The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has published its Right Here, Right Now report detailing help, care and support during a mental health crisis. In the report the CQC found that quality of care experienced by a person in crisis can vary greatly depending on where they are and what help they require.
The report, which is based on feedback from almost 1,800 people with experience of a mental health crisis, found that people also experienced problems getting help when they needed it, and found that healthcare professionals sometimes lack compassion and warmth when caring for people who are having a crisis.
The report notes that there are clear variations in the help, care and support available to people in crisis and that a person’s experience depends not only on where they live, but what part of the system they come into contact with.
The findings present a challenge for everyone responsible for ensuring people in crisis receive the best possible help, care and support, the CQC notes.
The CQC also found that many people will go to see their local GP first when they are having a mental health crisis and a majority (60 per cent) of people who visited their GP during a crisis were satisfied with the experience.
Most people reported that they came into contact with at least three different services when they had a mental health crisis. One in twelve (12 per cent) said that they had come in to contact with between six and ten services, which indicates a need for them to work more closely together in areas.
The use of police cells as a ‘place of safety’ for people in crisis has fallen significantly, but we found that people under 18 can have problems accessing suitable places of safety. In 2013/14, nearly a third of people under 18 who were detained, were taken into police custody.
The CQC notes that in the last four years it is estimated that two million people have developed a more positive attitude towards mental illness, but there is still a long way to go until a person experiencing a mental health crisis receives the same response as someone with a physical health emergency.
Some of the other findings of the study are:
- Only 14 per cent people felt the care they received was right and helped resolve the crisis;
- More than 3 in 10 people receiving community mental health care do not know who to contact outside of working hours if they have a crisis;
- Over 400 people were in emergency mental health beds situated more than 50km from their homes.
