Police and mental health in elementary and secondary schools: A systematic review of the literature and implications for nursing.

UNLABELLED

WHAT IS KNOWN ON THIS SUBJECT?: Police are often called on to respond to student mental health needs in schools. School nurses, who are part of interdisciplinary mental health teams, may collaborate with responding police officers. Currently, there are no reviews of the literature describing the use of police to respond to mental health crises in schools. WHAT THIS PAPER ADDS TO EXISTING KNOWLEDGE?: This systematic review found six articles addressing police response to student mental health needs in elementary and secondary schools. Articles primarily focused on the School Resource Officer programme; however, there was a lack of research on the effectiveness of this and other programmes in addressing the mental health needs of students. This paper highlights a significant gap in knowledge about how police are involved in responding to student mental health crises within schools. WHAT ARE THE IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE?: Understanding how police respond to mental health crises on school campuses will help nurses serve in collaborative roles with responding officers. This study highlights gaps in research that need to be addressed for researchers and policymakers to best support students in crisis.

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: Response to student mental health crises involves interdisciplinary school-community teams, which can include police officers. This paper presents the first systematic review of literature on how police address mental health in school settings. Results have implications for school nurses interacting with responding police.

QUESTION/AIM: How are police involved in responding to student mental health needs in elementary and secondary schools?

METHOD

Using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) framework, six articles met criteria for inclusion in this review.

RESULTS

Two themes were identified: (1) descriptions of roles of police in schools and (2) studies presenting programmes or models of police engagement. The most common use of police in schools is through the School Resource Officer model.

DISCUSSION

There are very few studies examining police involvement in mental health response in schools and little data available on whether prevailing models are effective. We are therefore unable to ascertain what impact school police have in responding to mental health crises or the extent to which they interact with school nurses.

IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE

Understanding mental health crisis responses in schools can inform policy, practice, research and education for police and school providers, including nurses.