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Other news
Mental health care for under-18s
The commencement
order has been signed, bringing section 31(3) of the
Mental Health Act 2007 into effect from 1 April 2010. Section 131A
places a duty on hospital managers to ensure that under-18s are
treated in a hospital environment that has regard to their age,
subject to their needs.
Autism strategy
launched
Fulfilling and rewarding lives – an adult autism strategy
for England sets out a list of actions to improve health,
social care and other public services for people with autism.
These include measures to improve diagnosis, tackle chronic
rates of unemployment and train staff providing services for adults
with autism.
Health and social care
regulations approved: inspection of health and social care
Under the recently approved health and social care regulation,
the Care Quality Commission will now assume responsibility for
inspecting the provision of both health and adult social care. Lord
Alderdice welcomed the integration of inspections for health and
social care services. He warned against a one-size-fits-all
approach to how these inspections were carried out.
Age equality in health and social
care consultation response
The Department of Health ran the Age Equality
in Health and Social Care Consultation. A report on
the
consultation is available.
Statement of Fitness for
Work: a guide for hospital doctors
A letter
and guidance note from the DWP informs NHS chief executives
that from 6 April 2010, doctors across Great Britain will be
issuing patients with a revised Form Med 3 (Statement of Fitness
for Work or fit note) which will enable them to give their patients
better advice about their fitness for work. Fit Note hospital
guide
The Health of Health Professionals
report
Invisible Patients is the final report from the Health of
Health Professionals working group which sets out a framework that
enables all health care organisations, whether in the NHS or the
independent sector, to build healthy workplaces and a healthy
workforce.
NHS to better help victims of
violence
A new group has been set up to help the NHS
provide improved
healthcare for women and children who are victims of violence.
The Department of Health will raise awareness of the roles and
responsibilities of NHS staff in treating victims of violence, and
call for increased vigilance of the variety of health issues that
may be a direct result of sexual violence against women and
children, domestic violence and harmful traditional practices and
human trafficking.
Sustainability in the
NHS
How the NHS behaves – as an employer,
purchaser, manager of transport, energy and waste, as well as an
influential partner in many communities – can make a huge
difference to preventing ill health, as well as benefiting
communities and the environment. The Sustainable Development
Commission, in partnership with NHS Sustainable Development
Unit, has launched the Good Corporate
Citizenship model – an online toolkit helping NHS organisations
become more efficient and sustainable.
National campaign launched
to end stigma and improve mental health of NHS staff
NHS Employers has launched a
national campaign to end stigma against NHS workers with mental ill
health, improve employment rates for people with mental health
conditions and help trusts to create a better working environment
for all staff. The Open Your Mind campaign, supported by the Mental
Health Network and the National Mental Health Development Unit,
will identify and share good practice among NHS organisations and
will be delivered through a variety of materials including
training, a bespoke website, booklets, posters and postcards.
Volunteering in health and
social care: a new vision
NHS and local government leaders are being
called on to refresh their thinking on the role and value of
volunteering. The
Strategic Vision for Volunteering in Health and Social Care
sets out how volunteers can and do enhance health and social care
and how this can be supported.
Cross party experts unite
in call for new approach to social care reform
A group of social care experts, drawn from all
three major political parties, have united to call for cross-party
agreement as the way to achieve social care reform. In
Long Term Care of the
Elderly: Shaping the Future, five experts have
supported their call with a statement of shared principles on which
agreement could be based, and have called on all political parties
to work together on this vital issue with stakeholders in the
social care sector.
£50m lottery cash to boost care and
dementia services in Scotland
A £50 million pot of lottery cash will be
spent on helping children raised in care and people who look after
dementia sufferers. Alison Magee, chairwoman of Big Lottery Fund
Scotland, said: "The aim is to support people in need. We want this
£50 million investment to be long-lasting, long-term and to achieve
real change.” Decisions on how to spend the cash, allocated from a
£400 million lottery pot for Scotland, have yet to be made. First
Minister Alex Salmond welcomed the funding and said it was a
"substantial sum" that "will make an enormous difference".
Dementia awareness campaign kicks
off
This new campaign aims to help people
better understand dementia and encourage more people to seek advice
from primary care services. Primarily targeted at 40-60 year olds,
it is running across TV, radio, print and online and encourages
people to request a campaign information pack, containing simple,
practical ways to help someone living with dementia.
Important new DVD on mental
illness in schools for teachers
This DVD, originally funded by the College’s
Images of Psychiatry campaign, looks at mental illness and stigma,
normal/abnormal development, self-harm and coping strategies,
psychosis and cannabis use, depression and bipolar disorder,
anxiety disorders, eating disorders and ADHD. The DVD should be
shown to small groups of teachers in the presence of a psychiatrist
or senior mental health worker who can facilitate discussion and
field questions. If you have a link with local schools or
6th Form Colleges, you may wish to apply for a free copy
of this DVD and worksheets for teachers from Dr Lisetta Lovett
with details of where you hope to show it.
Report from Scottish Division:
Attending the Lib Dems Spring Conference
The Scottish Division hosted a fringe event on
‘Hidden in the cupboard, older people,
alcohol and mental health’ at the recent Lib Dems
conference in Perth, 5-6 March 2010. Attended by around 30
people, the event was chaired by Mr John Barrett, MP for Edinburgh
West.
Scottish Mental Health Arts
& Film Festival 2010: Call for Entries
The festival is committed to finding and
celebrating the work of filmmakers who explore mental health in
film. The
annual open film submission gives filmmakers the opportunity to
share their work and ideas with audiences across Scotland and
internationally. They are looking for films which show that mental
health is something we all have, and something we all need to
prioritise from time to time. Entry is free. Closing date is Friday
30 April 2010. The fourth annual festival will take place across
Scotland from 1-24 October 2010.
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