The Government is currently consulting on a new Mental Health Strategy for England which covers both adults and children’s mental health. They are asking for submissions from both organisations, those involved in providing healthcare, and individuals.
We want to make sure that they understand how important mental health support is for people with diabetes and will be sharing examples of good practice.
The more people who respond the greater the chances are of the Government hearing our message, so we are encouraging anyone who has experiences or thoughts about what good mental health services for diabetes looks like to respond.
Diabetes and mental health
People living with diabetes are at an increased risk of depression and other mental health issues but currently far too many people do not receive the support which is right for them.
For our 2019 Too Often Missing report, 75% of those surveyed who felt they needed specialist psychological support couldn’t access it. For some people, lack of effective mental health support can lead to serious complications with their diabetes.
What the call for evidence is asking for
To inform their new strategy, the Government are asking for examples and insights of how mental health can be better supported withing community and NHS services, how digital and tech can support people’s mental health, and how mental health issues can be better prevented.
What we are telling them
We will be feeding in evidence and examples of good practice to the consultation. We will specifically be telling the Government that mental and physical health care need to better integrated, so that people with diabetes are able to access care which understands the impact diabetes can have on a person’s mental wellbeing.
The sorts of examples of best practice we will raise (and have called for better access to in the past) include specialist treatment centres for people experiencing type 1 disordered eating (T1DE).
Other examples to share might include talking therapies that are linked with your diabetes services or having access to a good peer support network.
How to respond
If you would like to make a contribution with your thoughts and/or an example of good practice the call for evidence can be found here and is open until 10 July. You don’t need to fill in all the answers if you only have insights to share for some.
