{"id":1107,"date":"2017-10-10T12:01:50","date_gmt":"2017-10-10T12:01:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs-staging.imperial.ac.uk\/ighi\/?p=1107"},"modified":"2019-03-28T16:40:46","modified_gmt":"2019-03-28T16:40:46","slug":"the-state-of-mental-health-in-the-uk-where-are-we-going-wrong","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs-staging.imperial.ac.uk\/ighi\/2017\/10\/10\/the-state-of-mental-health-in-the-uk-where-are-we-going-wrong\/","title":{"rendered":"The state of mental health in the UK: Where are we going wrong?"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"300\" height=\"200\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-1109 alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/blogs-staging.imperial.ac.uk\/ighi\/files\/2017\/10\/window-view-1081788-300x200.jpg\" alt=\"\" \/><em>By Erin Hallett, Head of Alumni Relations, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.imperial.ac.uk\/business-school\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Imperial College Business School<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif\">Today is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mentalhealth.org.uk\/campaigns\/world-mental-health-day\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>World Mental Health Day<\/strong><\/a>. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif\">Every year on 10 October healthcare professionals, advocates, patients and other stakeholders come together to raise awareness of global mental health issues and encourage efforts in support of mental health. The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wfmh.global\/wmh-day\/wmhd-theme-2017\/\">World Federation for Mental Health<\/a> has set this year\u2019s theme as mental health inthe workplace.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><!--more--><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif\">Mental health is a topical issue in the UK and firmly under the microscope of government. Prime Minister Theresa May said in January this year that, \u201cFor too long mental illness has been something of a hidden injustice in our country, shrouded in completely unacceptable stigma and dangerously disregarded as a secondary issue to physical health.\u201d Last week in her speech at the Conservative Party Conference, the Prime Minister announced they will be launching a review of the <em>Mental Health Act <\/em>to address the established injustices in the system. The government has also recently committed to additional funding in support of mental, both for the NHS and for the private sector.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif\">The government\u2019s response can\u2019t come soon enough. Mental health statistics in the UK are alarming.<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mind.org.uk\/information-support\/types-of-mental-health-problems\/statistics-and-facts-about-mental-health\/how-common-are-mental-health-problems\/#.WddUwNKWyUk\">Approximately a quarter of people in England<\/a> will experience a mental health problem each year, with anxiety and depression being the most commonly reported. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mentalhealth.org.uk\/statistics\/mental-health-statistics-most-common-mental-health-problems\">8% people<\/a> meet the criteria for diagnosis.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif\">Mental health affects <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mentalhealth.org.uk\/statistics\/mental-health-statistics-mental-health-work\">approximately 15% of UK employees<\/a> and contributes to a significant loss of staffing and financial resources for organisations.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif\">Common mental health problems are <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mentalhealth.org.uk\/statistics\/mental-health-statistics-men-and-women\">more prevalent in women than men<\/a>, and nearly double the amount of women are diagnosed with anxiety disorders.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif\">Children also suffer from mental health problems, with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mentalhealth.org.uk\/statistics\/mental-health-statistics-children-and-young-people\">10% of children<\/a> and young people (5-16 years) have a clinically diagnosable mental health problem. However, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mentalhealth.org.uk\/statistics\/mental-health-statistics-children-and-young-people\">70% of this same group<\/a> haven\u2019t received the necessary support or interventions.\u00a0<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif\">Depression is on the rise in the UK\u2019s ageing population, with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mentalhealth.org.uk\/statistics\/mental-health-statistics-older-people\">approximately 22% of men and 28% of women aged 65<\/a> and over being affected.<\/span><\/li>\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif\">Men are <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mentalhealth.org.uk\/statistics\/mental-health-statistics-suicide\">three times as likely to take their own life than women<\/a>, and it is the most <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mentalhealth.org.uk\/statistics\/mental-health-statistics-suicide\">common cause of death for men between 20 \u2013 49 in<\/a> England and Wales.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif\">These statistics only tell part of the story of mental health in the UK and around the world. Despite the fact that they obviously prove an urgent need for action and reform, mental health is still often considered the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/healthcare-network\/2017\/sep\/06\/experiences-mental-health-care-nhs\">\u201cCinderella service of the NHS.\u201d<\/a>\u00a0Professionals worry that physical and mental health problems aren\u2019t treated with the same degree of seriousness and patients often face stigma.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif\">And there doesn\u2019t look to be any immediate relief from these challenges.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif\">The findings of a recent report by NHS Providers, referenced in this <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/society\/2017\/jul\/07\/nhs-bosses-warn-of-mental-health-crisis-with-long-waits-for-treatment\"><em>Guardian <\/em>article<\/a>, found that mental health services are overwhelmed by increased demands from patients and longer waits for treatment. Quoting from this article, \u201cThese concerns point to a growing gap between the government\u2019s welcome ambition for the care of people with mental health needs and the reality of services they are receiving on the frontline,\u201d said Saffron Cordery, NHS Providers\u2019 director of policy and strategy.\u00a0 She added, \u201cIn some cases core mental health service provision by mental health trusts is actually getting worse.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif\">As members of the Imperial College community, we have the power to advocate for change and help end stigma around mental illness. Imperial College London is committed to <a href=\"http:\/\/www.imperial.ac.uk\/health-and-wellbeing\/mental-health\/\">promoting positive mental health and wellbeing<\/a> and included it as a priority in their <a href=\"https:\/\/www.imperial.ac.uk\/media\/imperial-college\/about\/leadership-and-strategy\/public\/Strategy2015-2020.pdf\">Strategy 2015-2020<\/a>. The College also offers and signposts to a variety of mental health resources, as well as offering <a href=\"http:\/\/www.imperial.ac.uk\/equality\/support-for-staff\/training\/mhfa\/\">Mental Health First Aid training<\/a> for staff to support colleagues and students.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.imperial.ac.uk\/business-school\/alumni\/professional-interest-networks\/\">Imperial College Business School\u2019s Healthcare Professional Interest Network<\/a> originated as a forum to bring attention to topical issues, like mental health, and create a space for intelligent debate and discussion. For the last seven years, they have hosted numerous successful events and grown an expanding global network through their <a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/groups\/2017985\">LinkedIn group<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif\">The Network\u2019s next event is on the evening on 9 November and is titled, <strong><em>The state of mental health in the UK: Where are we going wrong? <\/em><\/strong>They have attracted a panel of experts, including Sir Simon Wessely, FMEdSci, King\u2019s College London Regius Professor, Stuart Mulheron, Commercial Lead Neuroscience at Johnson &amp; Johnson, and David Gilbert, Patient Leader, InHealth Associates. They will discuss the current mental healthcare situation in the UK and the many challenges this critical area faces.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif\">We invite everyone to join us for this important discussion that we are confident will encourage future events on the topic of mental health. We all have a part to play in bringing light to this \u201chidden injustice.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif\">Please register to attend the event <a href=\"https:\/\/www.imperial.ac.uk\/business-school\/events\/alumni\/state-mental-health-uk-going-wrong\/\">here.<\/a>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Erin Hallett, Head of Alumni Relations, Imperial College Business School\u00a0\u00a0 Today is World Mental Health Day. Every year on 10 October healthcare professionals, advocates, patients and other stakeholders come together to raise awareness of global mental health issues and encourage efforts in support of mental health. The World Federation for Mental Health has set [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1013,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[273199],"tags":[273160,232664,81449,272837],"class_list":["post-1107","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-brain-and-mental-health","tag-anxiety","tag-depression","tag-mental-health","tag-world-mental-health-day"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs-staging.imperial.ac.uk\/ighi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1107","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs-staging.imperial.ac.uk\/ighi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs-staging.imperial.ac.uk\/ighi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs-staging.imperial.ac.uk\/ighi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1013"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs-staging.imperial.ac.uk\/ighi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1107"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/blogs-staging.imperial.ac.uk\/ighi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1107\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1506,"href":"https:\/\/blogs-staging.imperial.ac.uk\/ighi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1107\/revisions\/1506"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs-staging.imperial.ac.uk\/ighi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1107"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs-staging.imperial.ac.uk\/ighi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1107"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs-staging.imperial.ac.uk\/ighi\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1107"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}