Improvement need for mental health services in Wales
By Catherine Walker
The Wales Audit Office has called for key changes in certain areas of mental health services in Wales.
A report identifies that there have been improvements in adult mental health care but notes problems with very long waiting times for psychology therapy, staff training and inadequate capacity in community services.
Very limited progress has been made in increasing the number of GPs with specialist skills in mental health and many GPs and practice staff have not received any mental health training in the past three years.
Many areas now have a wider range of community services, however, these do not always have adequate capacity. The auditor has found a shift in resources from inpatient to community services. There has been a 23% reduction in the number of adult mental health beds between 2005 and 2009. There has been a 14% increase in community staffing levels.
Waiting times for psychological therapies available in primary care varies throughout Wales. Some areas have seen an improvement in respect to this but waiting times remain too variable according to the findings.
Some local health boards reported waiting times in excess of the Welsh Government’s 12 week target despite an increase in specialist psychologist and psychotherapist staffing levels in many parts of the country.
The report also finds that expenditure on adult mental healthcare has also been highly variable across the NHS bodies and councils. Also, it is not clear whether the Welsh Government’s attempts to protect the NHS mental health expenditure has been successful.
The audit office has asked the Welsh Government to make changes. They want to see a focus on embedding key services in all parts of the country and ensuring they have appropriate capacity and operate effectively.
‘There have been encouraging improvements in adult mental health services since the 2005 baseline review.’ said Huw Vaughan Thomas, the auditor general for Wales. ‘However, it is a mixed picture, progress across Wales has not been uniform and significant challenges remain.’
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