Members of Unison have launched a petition to demand change in Mental Health Services in Manchester. Please share with friends, colleagues and family.
Read and sign the petition here
All too frequent headline deaths of people waiting for or under mental health care in Greater Manchester reveal the same story of inadequate underfunded services:
- People with serious problems on long waiting lists for care
- Staff with caseloads so high people are often not seen for months
- High staff turnover and sickness absence due to stress.
- The majority of people in services don’t recover as there is little or often no access to therapy
- Devastated families often unsupported
- An over reliance on medications with dangerous side effects
- Institutional racism leading to excessive custodial detention and restraint of black and ethnic service users
- Discharge of vulnerable people to unsafe or homeless conditions
- Unaccountable services
Now staff organizations, service users, families and friends have come together to speak out, support all staff action for better services and demand that, Matt Hancock, Minister for Health (matt.hancock.mp@parliament.uk) Andy Burnham Mayor of Greater Manchester (the.mayor@greatermanchester-ca.gov.uk) Neil Thwaite CEO of Greater Manchester Mental Health NHs Trust (neil.thwaite@gmmh.Nhs.uk), Claire Malloy CEO Pennine Care NHS Trust (ceo-penninecare@nhs.net), take action:
- Double the funding to mental health services for people with serious conditions to ensure parity with physical health services
- Ensure caseload sizes are always within guidelines from national institute for health and care excellence 25 and 12 for early intervention and assertive outreach
- Guarantee access to psychology, occupational, art and other therapies
- Guarantee that discharge from community services only occurs with adequate housing and a package for full social inclusion.
- Create humane and local therapeutic environments that promote healing when needed
- Guarantee the human right to a home, education and employment for all service-users.
- Establish clinics to safely support people who wish change, reduce or withdraw from psychiatric medication.
- Establish a public inquiry into the practices of mental health services, including institutional racism, informed by independent experts, service users and their families.
CHARM 