Mental Illness

(asked on 24th May 2021) - View Source

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure the NHS is able to diagnose mental health conditions at an early stage.


Answered by
Nadine Dorries Portrait
Nadine Dorries
This question was answered on 2nd June 2021

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has issued the guideline ‘Common mental health problems: identification and pathways to care’ which is available at the following link:

www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg123

This guideline assists healthcare professionals make an assessment of a possible mental health condition. Where initial questions indicate a possible mental health disorder, but the practitioner is not competent to perform a mental health assessment, the guideline provides for the patient to be referred to an appropriate healthcare professional.

The General Medical Council’s ‘Outcomes for Graduates’ sets out what newly qualified doctors must know and be able to do. This includes a requirement to be able to explain, and illustrate by professional experience, the principles for the identification, safe management and referral of patients with mental health conditions.

We have also announced that in 2021/22 the National Health Service will receive an additional £500 million, of which £79 million will be used to significantly expand children’s mental health services, including a faster increase in the number of mental health support teams in schools and colleges during this year. This will help support schools and health care professionals to respond to early signs of mental health conditions in children and young people.

Reticulating Splines