12th September 2024
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News round-up (13 September 2024)
A report has found that there is a postcode lottery for ADHD treatment, with wide variation in the use of the shared care agreements needed for GPs to be able to prescribe ADHD medications. At the same time, the Mental Health Foundation has drawn attention to the poor quality of many of the mental health plans published by integrated care systems, with only six of the 42 evaluated deemed “excellent”. This week also sees the launch of a statutory inquiry into the deaths of 2,000 mental health patients in Essex. Relatives hope that the inquiry, the first of its kind, will lead to reform of mental health services nationwide. There is good news too, as we report on a study that shows that mindfulness meditation is successful at reducing pain compared to a placebo – and that the effect shows up on brain scans.
Main stories from the week
NHS broken but not beaten, says PM following publication of Darzi report
The NHS “may be broken, but it’s not beaten”, said the Prime Minister in response to the Darzi report, speaking to The King’s Fund on the morning of its publication.
Thousands of new graduates going straight to long-term sickness
Tens of thousands of students are going onto long-term sickness straight from graduation, a new report has found.
Putting money into mental health services would boost the economy, report finds
Spending more money on mental health would do more to boost economic growth than building new roads, according to a new analysis from the London School of Economics (LSE).
Virtual reality project launched to help homeless people improve mental health
A virtual reality project has been launched that will help homeless people in London to improve their mental health and prepare for independent living.
Other stories from the week
Young adults let down by ‘postcode lottery’ for ADHD treatment
There is huge variation in treatment for ADHD, a national survey has found.
More than 750 people, including commissioners, health care professionals working in primary care, and people with lived experience of ADH, completed the MAP National Survey (Mapping ADHD services in Primary Care).
The survey found variations in “shared care” agreements between GPs, mental health specialists and patients – which need to be in place for GPs to be able to prescribe ADHD medications. This was a particular problem when young people move to adult mental health services, the survey found, suggesting the current system lets down adolescents at a critical time in their lives.
Shared care agreements are not always easy to set up, the survey found, with evidence suggesting that GPs may not feel sufficiently supported to prescribe in this way.
Inquiry launched into mental health deaths
A statutory public inquiry examining the deaths of almost 2,000 mental health patients in Essex is now underway.
The Lampard Inquiry, chaired by Baroness Kate Lampard, is investigating the deaths of people who received mental health inpatient care in Essex between 2000 and 2023.
People who died within three months of discharge, as well as those who died as inpatients receiving NHS-funded care in the independent sector, will be included in the inquiry.
The inquiry is expected to hear commemorative evidence from friends and relatives about some of those who died, before taking testimony from former patients about their experiences.
Julia Hopper, a parent whose teenage son is one of those who died after receiving care from the trust, said: “The beauty of this inquiry in Essex, if it’s done properly, is having the changes that we need that will safeguard everybody all over our nation. And this one is the first in history. Let’s do it, let’s do it here, let’s use this opportunity to do it properly.”
Meditation for pain is not a placebo, brain scan shows
Mindfulness meditation engages distinct brain mechanisms to reduce pain, new research has found.
The study, conducted by researchers at the University of California, used advanced brain imaging techniques to compare the pain-reducing effects of mindfulness meditation, a placebo cream and a “sham” mindfulness meditation in healthy participants. Two separate clinical trials of 115 people involved randomly placing participants into groups to be given four interventions: a guided mindfulness meditation, a sham-mindfulness meditation that only consisted of deep breathing, a placebo cream (petroleum jelly) that participants were trained to believe reduces pain and a control group who listened to an audiobook.
The researchers applied a painful but harmless heat stimulus to the back of the leg and scanned the participants’ brains before and after the interventions.
They found that mindfulness meditation produced significant reductions in pain intensity and pain unpleasantness ratings, and also reduced brain activity patterns associated with pain and negative emotions.
Although placebo cream and sham-mindfulness meditation lowered pain, mindfulness meditation was significantly more effective at reducing pain when compared to placebo cream, sham-mindfulness meditation and the controls.
Mental health charity calls for increased prevention funding
Approximately 10 million people in England are living in an area which has a substandard mental health plan, according to a new report from the Mental Health Foundation.
An evaluation from the charity of the Joint Forward Plans of Integrated Care Systems (ICS) indicated that six were “excellent,” 28 had “good features” and eight were “poor”.
The Mental Health Foundation said that the weaker ICS plans were a result of the necessary resources not being in place. The “vast majority” of issues with the plans could be addressed by the UK government, the charity said.
The elements of the mental health plans deemed “excellent” included a focus on vulnerable groups and inequalities, effective governance and commitments to mental health prevention funding. The charity said that addressing funding and workforce issues could give local leaders the necessary headroom to focus on and improve public mental health provision.
Record 14,508 police officers signed off from work with mental health issues in past year
A record 14,508 police officers in England, Wales and Scotland have been signed off work with mental health problems in the past year, according to a survey from the publication Police Oracle.
This translates into about one in 12 police officers from the 171,000-strong workforce being off work with mental health issues at some point during the year. The figures show an increase of 9% on 2022-23 – and an increase of 130% on 2012-13.
Of the 43 forces that provided figures in response to a Freedom of Information Act request this year and last year, 31 had an increased number of officers being signed off for mental health reasons.
The UK’s fourth largest force, West Midlands Police, reported the highest number of mental health absences, at 1,128. The second largest force, Police Scotland, reported 1,110 absences in 2023-24, and Greater Manchester Police had 1,028 absences, up 71% on last year. Cleveland showed a 526% increase in mental health absences.
The figures support the findings of the most recent National Police Wellbeing Survey, which found that officers were suffering from high levels of fatigue. Nearly seven in 10 described their fatigue level as “high”, while 28.9% said it was “very high”.
Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust has published a prior information notice stating its intention to create a framework for the provision of online and digital mental health assessments, treatments and therapies, with an estimated value of up to £35 million.
The services will cover children and young people’s digital mental health services as well as digital therapy services for adults. The services will encompass eating disorders, mental health assessments, goal-based intervention, autism and ADHD and online counselling.
The trust wants to understand the level of interest from potential suppliers, and is holding virtual engagement events on 23 September.