This month the Prime Minister announced that an extra £1 billion will be invested in mental healthcare by 2021.
For too long there hasn’t been enough focus on mental health care in this country meaning too many have had to suffer in silence.
The extra £1 billion a year for mental health care, will mean that a million more people will benefit from mental health support by 2020. Mental health must get the attention in the NHS it needs.
The vision of a 7-day mental health service is a bold, but right one. It will mean people will get the care they need, when they need it, and will help us do much more to prevent mental illness in the first place. For the first time we will truly deliver equality between mental and physical health.
Improvements will include;
(1) Investing £1.5 million in helping to train young people to spot the signs of mental health
issues. This funding is the latest of £1.4 billion investment to improve young people’s life chances and will be used to help develop ‘Peer to Peer’ support networks, encouraging people to talk openly about mental health.
(2) Improving access to ‘Talking Therapies’ that help those with conditions like anxiety or depression. Investment of £308 million will mean 800,000 people will get the support they need through talking therapies.
(3) Investing £50 million in programmes to find work for with people with mental illnesses. Individual Placement and Support Programmes and doubling the number of employment advisers will help to place people with mental illness in work, these programme can save £6,000 per person on reduced inpatient costs.
(4) Placing mental health services in hospital emergency departments. So people receive support 24 hours a day, 365 days a year we will ensure that psychiatric services are available in A&E.
(5) Introducing the first waiting time standards for mental health treatments. Most patients needing talking therapies will be guaranteed treatment in six weeks.
