A lack of early intervention means the ACT's mental health services are failing to help people before their condition becomes critical, carers and community mental health groups have warned.
As a result, Canberra police officers say they are being drawn more and more into potentially lethal confrontations with mentally ill patients.
The failure comes as magistrates also express disillusionment with the system, claiming the courts are being used to deal with mentally ill offenders who should be helped by other agencies.
Several carers of mentally ill family members who spoke to The Canberra Times complained of difficulty reaching the 24-hour Mental Health ACT Crisis Assessment and Treatment Team or of being told to call police when they did get through.
One carer said she was forced to lock herself in her car last week to escape a violent family member, but was kept waiting for more than a quarter of an hour on the phone.
''I'm never going to call them again, I'm so disillusioned,'' she said.
For more on this story, see today's Canberra Times.
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