#mentalhealth

World Mental Health Day: PM appoints suicide prevention minister

A minister for suicide prevention has been appointed in England by the prime minister as the government hosts the first ever global mental health summit. Theresa May said the appointment of Health Minister Jackie Doyle-Price to the new role will help tackle the stigma surrounding suicide. While suicide rates are falling, 4,500 people take their own lives every year. The appointment comes as ministers and officials from more than 50 countries assemble in London for the summit.

Young people 'not receiving mental health care they need'

Young people are facing long waiting times and unequal access to mental health services, a review by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) has said. The commissioner said this could be "putting young people's lives at risk". The review found nearly 40% of specialist child and adolescent services in England needed improvement. Alice Gibbs, who was diagnosed with anorexia at the age of 12, said a lack of access to specialised services had had a long-term effect on her recovery. She

One in three 'sick notes' for mental health, says NHS

Nearly a third of fit notes issued by GPs are for psychiatric problems, says an NHS report. This makes them the most common reason for people to take time off work, ahead of musculoskeletal diseases. There was a 14% rise in notes relating to anxiety and stress between 2015-16 and 2016-17. The Royal College of Psychiatrists said the findings were "alarming" and pointed to a need for more to be done to help get people back to work. Fit notes is the formal name given to what wer