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Improving Police Officer Interactions with Individuals Suffering from Mental Illness

Amy Weisman, Ph.D.
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Information

Date & Time

Learning Objectives

Participants will be able to:

  • Identify at least three strategies that could help officers improve interactions with people with SMI and reduce the likelihood that violence will occur.

  • Describe a potential psychological intervention for police officers that could improve their mental health and teach them more effective ways of interacting with people with SMI.

  • Summarize the challenges police officers face and how their own mental health influences their interactions with individuals with serious mental illness.

Educational Goal

The educational goal of this workshop is for participants to gain practical insights into how police interactions with individuals with severe mental illness (SMI) can be made safer through improved officer training and trust-building strategies. They will learn effective approaches for crisis response and understand the importance of supporting officers' mental health to foster more compassionate and impactful engagement.

Description

Police-induced deaths disproportionately affect individuals with severe mental illness (SMI), eroding trust in law enforcement and institutions and discouraging mental health care access. This presentation explores findings from a mixed-methods study on enhancing safety in police interactions with individuals with SMI. It highlights practical strategies to improve officer training, foster trust, and ensure compassionate crisis response. Additionally, tailored interventions to support officers' mental health and equip them to manage high-risk situations will be discussed. By implementing these approaches, we can promote safer, more effective interactions and improve outcomes for both officers and individuals with SMI.

Target Audience

  • Addiction Professional
  • Counselor
  • Marriage & Family Therapist
  • Psychologist
  • Social Worker

Presenters

Amy Weisman, Ph.D.
Amy Weisman is currently a Professor at the University of Miami and a licensed clinical psychologist. She earned her doctorate at The University of Southern California and completed her clinical internship at UCLA. Her research is focused on family and cultural factors that influence the course and outcome of serious mental illness. She has published over 100 manuscripts in areas related to mental illness. In 2021, she published a treatment manual on her Culturally Informed Therapy for Schizophrenia, in the Treatments that Work Series by Oxford University Press. Her research has been funded by NIMH, The John Templeton foundation, APA, and other agencies. In 2018, she was the recipient of the Stanley Sue Award for Distinguished Contributions to Diversity in Clinical Psychology by APA’s Division 12 (Clinical Psychology). In 2021, she received the Trailblazer Award from ABCT’s Psychosis and Schizophrenia Spectrum Special Interest Group.

Financially Sponsored By

  • APA Division 18: Psychologists in Public Service