Today I was delighted to welcome the leader of
the opposition, Ed Miliband MP, to make a keynote speech about
mental health at the College.
The emphasis he placed on the parity of mental
and physical health and the importance of making mental health
everyone’s business was very welcome, and was followed by a lively
question and answer session, including excellent contributions from
the chairs of our own Service Users Forum and Carers
Forum.
You can read the speech in full
here and the emphasis on economic and social costs as well as
the personal cost to individuals is something we have emphasised
here at the college.
Together with other health professionals
and mental health user-carer organisations, I recently spent a
great deal of time at the major party political conferences, where
we sat together at round tables and in individual meetings with
members of parliament of all colours.
I hope we have successfully conveyed to all
politicians how vitally important it is that mental health is given
the recognition and attention it warrants for the overall health of
the nation. That means giving parity to mental and physical
health.
There can be no health – and no public
health - without mental health. That means that the vital
importance of mental health needs to be recognised at all ages and
stages of life: at home, at school, college or university, in the
workplace, in leisure and in retirement.
Whatever our individual circumstances or
stage of life, we need to come together to build resilience in
every individual, whilst making sure that we offer timely and
appropriate care and treatment for anyone experiencing an episode
of mental illness.
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