters or paramedics answer the call. What if mental health professionals responded, too? Colorado State Representative Leslie Herod shares a straightforward and research-backed approach that brings heart and humanity to…

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When you report an emergency in the US, police, firefighters or paramedics answer the call. What if mental health professionals responded, too? Colorado State Representative Leslie Herod shares a straightforward and research-backed approach that brings heart and humanity to criminal justice rather than unnecessary fines and arrests — and keeps crises from escalating into traumatic, or even deadly, events.

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73 Comments

  1. Reebs

    April 2, 2021 at 5:31 pm

    People will use it for free therapy

  2. Undesignatedsurvivor

    April 2, 2021 at 5:43 pm

    I agree cops shouldn’t be mental health workers so they can focus on crime, but mental health workers should be out of the way until the police have done their jobs and the person is safely in custody. Cahoots should only take over after the scene is cleared. When the “suicidal” guy goes nuts and starts slicing cahoots up with the box cutter he had hid up his sleeve or his keister, or whatever, everyone will be asking why the police didn’t do their jobs and let it happen.

  3. Zeroth1507

    April 2, 2021 at 5:43 pm

    Probably be Alot of blood

  4. Michael

    April 2, 2021 at 5:50 pm

    So she was there for an hour and then just left?! Her and this “mental health” team just left someone in crisis? With means to harm themselves no less?! I’m sorry, but that doesn’t sound right… being a LEO, we would never, ever leave someone in crisis, no matter how long or what the outcome… but they can just leave? So basically sending in the “health professionals” from the get go did absolutely nothing…

  5. Joseph V. Weiss

    April 2, 2021 at 6:10 pm

    Sounds like a terrible idea that gets people killed

    • Chita S

      April 2, 2021 at 7:48 pm

      You don’t know what you’re talking about. There have been multiple cases where mental health workers would’ve responded better than the police. The police don’t know how to deal with civilians having a mental health crisis.

  6. Jake Morrow

    April 2, 2021 at 6:11 pm

    without watching the video the answer would be… more people would die until the police actually showed up.

  7. Micah White

    April 2, 2021 at 6:29 pm

    Because mental health situations can turn out to be very dangerous.

  8. mbar

    April 2, 2021 at 6:57 pm

    God bless you. Thank you.

  9. JC1028

    April 2, 2021 at 7:00 pm

    OMG what an idiotic simplistic talk. Even in her own example, they went and talked for an hour and just left? So they then laid themselves wide open to liability. Horrible example which just happened to luckily end well.

  10. A S

    April 2, 2021 at 7:21 pm

    … then mental health workers will be killed… on the plus side, plenty of job openings for mental health workers! TED now sponsors stupidity and is indoctrinating the ignorant.

  11. Adam Rafeedie

    April 2, 2021 at 7:30 pm

    This is so dumb

  12. Anna L. Vajda

    April 2, 2021 at 8:11 pm

    Or you could properly train police to deseculate situations which they should do anyway.

  13. Angela Sealana

    April 2, 2021 at 8:18 pm

    Well worth watching.

  14. Michael Cayce

    April 2, 2021 at 8:22 pm

    I am not against helping people in need. But the worlds current mental health technology is in the dark ages. The only thing that we can do is pump the metally ill full of drugs until they are completely disfunctional and harmless.

  15. PhoebeFay RuthLouise

    April 2, 2021 at 8:35 pm

    I live in Eugene, Oregon and our Cahoots works really well! For all of you speculating that it’s too dangerous for the mental health workers, look up the statistics for Cahoots and see what happens in the real world!!

  16. Jenny Coffey

    April 2, 2021 at 8:37 pm

    Like they do in China where ignorance is mandated.

  17. Pan Holo

    April 2, 2021 at 9:04 pm

    Great vid, amazing work

  18. August

    April 2, 2021 at 9:20 pm

    Ridiculous. Some of you seriously have no clue what it is like to be an officer. Please go watch videos on YouTube where police body cameras are responding to emergency calls. You will realize very quickly why an unarmed social worker is not equipped. Those of you who think this is a good idea are naive and you would be putting that social worker in grave risk.

  19. Vilma Granelli

    April 2, 2021 at 9:21 pm

    I get sad by all these comments by people who dont seem to understand the big picture. She is talking about a new option when calling 911.

    • Abhorsen, The

      April 2, 2021 at 10:28 pm

      Hopefully it’s an option that will see seldom use because these mental health workers will get hurt and some will get killed.

  20. BonesTheCat

    April 2, 2021 at 10:18 pm

    Why mention “You probably think I’m wanting to abolish police? Not exactly”. Police are run on minimal funding as it is. You want a mental health professional in at least 1 in 5 cars? (which will be required) I get it. You’re talking about referrals. An option for police to refer people (like child services but for mental health crisis) that haven’t committed a crime. People aren’t jailed for being mentally ill (Yes I know. Please move on if that raises your outrage finger). They’re jailed for breaking the law. You’re conflating various topics. Police need to establish the required response. The title of this video is misdirection.

  21. waddac2

    April 2, 2021 at 11:13 pm

    Thanks for great video.. I am at the moment going through mental health due to lock downs and furlough . In that time of lockdown, I looked at trains that passed my home and thought of walking up and jumping… My mind and brain said “No, you have a wife and Son”
    I still have thoughts of the train now as lost my job the other day.

    • Leftie Snowflake

      April 3, 2021 at 3:54 am

      Medication & regular exercise can help.

    • Ashi Sirin

      April 3, 2021 at 2:05 pm

      We are in this together. You are not alone. Don’t do it. Life is precious.

    • waddac2

      April 3, 2021 at 5:10 pm

      Ive had major operations in the past, so exercise can be a strain for me. That is why I had dark thoughts of ending my life. I had been supporting my wife and Son for 16 years of work at my current job… but a hole has sunk me in like quick sand after loosing my job.

    • waddac2

      April 3, 2021 at 5:13 pm

      Thank you, but my mind still hits the point of no return and want to end things. I have had life saving operations in the past, but feel I need to end it.

    • OdavidS

      April 3, 2021 at 8:20 pm

      Get a reason to fight for sth. ex. Fight against politicians prolonging this lockdown. They are killing you and many others. Trump is a horrible person but he was right when he said, “the cure cannot be worst than the problem”.

  22. jana banana

    April 3, 2021 at 12:00 am

    Yes! But that would make sense.

  23. keezi walks

    April 3, 2021 at 12:49 am

    beautiful talk

  24. djoecav

    April 3, 2021 at 2:19 am

    I honestly don’t know why people are turning this into a political issue, as always. Psychotic breaks, episodes, bridge jumpers, autistic meltdowns and the like don’t need to be met with armed law enforcement officers. They just don’t. Obviously cops could still handle anything that doesn’t fall under that umbrella. Violent offenders, thieves, child endangerment cases, robberies, property damages, what have you. But some of y’all are acting like you heard her say “Replace cops with nice people holding flowers 🥺” and it’s intellectually dishonest of you to react that way without actually listening to the ted talk.

  25. Cyber Wick

    April 3, 2021 at 2:43 am

    The pressures of this world is effecting,most people.whqts going to change?.

  26. PrK Zoomin

    April 3, 2021 at 3:19 am

    A Good Quote, Count your blessings not your problems.

  27. Flynn Flan

    April 3, 2021 at 4:24 am

    Nobody asked

  28. georgiaman1926

    April 3, 2021 at 4:59 am

    How is it that there is money all of a sudden for mental heath workers? When one calls suicide prevention we are told there is no money for mental health facilities. So if a person needs such a facility where are these mentally ill people taken?

  29. tucciproducer

    April 3, 2021 at 6:42 am

    Comment

  30. stillpaints

    April 3, 2021 at 6:43 am

    If mental health workers responded to calls you’d have a bunch of mugged health workers.

  31. A Casual Data Scientist

    April 3, 2021 at 1:26 pm

    If this was the case, there would be more homicides

  32. Scott Espeseth

    April 3, 2021 at 1:28 pm

    Answer: there would be more dead mental Heath workers.

  33. J

    April 3, 2021 at 1:57 pm

    The only good Communist is a dead Communist

  34. illsmackudown

    April 3, 2021 at 4:40 pm

    What if mental health is a multi billion dollar hoax and we humans need diverse mindsets?

    • D'Hotness McAwesome

      April 3, 2021 at 7:16 pm

      What if all of this is simulation and everyone you know is a plant to keep the “show” going?

  35. RoadHunter72

    April 3, 2021 at 6:14 pm

    “When the only tool is a hammer, every problem is a nail”
    No competent mechanic has only a few vague tools- specific situations call for specific solutions- anything else is in effective, or harmful to success

  36. Erin Ertin

    April 3, 2021 at 6:48 pm

    Amazing Work

  37. OdavidS

    April 3, 2021 at 8:10 pm

    Mental problems or drug problems? How do you converse with a violent drug addict? Imagine a crazy/druggy person comes to your home/workplace, makes a scene, or worst, he’s violent and refusing to leave. How do you remove such a person? With “brutality” or do you send someone to talk to that nutcase for 3 hours? Fcking stupid. Let the police do their job, they need to get tough on ppl resisting arrest.

  38. Michelle Raphael

    April 3, 2021 at 10:04 pm

    Lol

  39. Frances Bernard

    April 4, 2021 at 1:34 am

    Some do while getting paid very little sometimes for it.

  40. Paula L

    April 4, 2021 at 2:03 am

    GREAT IDEA that’ll cost a multitude of mental health workers’ lives before it’s scaled down. She’s great at ‘constructing events’ that back up her agenda yet the number of mental health calls that begin…BEGIN with first responder being attacked are is high. YES; this is a good idea in select events…

  41. Paula L

    April 4, 2021 at 2:06 am

    TRY THIS IN BALTIMORE aaand let’s see how many minutes it’ll take for the first ‘Star Team Expert’ to get skewered with a 9″ knife by Mr. ‘He’s not in the right and doesn’t look like he’s armed”

    • NANCOK

      April 7, 2021 at 4:15 pm

      They aren’t going to send the workers alone lol
      You don’t see doctors being sent head first into danger do you? why would they do it with them?

  42. SpaceViking

    April 4, 2021 at 2:22 am

    and then they get shot

    • NANCOK

      April 7, 2021 at 4:18 pm

      They aren’t gonna put a therapist in front of an armed criminal, stop making stupid excuses

    • SpaceViking

      April 7, 2021 at 5:07 pm

      @NANCOK how do they know that the person isn’t armed? Stop making stupid assumptions, and look at all the body cam footage where normal domestic calls goes from 0 to 100 in a second.

    • NANCOK

      April 7, 2021 at 7:46 pm

      @SpaceViking Because cops are armed and trained so they are ready to head in, social workers aren’t and need extra protection which they ARE given
      They don’t say “hey, that guy is unarmed so you can just walk up to him and talk”
      you are the one making the stupid assumption that they would just throw someone into the fray

  43. Tom Abramoff

    April 4, 2021 at 3:58 am

    This is a great idea but all it takes is one therapist getting killed and that has already happened multiple times

    • NANCOK

      April 7, 2021 at 4:08 pm

      Which is why the cops must also be involved, ALSO, medics have gotten killed on work before and you don’t see people calling for hospitals to stop sending emergency services

  44. Thomas De Quincey

    April 4, 2021 at 7:08 am

    This is such bollocks. Are mental health workers going to respond to a roaming schizophrenic with a gun? The question should be – What if mental health workers responded to manageable emergency calls?

    • NANCOK

      April 7, 2021 at 4:24 pm

      What? you think they will tell the worker to go up to the guy and talk him down alone? They will obviously have protection when necessary and won’t be put in clearly mortal danger

  45. Julie Sidorova

    April 4, 2021 at 11:12 am

    So many thoughts after watching! Thank you! You are amazing!

  46. gülistan eryılmaz

    April 4, 2021 at 1:32 pm

    why not turkısh translete

  47. Kieran Lines

    April 4, 2021 at 2:07 pm

    They do in Western Australia

  48. Titan XRX

    April 4, 2021 at 9:48 pm

    .

  49. Fernando SV

    April 4, 2021 at 10:14 pm

    i’m a psychologist and volunteer firefighter and this was very meaningful, thank you

  50. Tighty Whitey

    April 5, 2021 at 1:16 pm

    Can’t wait to see the retrospective video once a social worker literally loses their face from an emergency call.

    • NANCOK

      April 7, 2021 at 4:07 pm

      So if a doctor does it is ok?

    • Tighty Whitey

      April 7, 2021 at 4:17 pm

      @NANCOK So if a doctor does it is ok?

  51. Arveena Kaushal

    April 6, 2021 at 4:37 am

    This is a great idea for everyone who is going through mental health and it might change the world for the better. Especially going through this pandemic 😷. Stay safe everyone.

  52. Charlotte Scott

    April 6, 2021 at 8:04 am

    I love this idea. And what if our UK government actually funded mental health services so that people didn’t reach crisis so often before they were helped.

  53. Kristina Grabowski

    April 6, 2021 at 5:51 pm

    Fantastic!!

  54. The Gateway Productions - Therapeutic Music

    April 7, 2021 at 10:31 am

    Fantastic upload! They should teach the importance of mental health in schools. Well done!

  55. Nunna Ward

    April 7, 2021 at 11:17 am

    This country has a HUGE mental health crisis. Starting with the police.

    • NANCOK

      April 7, 2021 at 4:11 pm

      Oh, the US has bigger problems to fix before they can focus on this, sadly, like stopping prisons of being purely for profit concentration camps

  56. T Carter

    April 8, 2021 at 2:47 pm

    I’m on the Mobile Crisis team in Atlanta. Anytime we get a call where any type of weapon is involved, aggression and or violence we respond WITH the police. It works.

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