Today (16 October) we have published updates on two pieces of work that highlight the issues people face around access to mental health services.
The reports look at mental health rehabilitation inpatient services and mental health services in acute trusts. While we found some progress, there is still a need for improvement across both areas.
Mental health rehabilitation inpatient services – 2019 update
This report follows up from our 2018 briefing on mental health rehabilitation inpatient services.
Mental health rehabilitation inpatient services are a key part of our mental health system. They provide people with serious mental health problems with specialist treatment and support.
The number of beds situated a long way from patients’ homes is a concern for us. This could result in people becoming isolated from their friends and families and cut off from the local services that will provide care following discharge.
We make recommendations in the report for commissioners, NHS England and ourselves to improve the care for people in mental health rehabilitation inpatient services.
Assessment of mental health services in acute trusts
We visited over 100 acute hospitals between September 2017 and March 2019 to look at how well the mental health care needs of patients were being met.
Staff were working hard in difficult circumstances. We found that the system often limited their ability to provide the best possible mental health care to patients.
In this report we recommend steps that providers, clinical commissioning groups and local authorities can take to improve the quality of care for patients.