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More funding needed for mental health helplines

Mental health helplines can help communities in a simple and cost effective way, new research has suggested. The Mental Health Helplines Partnership (mhhp) and the Mental Health Foundation have launched a new report, calling for more funding for the helplines.

Helplines can support patients, carers and family and friends, but with increased demand and funding cuts, service delivery is becoming more difficult.

The research was conducted to determine the effectiveness of services and found that helplines can offer a crucial source of information, early intervention and future cost savings, whilst forming a part of a patient’s overall care package.

The findings also suggested there was a lack of awareness of the benefits of using helplines, but warned that helplines should not replace other services. Callers to helplines report positive outcomes and calls can often lead to the patient contacting a health professional for further care and support.

Eva Cyhlarova, head of research at the Mental Health Foundation, said: “Helplines are a fantastic resource which can help save lives. It is not acceptable that they are not used as much as they should because of a lack of awareness which results in people’s mental health worsening and not getting the help that they need. There is a need to help more people access these highly valuable services.

“We’re hoping that better promotion of the helplines to the general public and increased awareness of their services among health care professionals, thanks to adequate training, will help achieve this.”

Theodore Spyrou, chief executive at mhhp said: “Helplines play an important part in the overall package of care for people with mental health and emotional needs; they also support families, friends, carers and other professionals.

“This evaluation enhances the evidence base for helplines by capturing data and views from key stakeholders including callers, helpline workers, GPs and Community Mental Health Teams. Helplines provide cost effective solutions and alternatives to statutory services, particularly out of hours.

“We encourage commissioners and funding bodies to recognise their value and ensure helplines are adequately resourced to maintain and expand the invaluable contribution they make towards delivering the key objectives contained in the Government’s mental health strategy.”

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