There’s a spotlight in the news put on mental health yet again, regarding the announcement by the government to spend an extra £1 billion in the recruitment by the NHS of mental health workers in the UK.
This amount is reported to go towards an already £1.3 billion budget committed in 2016 to transform provision.
It is expected that there are plans in place to treat an extra million patients by 2020-21. The focus will be mostly on child and adolescent mental health services, therapists for adults and nurses working in crisis care.
Further, there will be more mental health support for women around the time of giving birth and intervention teams working with people at risk of psychosis.
The challenging aspect of creating a robust workforce in mental health services is arguably the recruitment and training. However, it is comforting to see that the government are raising awareness to tackle mental health as a growing public health concern, in light of the significant increase in the population needing mental health support.
Statistics from the Mental Health Foundation states mental health and behavioural problems (e.g. depression, anxiety and drug use) are reported to be the primary drivers of disability worldwide, causing over 40 million years of disability in 20 to 29-year-olds.
Furthermore, the Mental Health Foundation reported that one in six adults had a common mental disorder and mixed anxiety and depression has been estimated to cause one fifth of days lost from work in Britain alone.
As medical and scientific knowledge has advanced significantly in the last few years, the principle of the employer’s liability in occupational stress claims has developed in the law. There is arguably still a lot of room for improvement and development possible however.
As such it is great to be a part of supporting this by working in the Stress at Work department here at Oakwood Solicitors. The increasing awareness by the government on tackling mental health issues will hopefully address the gaps to be filled when it comes to the duty of care owed to people suffering with stress at work.
WHAT TO DO NEXT
If you’re reading this article and you suffer from mental health related illnesses due to stresses at work. You can make a compensation claim through us. To make a claim call us on 0113 200 9720 or alternatively, email us on stress@oakwoodsolicitors.co.uk.
