Many areas in England failing to meet targets for talking therapy referrals
Almost six out of 10 NHS organisations are failing to meet a key target for referring people with anxiety and depression for types of counselling, figures show.
Quarterly NHS England data reveals that 57% of clinical commissioning groups, which commission health services for patients,are failing to hit the target for people accessing talking therapies such as counselling or cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT).
The target is for 15.8% of people in the community with conditions such as anxiety disorder and mild to moderate depression to be given access to talking therapies.
Not all of these people are already known to GPs or mental health services.
A separate target says at least half of people finishing a talking therapy course should move to recovery and experience a meaningful improvement in their condition.
The data shows only half (52%) of the 209 CCGs have met this recovery rate.
Sophie Corlett, director of external relations at the charity Mind, said: “It’s unacceptable that nearly three in five Clinical Commissioning Groups are missing their targets when it comes to helping local people receive talking therapy, especially as the target currently only stands at less than 16% of the local population who could potentially benefit from this type of treatment.
“Failing to meet this target doesn’t bode well, as it will rise to 25% by 2021.
“Mental health services have been woefully underfunded for years.”
Professor Wendy Burn, President of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, said: “It is always disappointing to see people with mental health problems struggling to access the support they need.
“While CCGs should make every effort to meet their targets for IAPT (improving access to psychological therapies) we must consider the bigger picture.
“IAPT has made real progress increasing access to talking therapies, but certain groups are sometimes still excluded, those with addiction problems or patients who also use other mental health services.
“We also know that older people struggle to access IAPT.
“Nobody should have to cross barriers to get the right help.
“We need to look at overall provision to ensure everyone can access a range of talking therapies, whether they come through IAPT or not.”
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