Pressure on A&E due to system failure of mental health services
- 07 May
Concern has been raised around the lack of community provision for people with mental illnesses through leaked minutes from a crisis care concordat steering group.
Leaked minutes from a government-attended steering group has revealed that a large number of people with mental health issues are ending up in A&E wards due to a "system failure", reports the Guardian.
In the meeting attendees heard that people with mental illnesses were presenting themselves at A&E wards due to the inadequate provision for them in the community.
The minutes suggest that the failure to treat mental health patients properly is contributing to pressure at A&E wards in NHS hospitals in England, which have missed the target of 95% of people to be seen within four hours for 93 weeks in a row.
They state: "The RCEM [Royal College of Emergency Medicine] raised a concern that high numbers of people ending up in A&E indicates a system failure. People return to A&E because community plans are not working for them."
Responding to the leaked document minutes, Rethink Mental Illness chief executive, Mark Winstanley, said community mental health services were "badly funded and overstretched".
He added: "This has to change because it's costing lives. Everyone should be able to get access to a hospital bed close to home whenever they need it, no matter where they live or what their circumstances. We also need the next government to urgently invest in community mental health care, like crisis and early intervention services; otherwise the system will continue to fail people with mental illness."
What do you think of this? Tweet us your comments @suppsolutions
Related articles
- 11 Sep
People in Bedfordshire can find mental health support through an audio guide
The guides have been written by clinical psychologists and are available to download in print or listen to as an audio file, reports Bedfordshire News.Dr Judy Baxter, Clinical Director with BCCG and...
- 10 Sep
Police officers in Dorset to receive mental health training
The partnership with the University comes as part of the county’s Mental Health Street Triage Project. It is hoped to equip officers with improved knowledge and skills to assess members of the...
- 09 Sep
People in Peterborough can refer themselves for mental health services
Through a drive to offer support to more people and ease pressure on doctors, people living in Peterborough can self-refer themselves to mental health services, reports Peterborough Today.Dr Adrian...
- 08 Sep
The first mental health centre for men
The site has been set up by Alex Eaton, whose dad took his own life and has suffered with mental health problems himself, in Burton upon Trent, reports BBC Newsbeat.Mr Eaton said: "We are the only...
- 07 Sep
NHS trust told no mental health beds available
Dr Bohdan Solomka has said that on Sunday a lack of beds were applied across the NHS and among private providers, reports the BBC. The director of the Norfolk and Suffolk NHS Foundation Trusts...
- 07 Sep
Over 16,000 mental health referrals for young people have been rejected
Between July last year and June this year, data from the NHS has found that Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services rejected 5,396 referrals, reports STV News.Over the last three years 16,565...
- 04 Sep
New mental health centre to open in Ardwick
Plans to build a new £6m treatment and recovery centre in Manchester have been revealed. It will be built in Ardwick and be run by Alternative Futures Group, reports the Manchester Evening...
- 03 Sep
Research finds more chance of re-offending if mental health issues are present
Research has found that ex-prisoners with mental health problems and drug and alcohol misuse are more likely to commit violent offences after release than other former prisoners, reports the...
- 02 Sep
Drop in the number of people with mental health issues held in cells
Recent figures have found that the Crisis Care Concordat has seen over 10,000 people receive care from mental health nurses with the support from police officers, reports the Burton Mail.Figures have...
- 02 Sep
Mental health social work scheme accepting applications
100 places are now available for applicants who have a 2:1 or above undergraduate degree and can demonstrate attributes such as resilience and empathy, reports Community Care.The Think Ahead...
What are the Future Funding Arrangements for Supported and Sheltered Housing? "Really enjoyable presentation, knowledge of presenters was excellent" M.D. - Community Integrated Care
"Michael Patterson's #supportedhousing #blog: #ValueGeneration, a new way of funding & commissioning service for peo… https://t.co/UrygcMyTZG" read more
"The latest Invest In Prevention! https://t.co/FJXqQ0RYPB Thanks to @VS_WestMidlands @_IntegrateUK @EmpManPaul #ukhousing #socialhousing" read more
