Seven days in medicine: 5-11 October 2022
BMJ 2022; 379 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.o2432 (Published 13 October 2022) Cite this as: BMJ 2022;379:o2432
Mental health
“Hidden waits” force patients to visit emergency care
Almost a quarter (23%) of patients in mental healthcare are waiting more than 12 weeks to start treatment, the Royal College of Psychiatrists has found. Its poll of 535 British adults with a diagnosed mental illness, conducted by Savanta ComRes, found that 78% of those on a “hidden” waiting list (the wait between initial referral and the second appointment) reported turning to emergency services or a crisis line in the absence of mental health support. “If we don’t train more doctors by increasing medical school places, waits will keep getting longer,” warned Kate Lovett, the college’s presidential lead for recruitment.
Discrimination against patients “must end”
Health and social care providers should run national training courses for all staff, a global commission has recommended, including mandatory training on the needs and rights of people with mental health conditions, co-delivered by people with such conditions. The Lancet Commission on Ending Stigma and Discrimination in Mental Health also advised employers to take evidence based action to promote full access to educational opportunities, work participation, and return-to-work programmes for people with mental health conditions,1 as set out by the World Health Organization’s Comprehensive Mental Health Action Plan and in WHO guidelines.
Primary care
Babylon withdraws NHS GP service from Birmingham
The digital healthcare provider Babylon Health announced that its GP at Hand NHS facility would …
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