Older People Harder Hit

By Anonymous

A leading charity says that the government must take urgent action to stem the tide of cuts in mental health services for elderly people

Cuts in mental health services are hitting older people especially hard, according to the Royal College of Psychiatrists.

Figures published recently by the college’s Faculty of Old Age, showed heavy cuts in mental health services for older people; some have lost 50% of their inpatient beds, up to 75% of their wards and 30% of their funding.

The faculty says that hospital beds, whole wards and day treatment services are being closed and clinical posts are being lost in at least 26 local mental health services throughout England.

Commenting on the figures, Gordon Lishman, director general of the charity Age Concern, said: ‘While many parts of the NHS need to balance their budgets, it would be completely wrong it older people’s access to mental health services was further undermined in the process.

‘At any one time, around 10-15% of over 65s have depression. One in four of all suicides in the UK are people over 50. Yet older people are already systematically ignored or denied mental health services because of their age.

‘The government must keep its commitments and stop the butchering of these chronically under-funded services.’

The charity said that the cuts come on top of chronic under- funding of mental health services for older people and the systematic discrimination older people face over access to mental health.

Older people are already systematically ignored and their services are chronically underfunded

Copyright TG Scott & Son Ltd. Apr 2007

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