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WRITTEN QUESTION TO THE MINISTER FOR HEALTH AND SOCIAL SERVICES BY DEPUTY M. TADIER OF ST. BRELADE
ANSWER TO BE TABLED ON TUESDAY 1st APRIL 2014
Question
Will the Minister advise what steps, if any, are being taken to improve provision of, and access to, mental health services in the Island, including the reduction of waiting times to see psychologists and will she also include in her answer details any additional funding and resources that are being made available, including timelines?
Answer
The Health and Social Services Department is now at a transformational time in relation to the provision of psychological therapy on the Island and is in the implementation phase of "Jersey Talking Therapies". This means that there will be increasing numbers of staff who will work directly with individuals that have mild to moderate difficulties such as anxiety and depression to provide psychological therapy at the right place and at the right time into the future.
HSSD has just this week advertised to recruit some 13 staff. Of this 13 new staff, 8 will be Psychological Therapists who will offer up to 20 sessions of therapy and 5 will be Psychological Well Being Practitioners who will offer shorter interventions for individuals lasting up to 8 sessions. It is hoped that all of these staff will be in place within a few months.
This increase in investment in 2014 is just over £700,000 growing to an additional £1.13m investment in services in 2015. To manage and reduce the current wait within the Psychological Assessment and Therapy Service, HSSD is employing a full time locum psychological therapist who is due to start next month. This should reduce the waiting list. This year there will be a comprehensive review of all the mental health services provided. This work will inform a new Island-wide Strategy for Mental Health which will set out the strategic direction for services and facilities in the Island.
In addition, work is underway reviewing the Island mental health legislation.