Mental Health in UK
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Mental health entails the presence of the social, psychological, and emotional well-being of an individual (Cummins, 2018). Therefore, mental health ensures that we positively interact with others and cope with everyday stressors. In the UK, it contributes to approximately 23% of the national disease burden, therefore, huge budgetary allocations (Jack et al., 2018). This essay seeks to identify and summarise measures/reforms that the UK government had taken between 2010 and 2015 to address mental health services.
The reforms broadly covered access to the services, prioritised mental health services, increase access, and addressed inequalities in care. From the onset, the reform prioritised adequate number and training of healthcare professionals with mental health skills. Such health care professionals ranged from mental health nurses, psychiatrists to social workers (Beck, Farmer, and Wykes, 2021). The reform’s aspect of increasing the number of mental health professionals was geared towards providing specialised skills like counselling to a specific population. Training of healthcare workers, in turn, was geared towards equipping them with evidence-based skills that ensured informed mental health services provisions (Purtle et al., 2020). Secondly, the reforms proposed a framework that could guide the healthcare professionals and forces/police on preventing the incidences of suicide. The framework was to assist in identifying those at risk of suicide, including prisoners and veterans.
Thirdly, to ensure improved access to mental health in the country, the reform tasked local health boards to trace the victims in the community (Smith et al., 2019). The initiative was directed towards outreaching the mental health patients who cannot access services. Therefore, the boards had the role of minimising or reducing mental health inequalities in various parts of the UK.
The fourth reform involved putting mental health at one level with physical health. The policy sought to remove any barriers or misconceptions from the public that could make physical health enjoy all the concentration from relevant health agencies like the NHS (Waugh et al., 2017). As a result, mental health was made a public health priority in the country and an indicator for the national measure of well-being. The fifth reform involved the provision of the population at risk with appropriate psychological therapies. The therapies which involve cognitive-behavioural interventions were directed towards reducing the incidences of depression that are the highest form of mental health in the country (Naik et al., 2020). This resulted in increased funding, which accumulated to approximately £400 million across the duration.
The sixth reform sought to increase the public’s awareness of mental health illnesses and their effects on the population. The campaigns were majorly directed towards reducing the stigma and discrimination that mental health victims face (Atkinson et al., 2019). The last policy was directed at improving the effectiveness of mental health services in the country. The policy stressed the identification of mental health by improving school health and reinforcing the position of mental health organisations (Carr et al., 2017). Such organisation includes the Samaritans and Child-Line. The Samaritans are tasked with assisting mental health victims through donations and collecting mental health data across the UK. The ChildLine service seeks to offer mental health services to those below 18 years of age. Such services include counselling.
Conclusion
The UK’s mental health reforms of 2010 to 2015 acted like a foundation in which the future of psychological and social well-being of the population is anchored. Through instituting the effectiveness of mental health and recruitment of more health care professionals, the UK laid the ground for sensitisation and access to mental health.
References
Atkinson, C., Thomas, G., Goodhall, N., Barker, L., Healey, I., Wilkinson, L. and Ogunmyiwa, J., 2019. Developing a student-led school mental health strategy. Pastoral Care in Education, 37(1), pp.3-25.
Beck, A., Farmer, P. and Wykes, T., 2021. Proposed reforms of the Mental Health Act. BMJ, 372, p.727
Carr, S., Holley, J., Hafford-Letchfield, T., Faulkner, A., Gould, D., Khisa, C. and Megele, C., 2017. Mental health service user experiences of targeted violence and hostility and help-seeking in the UK: a scoping review. Global Mental Health, 4.
Cummins, I., 2018. The impact of austerity on mental health service provision: a UK perspective. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 15(6), p.1145.
Finch, J., Ford, C., Lombardo, C. and Meiser-Stedman, R., 2020. A survey of evidence-based practice, training, supervision and clinician confidence relating to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) therapies in UK child and adolescent mental health professionals. European Journal of Psychotraumatology, 11(1), p.1815281.
Jack, H.E., Fricchione, G., Chibanda, D., Thornicroft, G., Machando, D. and Kidia, K., 2018. Mental health of incarcerated people: a global call to action. The Lancet Psychiatry, 5(5), pp.391-392.
, Y., Abbs, I., Elwell-Sutton, T., Bibby, J., Spencelayh, E., Shafique, A., Burbidge, I., Antink, B., Alanko, L. and Anttila, J., 2020. Using economic development to improve health and reduce health inequalities. Health Foundation. Available at https://alumni.health.org.uk/sites/default/files/upload/publications/2020/InclusiveEconomiesReport.pdf
Purtle, J., Nelson, K.L., Counts, N.Z. and Yudell, M., 2020. Population-based approaches to mental health: history, strategies, and evidence. Annual Review of Public Health, 41, pp.201-221.
Smith, M.S., Lawrence, V., Sadler, E. and Easter, A., 2019. Barriers to accessing mental health services for women with perinatal mental illness: systematic review and meta-synthesis of qualitative studies in the UK. BMJ Open, 9(1), p.e024803.
Waugh, W., Lethem, C., Sherring, S. and Henderson, C., 2017. Exploring experiences of and attitudes towards mental illness and disclosure amongst health care professionals: a qualitative study. Journal of Mental Health, 26(5), pp.457-463.
Description
Summarize key policy areas addressed in the UK governments 2010 – 2015 agenda for mental health service reform.
Must consider such areas as increasing access to mental health services and psychological therapies, ensuring health professionals are properly trained and suicide prevention.
Must in-text reference, do not title headered paper only plain word document.