In a recent news report by the BBC, Mental Health charity Mind highlighted their concerns over the unacceptably low amount of money local authorities are spending on public mental health. The Charity pointed out that only 1.4% of public health budgets are spent on mental health. You can read more from the article here.
OCD Action helps thousands of people each year online, face to face and over the phone.
OCD Recovery Data
Earlier this week, new data was released that shows how local Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) services were doing in helping people with OCD. IAPT services provide data on their performance at regular intervals but this is the first time they have shown their results just for OCD.
Who is We Need to Talk?
We Need to Talk is a coalition of mental health charities, professional organisations, Royal Colleges and service providers who campaign for better access to psychological therapies for people with mental health problems.
We are calling on the next Government to invest in psychological therapies, so that the NHS in England can offer a full range of evidence-based psychological therapies to all who need them within 28 days of requesting a referral.
What’s happening at the moment?
Extension of Choice to People Accessing Mental Health Services
In January of this year Nick Clegg, Deputy Prime Minister, launched the Government’s mental health strategy document, “Closing the Gap”. This document stated that from April 2014 adults with mental health problems will have the legal right -
‘to choose which provider and consultant or mental health professional will be in charge of their care when they attend their first outpatient appointment’.
In December 2013, representatives from the Charity met with Norman Lamb MP, the Minister for Care and Support to talk about our campaign for better access to quality treatment for OCD. This was a positive meeting with the Minister agreeing that more needs to be done to ensure that people with OCD have the information that they need and, where appropriate, are referred to specialist treatment.
OCD Action launched our first OCD Awareness Week in 2010 and since then, with the help of our volunteers, we have done a huge amount to raise the profile of OCD and make more people aware of the disorder. This year we are taking on a new challenge, because awareness is not enough. We want people to take action.
OCD Week of Action 17th -23rd Feb is our national campaign to inspire people to get the help they need, influence change and fight misconceptions.
