Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health

A Healthcare Commission survey of people using community mental health services has shown continued improvements in care.

A larger percentage of service users say that they have confidence in mental health professionals, receive copies of their care plan and have a number to contact out-of-hours when in a crisis situation.

The survey also shows there is still some way to go before community mental health services are accessible to all people who need them and include all service users in decisions about their care.

This Department of Health guidance explains the transitional provisions associated with changes to the Mental Health Act that come into force on 3 November 2008.

This report by the Healthcare Commission says the quality of the services varies widely across the country. It identifies areas for action, particularly improving the involvement of patients in their care.

It concludes that better co-ordination is needed to ensure that service users do not spend any longer in hospital than necessary and are supported when they move from hospital to community services.

This is the second national audit of violence in mental health services conducted on behalf of the Healthcare Commission by the Royal College of Psychiatrists.

There are about 30,000 in-patients in mental health units in NHS and independent organisations in England and Wales. The audit involved 211 units at 69 of those organisations and for the first time looked separately at services for working-age adults and wards for people over 65.

The Department of Health has published a new handbook that reports on the progress of the STR implementation programme and updates the original 2003 policy implementation guide.

The National Institute for Mental Health in England and the Care Services Improvement Partnership have launched a self-assessment implementation tool to help trusts adhere to and implement the 2007 Mental Health Act. The tool is aimed at will organisations providing services to patients detained under the legislation as well as those providing services for children and young people under 18 on a voluntary or detained basis.

The National Audit Office has published a report on helping people through mental health crises. Audit chief Sir John Bourn said that crisis resolution home treatment teams are "really beginning to prove their worth" but added that "a lack of resources and a lack of multi-disciplinary support are limiting what these teams can do".

The Healthcare Commission has published the findings of the Count Me In 2007 census the ethnicity of inpatients in mental health services.

The census reveals that rates of admission and detention remain high for some black and minority groups, who are three or more times more likely than average to be admitted as inpatients in mental health and learning disability services.

The census also shows that 68% of mental health inpatients are in mixed-sex wards, presenting issues of privacy, dignity and safety for people with a mental illness.

The Health and Social Care Bill has been introduced into Parliament.

It contains legislation for the Care Quality Commission - a new integrated regulator for health and adult social care bringing together existing health and social care regulators into one regulatory body. It also includes reform of professional regulation to enhance public and professional confidence in the system of professional regulation.

The Government has announced changes to the regulation of English health and social care in response to the November 2006 consultation on the subject.

It includes its commitment to establish a new integrated health and adult social care regulator by outlining the roles and responsibilities for the new regulator, the Care Quality Commission.

The Chancellor's Comprehensive Spending Review yesterday includes several items for healthcare. The NHS Budget will increase over the next four years and it provides the funding to deliver the measures set out in Lord Darzi's Our NHS, Our Future interim report.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has launched a new mental health website. It provides information and guidance on policy and service development, Mental health, human rights and legislation and Mental health and development.

Alan Johnson, the Health Secretary, has announced that a new regulator will be introduced to cover hospitals across England. It will replace three existing bodies, Healthcare Commission, Commission for Social Care Inspection and the Mental Health Act Commission. The proposals to create the new regulator will be introduced in the Health & Social Care Bill in this Parliamentary session. The establishment of the new body will mean that, for the first time, NHS and independent sector healthcare providers will be subject to the same regulatory framework.

The Healthcare Commission has published its latest survey, in which users of community mental health services say there have been some improvements in their care. But almost half of service users have no access to out of hours crisis care and more than one in three service users who wanted counselling say they did not get it.

Also worrying was the lack of progress in helping service users access benefits or find work. Only 49% of those who wanted help finding work were offered it. Only 20% of people using mental health services reported that they were in paid work. The national employment rate for all people of working age, according to the Office of National Statistics, stands at 74% (1).

The Sainsbury Centre is working to improve the employment prospects of people with mental health problems by researching best practice and influencing the relevant agencies.

The Care Services Minister Ivan Lewis has announced that the 'dignity in care' campaign to ensure that older people are treated with respect by health and care professionals, will be extended to people with mental health problems.

There are now 1000 individuals who have been recognised as 'Dignity Champions' and been rewarded for going that extra mile in improving the service that older people receive. The Dignity in Care campaign was launched in November 2006.

The UK Inquiry into Mental Health and Well-Being in Later Life, supported by Age Concern, has published its final report that says that over 3.5 million older people who experience mental health problems do not have satisfactory services and support.

The Inquiry makes 35 recommendations for ways to improve mental health services for older people. It calls for action to:

• eliminate age discrimination in mental health;
• challenge stigma, ageism and defeatism;
• work on preventing problems;
• support older people and their carers to help themselves and each other;
• and improve housing, health and social care services.

The Healthcare Commission and the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) have published their national review of adult specialist community mental health services.

The findings show that the range and quality of such services are improving. But the pace of change has been variable, leaving some people with little or no access to care and treatment.

The Department of Health has released full areas of responsibility for its ministers.

The responsibilities of under-secretary of state for care services Ivan Lewis include:

• local government and care partnerships, including inspection, older people, learning and physical disabilities;
• mental health;
• prison/offender health.

For the full list, read the press release.

This guide is for mental health professionals working with service users to assess risk. It underpins risk assessment with principles of good practice for all mental health settings and provides a list of tools relating to risk management.

Following Gordon Brown's take over as Prime Minister and cabinet shuffle, there are new Ministers at the Department of Health.

• Alan Johnson - Secretary of State for Health
• Minister of State - The Rt Hon Dawn Primarolo MP
• Minister of State and Minister for the South West - Ben Bradshaw MP
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State - Ivan Lewis MP
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State - Professor Sir Ara Darzi
• Parliamentary Under Secretary of State - Ann Keen MP

Ivan Lewis will have responsibility for mental health and social care.