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Contemporary United Kingdom mental health legislation and policy has been going through important changes. Revision of mental health service delivery is going to look very differently in a few years time. The objective of these changes is to provide services that are much more responsive and appropriate to service-user needs.
It is recognised that approximately one in six people will develop a mental illness or experience symptoms of a mental illness considered serious enough for them to seek help. The family GP is usually the first port of call who will then make referrals to other appropriate professionals and services such as psychiatrists and social workers. Some GP surgeries often have social workers as part of their team; combining health and social care to provide a connected care approach when working with patients/service-users. This approach enables social workers to work alongside the GP and other mental health professionals - offering the patient/service-user a complete support and treatment package within their community. Currently, there is consideration to expand this social worker inclusion in the community through the provision of GP style surgeries; whereby, the social worker would offer consultations similar to that of a doctor's.
Further discussions pertaining to this topic are continued in the following tabs:
The European Union's Strategy for Mental Health
In 2005, the World Health Organisation (WHO) produced, in collaboration with European Ministers, a framework that would provide a comprehensive, political commitment for mental health. The ensuing green paper provided Europe with a debate on the issues of mental health and how best to improve service provision. This paper sought to involve and engage mental health services, institutions, and workers and has proven to be a fairly successful initiative.
This European mental health framework/green paper highlighted three significant areas requiring improvement. These were:
- Mental ill health can lead to suicide - a cause of too many deaths
- Mental ill health causes significant loses and burdens to the economic, social, educational, as well as criminal and justice systems.
- Stigmatisation, discrimination, and non-respect for the human rights and the dignity of mentally ill and disabled people still exist, challenging core European values (European Commission Green Paper, 2005, cited in Golightley, M, 2006, pg3).
This green paper also describes how mental ill health is a significant concern for the European Union and supports the view held by the WHO that by the year 2020, Depression will be the highest ranked disease in the developed world. The focus of the green paper serves to make changes to mental health services; prevent, where possible, mental ill health; and improvement of mental health information, facilities, services, and research.
England and Wales Strategy for Mental Health
In recent years, the government has set about making improvements to the provision of the mental health services. Two significant documents that are particularly relevant are:
- Modernising Mental Health Services (Department of Health, 1998)
- The NHS Plan (Department of Health, 2000)
These policy documents specifically highlight the need to provide services that are holistic and person centred for those that use mental health services. The underpinning thought behind these policies is that if there is a combination of supportive, key initiatives, people will feel a greater sense of belonging to their respective communities, and be more likely to seek support and treatment sooner - challenging social exclusion. Therefore, an increase in service provision specifically geared towards previously excluded groups has been the focus of service development over recent years. That is services are now more able to meet the needs of women, black and ethnic minority groups, and people with hearing impairments.
Since the implementation of these policies, mental health service provision has generated a more significant focus on the provision of inclusive community facilities as opposed to the institutionalised services seen prior to the National Health Service and Community Care Act (1990). This initiative is further reinforced by a series of targets and mission statements highlighted in the Mental Health National Service Framework (1999).
The Mental Health National Service Framework requires seven standards. There are:
- Standard One seeks to challenge the discrimination and social exclusion correlating to mental ill health.
- Standards Two and Three seek to promote primary mental healthcare services, with the inclusion of 24/7 crisis support.
- Standards Four and Five outline what services are required to be provided for people with mental health problems: including a requirement for the familiarity of the Care Program Approach (CPA).
- Standard Six highlights the importance of service provision for people who care for those who have a mental illness, ensuring that social services make assessments of their needs.
- Standard Seven identifies what is required to reduce suicides: involving social workers in wider range of environments.
These standards support and run alongside the aforementioned policies as well as the standards implemented by the Care Standards Act (2000) - governed by the Commission for Social Care Inspectorate - now the Care Quality Commission (CQC). The CQC ensure that all adult services meet a set of minimum standards and provide an appropriate and adequate level of service. A part of their remit is to carry out regular inspections of care services and provide constructive feedback on areas for improvement.
These are only a few of policies that have influenced improvements to mental health services. Further articles on policy and legislative development are provided to support this subject.
Reference
- Golightley, M, (2006), Social Work and Mental Health, Second Edition, Exeter, Learning Matters
Written on Thursday, 04 June 2009 07:53 by Companion
