In Michigan's UP, emergency mental health transport remains big burden

LANSING – Last year, someone called Upper Peninsula support group director Robin Spindlow, threatening suicide.

After the person refused help, Spindlow filed paperwork for police to assist with the emergency. 

The person was taken to the local hospital and held in protective custody by two Luce County Sheriff’s Department officers for 12 hours before being taken to a psychiatric hospital in Kinross — about an hour away.

Spindlow said the person was lucky to get that comparatively “quick” response.

In her years working for Tahqua Journey Drop-in Center, a mental health clinic in Newberry, Spindlow said multiple clients have waited up to three days before law enforcement officers could transport psychiatric patients from a local hospital to a psychiatric care facility — a process Luce County Sheriff Eric Gravelle said often involves heavy sedation.

Rural Michigan continues to have a shortage of psychiatric beds, according to Health & Human Services Department data. 

Gravelle and other sheriffs across the Upper Peninsula said the nearest available psychiatric bed is often between 8-15 hours away in Wisconsin or downstate — as far south as Battle Creek.

With each of their departments handling from one to seven transportation orders a month, they agreed mental health transportation is a significant burden on UP law enforcement resources despite a law intended to address the problem.

Spindlow said the burden is shared with residents who struggle with suicidal thoughts in a region where a stigma surrounds mental illness.

“There’s a strong feeling of despair,” Spindlow said of her clients’ experiences. “Having to sit and wait in a hospital setting is quite scary, and it’s very isolating.”

Legislators have attempted to address the state’s behavioral health care shortage for over a decade, including transportation problems.

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If someone reports that another person is experiencing a mental health emergency — threatening harm to themselves or others — a probate judge can issue a pickup order, said Michigan Sheriffs’ Association Executive Director Matthew Saxton.

On receiving such an order, officers are required to take the person to an emergency room, Saxton said. An officer must stay with the person until a medical evaluation is complete.

If treatment at a behavioral facility is required, the officer must transport the person there.

“That could tie up one or two officers for hours on end,” Saxton said. “In rural Michigan (counties), there may only be one or two deputies on shift.”

In 2022, legislation sponsored by Sen. Ed McBroom, R-Waucedah Township, was passed to allow private security companies to transport patients experiencing mental health emergencies. 

The new law also established the Mental Health Transportation Fund to pay for such services.

According to state Treasury records provided by the Department of Health & Human Services, no money has been deposited into the fund.

And none of the UP sheriffs reached by Capital News Service in Luce, Mackinac, Delta, Gogebic, Menominee and Alger counties said they were aware of private companies in their area providing mental health transportation in the event of a court order.

Alger County Sheriff Todd Brock said transportation orders affect his department “deeply,” leaving his department understaffed for about eight hours twice each month.

Gogebic County Sheriff Jorje Cruz said his department responds to between five and seven pickup orders each month, with more during the winter.

“Transport companies would help,” Cruz said, “but they’re not here.”

To address the problem, Lauren LaPine of the Michigan Health and Hospital Association said her organization is working with the Health & Human Services Department to implement and fund behavioral health transportation services at hospitals across the state.

While the plan is only in the discussion process, LaPine said such transportation would be separate from ambulance services.

“We believe that a patient shouldn’t have to be transported via police transport for behavioral health needs,” said Lapine, the association’s senior director of legislative and public policy.

At the community level, Spindlow is working to expand access to facilities like Tahqua Journey that provide support before individuals face a crisis.

Residents without access to transportation can call for a free ride to and from Tahqua Journey, Spindlow said. The center also provides rides to the local hospital if a client is having a crisis.

The fear of rejection or judgment from friends, family or doctors is an additional obstacle to receiving mental health care in rural communities before an emergency, she said.

Capital News Service originally published this story.