Members survey: cost-of-living crisis

Are you worried about the impact of the cost-of-living crisis on your patients?

As living costs soar those living with a mental illness are more likely to suffer from food insecurity, fuel poverty, debt and the loneliness and isolation they can bring.

With mental health referrals at record levels of 4.3m last year and a backlog of at least 1.4m people still waiting to start treatment, pressure on the NHS is likely to reach new unprecedented levels.

Soaring inflation means the already tight mental health budget will have to stretch even further to deliver promises made in the Long Term Plan.

Still, we need to be ready to offer patients the specialist, high quality care we know can make a difference.

To achieve this, we have to understand how cost of living is affecting patients’ mental health and the impact it’s having on services and healthcare professionals on the ground.

Please help us assess the scale of this crisis by completing this short survey.

We will use your valuable insights to take action to support mental health patients and services address the challenges posed by the rise in living costs.

Back to 13 October 2022 Members' update.