Mental Health

Sector Summary

Mental health remains a clinical priority for government and the last decade has seen significant changes in both policy and services. 

The Department of Health, under the title No Health Without Mental Health, published plans for the future of mental health, building on the progress made through the National Service Framework in the last ten years. This new phase of reform brings together key areas of policy, increasingly addressing the mental well-being of communities as a whole and strengthening the progress made to date across all age groups, and to more marginal ones, such as offenders. Broader NHS priorities will also help shape services, with themes such as health inequalities, the value of carers and dignity in care all contributing to an ever improving service.

Mental health services have been transformed and the environment in which Trusts now operate is one that is more fluid and dynamic than ever before. The range of policies and guidance that impact on both operations and strategic planning is continuing to widen and it is sometimes difficult for senior managers to absorb the wealth of information and guidance that is published. It is also increasingly hard to digest that information and ensure that it permeates through the management structure and becomes embedded in the thinking and practice of the broader staff group.

The Health and Social Care Bill has set out the coalition Government’s plan for the NHS in England. Alongside the structural reform proposed, which includes the abolition of PCTs and SHAs, the Bill sets out a range of proposals for changes to the way in which services are commissioned and paid for. These includeGP led commissioning. This will see a significant amount of local commissioning resources controlled by GPs, who would take on much of the commissioning role previously held by PCTs. How it will operate in practice remains unclear, particularly in relation to mental health. Also unknown at this stage are the potential implications for integrated commissioning and service delivery. However the Bill has set out plans for the establishment of GP consortia, and made clear than no service areas will be excluded from devolved budgets, so mental health will be part of this process.

Our Work and Expertise

Our work with National Mental Health Development Unit Commissioning Programme has given Contact Consulting a unique opportunity to shape the models of commissioning and develop guidance for the system. This insight enables us to offer organisations an unrivalled perspective and opportunities for us to help interpret and respond to these new challenges.

Additionally, with practitioner and managerial experience, Contact Consulting can help organisations with service redesign, commissioning strategies, service reviews and evaluations as well as the development of practice and policy guides

Links and Examples

You can download the new mental health strategy at: http://bit.ly/hsKLaL