Groundbreaking NHS recommendations pave the way for a mental health revolution

By Yousif Farah

Image courtesy of weekendnotes.com

Mental health patients and charities including The Mental Health Foundation, Mind and Recovery Focus have all welcomed an announcement by NHS England committing them to the biggest transformation of mental health care across the NHS in a generation.

The announcement which was made yesterday came in response to a final report carried out by The Mental Health Independent taskforce and chaired by the Chief Executive of Mind Paul Farmer. In the report it is revealed that one in four of us will experience a mental health problem in their life time and that the cost of mental ill health to the economy is 105 billion a year.

The taskforce had made few recommendations which have been accepted by the NHS, among the recommendations investing over £1bn a year of additional funding in NHS care by 2020/21 in order to reach one million more people. For a full list of the recommendations please visit NHS England.

Paul Farmer said: “This is a landmark moment for mental health care in this country, a once-in-a-generation opportunity to transform services and support for people with mental health problems.”

The Mental Health Foundation believes that the latest NHS commitment marks a pivotal moment in the fight for a mentally healthier nation.

Jenny Edwards CBE, Chief Executive of the Mental Health Foundation said:

“The Mental Health Foundation has been calling for a greater focus on prevention and we are delighted that this is clearly reflected in the report”

This groundbreaking report comes less than a week after the release of a similar independent commission-led report chaired by former chief executive of the NHS Lord Crisp and examining the state of acute psychiatric care in the country.

Lord Crisp concluded that sending patients to receive treatments far-away from their communities and homes was a “potentially dangerous” practice which needs to stop also estimated that every month 500 patients have to travel more than 31 miles and sometimes as far as 100 miles to receive acute treatment in psychiatric wards due to the severe shortage in beds. They recommended an end to the practice by October of next year.

In the report Lord Crisp says:

“It is time to end the difference in standards between mental and physical illness” said Lord Crisp.

“People with severe mental illnesses need to find care just as quickly as people suffering from physical illness - and they shouldn’t have to travel long distances too.”

The commission believes the solution to the problem lies in more investment in home-based treatment and a greater role for patients and carers in the service they use.

Poached Creative works closely with many organisations concerned with mental health patients and their wellbeing providing us with an insight on how pivotal mental wellbeing is to patients, their relatives and the community.

 Lately we have been collaborating with Mental Snapp which is a social enterprise endeavouring to tackle the stigma surrounding mental illnesses through a video app that enables mental health service users to tell their own stories by recording short video updates on their mental health, which become a part of their NHS health record.

We have also trained many people who have experienced mental ill health assisting them with finding employment and stability in their lives.

Our employees, trainees and volunteers have contributed many articles pertinent to mental health to our blog, including blogs describing their own struggle with mental illness.

Youth recognition

by Yousif Farah

Youth is a critical period, it is where a generation is made or failed; it is the bridge linking childhood to adulthood and without the right support and guidance the transition can be wobbly and precarious. Ultimately, societies as a whole reap the benefits or bear the burden.

Therefore, it was only sensible of the United Nation to dedicate a day to raise awareness of youth, their achievements and their struggles also highlighting the vital role youth play in shaping our future while enriching the present through skill, talent or through simply being young and progressive.

This week, on 12 August, people from around the globe celebrated the 15^th anniversary since the establishment of International Youth Day.

The day covered 15 areas which affect youth, including education, employment, environment, poverty and health.

Last year the day focused on youth and mental illness, as it stands 20% of youth around the world experience a mental health condition.

This year the focal point of discussion will be youth and unemployment. Ban Ki-moon Secretary General of the UN says in his Youth Day 2015 speech:

"I applaud the millions of young people who are protesting for rights and participation, addressing staggering levels of youth unemployment, raising their voices against injustice, and advocating global action for people and the planet.

Volunteerism is an ideal way to improve society – and it is open to virtually everyone. Youth can also join forces with the United Nations as we move from forging the new sustainable development goals to implementing them. That spirit of action is embodied in the theme of this International Day: Youth and Civic Engagement."

In the UK according to the House of Commons as of May 2015, 15.9 per cent of young people (aged 16-24) were unemployed, that is down 1.9% from the year before. 21 per cent of these young people are long-term unemployed for 12 months or over.

The research reveals a gradual increase in the number of young people securing employment post the economic turmoil. However, if contrasted to periods prior to the economic crisis the figures remain lower.

In this calculation the Commons relied on the definition set out by the International Labour Organisation which includes everyone actively seeking work whether on benefit or not.

According to the organisation, the world as a whole is facing a worsening youth employment crisis, with young people three times more likely to be unemployed than adults. It also warned of a “scarred” generation of young workers facing a dangerous mix of high unemployment, increased inactivity and uncertain work conditions in developing countries.

The ILO estimates the number of youth looking for work worldwide at 73 million.

The International Labour Organisation is based in Geneva and was founded in 1919 in the wake of the Labour crisis which was triggered by World War 1. It later became the first specialized agency in the UN, currently operational in 60 countries around the world.

At Poached Creative we have always been sympathetic towards young people and supportive of their causes, as well as encouraging young people to join our Big Issue Online Journalism Course, we’ve run numerous projects with young people, for instance our latest collaboration with our partners Mediorite to help Camden Council’s youth project board plan, film and produce a documentary. To read about more about our work with youth and youth campaigners visit our campaigns page. 

Depression, the stigma and the reality

Photo: Zeevveez/Flickr

By Yousif Farah

This week is Depression Awareness Week, a week to reflect upon our approach towards mental illness. One in four of us is likely to develop a mental illness at some stage of our lives.

The week aims to raise both awareness and funds to end the loneliness and isolation of depression, and the stigma surrounding it through highlighting what it means to live with the illness.

At Poached Creative mental health is central to our work. As well as working with many local and nationwide mental health bodies and charities including the NHS and Hackney youth charity Off Centre, we have trained many people who have suffered from depression through our Big Issue Online Journalism Course. Many of them have defeated their depression and moved on with their lives - now they are invaluable assets to us here at Poached.

Angela Williams, Deputy Director at Poached says:

“I began my training with Poached Creative when it started in 2009. I was going through some dark times with my depression, training with Poached gave me the confidence, a purpose and a “leg up” to work in a creative environment. Through more people speaking out about mental illness, we can push away the stigma and show that people from all walks of life can be affected, but also treated with dignity and respect.”

Depression - a brief history
It wasn't until the fifties that depression, also known as Major Depressive Disorder by medical care professionals, was linked to a chemical imbalance in the brain.

Prior to that, mental health patients were locked in asylums and treated through basic methods which included sedation, baths and even electrical shocks. At the time, many people dismissed depression as a weakness in the patient’s personality or willpower.

1959 saw the introduction of the landmark Mental Health Act, followed up by advances in psychiatry and drug treatment, and greater emphasis on human rights accompanied by advances in social science and institutionalisation theory. 

More recently, steps have been taken in terms of addressing the issue in the UK.

In the 2010 Equality Act a mental health illness is recognised as a disability if it has a long-term effect on the patient’s normal day-to-day life.

Mental health in the media
Mental health, and depression in particular, are topics often neglected in the mainstream media, overshadowed by coverage of other physical illnesses. 

Public figures such as Alastair Cambell have contributed to a better understanding of mental health issues.

Sadly, some people still ridicule mental illness and those affected by it.

This is what television personality Katie Hopkins had to say to patients suffering from depression:

"To be diagnosed as depressed is the holy grail of illness for many. The ultimate passport to self-obsession. Get a grip, people".

Her remarks caused a public outrage. Katie Hopkins is known for making controversial statements so it's hard to know whether she has been educated of the realities of depression, or whether she views mental illness through subjective light.

The reality of life for a depressed person is bleak: performing daily tasks which a mentally stable person normally takes for granted such as reading a book, talking to a friend or even getting out of bed represents a challenge.

When the demons of depression take over the patient’s life, they can become emotionally destabilised or disconnected and end up isolating themselves. The more severe the symptoms, the more isolated the person becomes, and unless treated the depression is likely to have a devastating impact on someone’s career, relationships or even own life.

Fortunately, organisations like the Depression Alliance, who are behind Depression Awareness Week, have information and help available on their website.

Find out more about Depression Awareness Week and how you can get involved.

Gaps in mental health services need urgent action

Mental health is big news at the moment and organisations that work with children and young people, in particular, are seeing first-hand the affect that funding cuts are having on waiting times and access to services.

Director of creative agency Mediorite, Lucy Ferguson, works with creative young people and shares an office with Poached Creative. She has been frustrated at the gaps in mental health services and recognised that colleagues in other organisations are experiencing the same problems.

She said: "I've got young people working with me who are in crisis, who need help now. I'm not a mental health professional. What are we supposed to do while they wait for mental health services?"

Outgoing president of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, Sue Bailey, last month described services in England as a 'car crash'. Her comments have drawn attention to a funding crisis that the British Medical Association's annual meeting was told would lead to "avoidable deaths and suicides".

At least 1,700 mental health beds have been closed since 2011 and this is putting pressure on in-patient teams to discharge patients as early as possible, in turn increasing the strain on underfunded community mental health teams.

Despite a Government commitment to make mental health as important as physical health, an April 2014 Budget decision has resulted in a cut to mental health services that's 20 per cent greater than the cuts to acute services, according to a letter from six leading mental health organisations.

And it's young people's services that are being hit the hardest.

Young Minds reports that more than half of councils have cut or frozen budgets for child and adolescent mental health.

The number of teenagers who have self-harmed has tripled in England over the last decade, according to a Health Behaviour in School Age Children report.

Early intervention when young people first experience mental health issues has proved to be the most effective, and cost effective, way to tackle the issues.

A report from mental health charity Rethink shows that early intervention that treats young people swiftly when they first experience psychosis, can save the NHS £15 for every £1 spent.

Yet 50% of early intervention teams have faced cuts in the last year.

All this leads me to the conclusion that the current approach to funding mental health services in England is fundamentally flawed. The Government needs to address funding for mental health services now, before more damage is done.

That's why at Poached Creative and Mediorite we're supporting Ben Jolly's petition calling on Prime Minister David Cameron to intervene and properly fund mental health services for children and young people. Sign the petition now.

A Young Minds young people's manifesto in 2012 tells in young people's own words why this is so important. The issues haven't changed. Take a look...