Mental Health : A dire call for leaders in healthcare to step up
Written by: Afshan Khan
Mental illness is not just stigmatised in the UK but all across the globe. Individuals not being able to receive the care they want and need due to the fear of being identified as ‘someone who cannot hope’.
During the pandemic, there was an exceptional rise in individuals who suffered and or are currently suffering from a mental health issue.
So why is nothing still being done?
Why isn’t someone taking the lead to create change?
Who is responsible?
The NHS is a world-renowned organisation that has always put patient care first and voiced their interests in ensuring this is the case. Advancements in technology has allowed this to occur dramatically and patients are thus receiving care which they would never have imagined before.
So why is physical care available for patient but mental care is not?
What is going wrong?
The NHS employs over 31,000 managers across the nation for which each individual plays a different role. This leadership has helped the NHS overcome the pandemic and will continue to help it along its journey. Skills which are essential in NHS leadership posts range from good decision making — both in low- and high-pressure situations, communication — being able to be adaptable and comfortable to which every position you are put into but also being able to listen and take on board ideas and concerns your team members may bring to you.
NHS managers are brilliant at being able to listen to the voice of the public and making a change. For example, there was a call for longer GP opening hours to allow the working individual to attend before or after work…Huzzah! GPs are now open for almost 12 hours a day. They therefore can listen and do the best they can for us. But why is it when the public is struggling from a mental health aspect, no active change seems to be made?
1 in 6 individuals will suffer from a mental health issue in their lifetime but no one is listening to these facts.
Some questions need to be answered.
Are the current communication skills enough for the NHS leaders to cover all aspects of care?
What makes listening to mental health different to listening to physical health problems?
Leadership isn’t just about making a change which can be seen by everyone, but it also contains the ability to listen and learn from past experiences, learn from techniques that you know work and implement a change which would benefit everyone.
Perhaps a more in-depth mental health training regime for all NHS leaders will allow them to identify specific mental health concerns and take a step forward in the right direction.
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About the author
Afshan is a final year medical student at King’s College London. Whilst juggling medical school, she has attained a degree in Healthcare management and is an avid runner.
References
- https://mhfaengland.org/mhfa-centre/research-and-evaluation/mental-health-statistics/
- https://www.theguardian.com/healthcare-network/2016/jun/22/good-leader-nhs
- https://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/statistics-and-facts-about-mental-health/how-common-are-mental-health-problems/
- https://www.wbs.ac.uk/news/how-many-managers-does-the-uk-s-nhs-need/
