NHS Confederation - Stretched staff doing their best to provide great care but mental health services need more staff and modern facilities

19 Feb 2020 02:00 PM

Sean Duggan, chief executive of the Mental Health Network, which is part of the NHS Confederation, responded to the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman’s report on NHS mental health services 

“Stretched staff work tirelessly to give the best possible care, and to give service users a voice, but this report shows clearly we still need to make significant progress.

“The vision set out in the NHS Long Term Plan will help, but we need renewed support from Government to recruit and retain the right number of people, to ensure facilities are safe and up-to-date and that legislation is appropriate.

“The return of the maintenance grant for student nurses is positive and the forthcoming People Plan must also have solutions to increase the supply and help us to better retain our staff. Mental health facilities, which are among the worst across the system, were underrepresented in the Government’s capital investment plans and that needs to be put right. We also await the promised legislation to modernise the Mental Health Act which will make a big difference to ensuring that those who have reached the point of crisis receive the care they need."

Report:  1 in 5 mental health patients don’t feel safe in NHS care, Ombudsman finds