Health New Zealand and New Zealand Police have agreed the next step for Phase Four of the Police Mental Health Response Change Programme, which will see handover times reduced from 60 minutes to 30 minutes. Initially Phase Four looked at reducing handover times from 60 minutes to 15 minutes when a person detained under the Mental Health (Compulsory Assessment and Treatment) Act 1992 is brought into the Emergency Department by Police.
Over recent months, both Police and Health have engaged with district teams, partners and agencies to assess whether it would be safe and practical to reduce Emergency Department handover times from 60 minutes to 15 minutes. Feedback from district leaders and frontline teams has been central to this work. Following those discussions, it was agreed that a universal 15-minute handover is not currently safe, feasible or sustainable to implement. Instead, Health NZ and NZ Police will work towards a handover within 30 minutes where it is safe to do so.
Health NZ and NZ Police are actively progressing work to confirm the implementation and timing for the introduction of the 30-minute change, ensuring it can be delivered safely and sustainably.
The following are Briefings/Aide-Mēmoire to the Minister of Mental Health and Minister of Police regarding Phase 4 of the Mental Health Response Change Programme.
Visit the Mental Health Response Change Programme page for more information.
| Reference | Date | Ministerial Briefing / Aide-Mēmoire |
|---|---|---|
| AM/26/41 (PDF, 678KB) | 1 Apr 2026 | Ministerial Briefing to: Hon Mark Mitchell, Minister of Police ad Hon Matt Doocey, Minister for Mental Health Mental Health Response Change Programme – Programme Update and new Phase Four approach |
| AM/26/61 (PDF, 194KB) | 8 May 2026 | Aide-Mēmoire to: Hon Mark Mitchell, Minister of Police Update on Phase Four of the Mental Health Response Change Programme |
| AM/26/95 (PDF, 426KB) | 15 Jul 2026 | Ministerial Briefing to: Hon Mark Mitchell, Minister of Police ad Hon Matt Doocey, Minister for Mental Health Mental Health Response Change Programme –Phase Four 15-minute Emergency Departments (ED) handovers of detained persons |