08.10.11
Centre for Mental Health responds to CQC survey
The Centre for Mental Health has responded to the results of the Care Quality Commission (CQC) survey of people who use community health services.
The 2011 survey showed that only 15% of respondents were in regular paid work and 43% who wanted help or support into finding work did not receive any guidance from the NHS mental health services.
Over 17,000 service users from 65 mental health trusts in England responded to the survey. They comprised of a sample of service users aged 16 and over who had been in contact with NHS mental health services from 1 July 2010 to 30 September 2010 and who were receiving specialist care or treatment for a mental health condition
The chief executive of the Centre for Mental Health, Sean Duggan, said: “Employment support should be part of the care plan. We know that work is good for health. Securing employment promotes recovery, aids rehabilitation and reduces the risk of social exclusion often faced by people with serious mental health problems.
“Now we must listen to what mental health service users say about the care they receive and the support they would like to get in future, and bring about the changes needed to make sure people get the help that they need to lead full and productive lives.”
Duggan insisted that the services also had other commitments than helping people with mental health problems into work, saying: “Mental health services must do more to ensure that people with mental health problems find and keep work.”
The vast majority of participants said that they were listened to carefully, treated with respect and dignity and that they had trust and confidence in the health or social care worker they had seen most recently.
However, the results showed that people needed to be more involved in some aspects of the provision of their care
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