Since being elected to Parliament, I have been using my public platform to champion and improve mental health services in the NHS.
I know, as a previous mental health nurse – and now as a Member of Parliament through the many correspondences from constituents needing medication or stuck on mental health waiting lists – just how much services need to be improved.
Sojan Joseph, MP for Ashford
This is why I was pleased to see the Government publish its independent review into mental health conditions, ADHD and autism, looking at how these conditions can be better managed and treated – either through earlier intervention or better use of medication.
It is incredibly important that we start treating mental and physical health with the same level of respect and deliver on the promise of parity of esteem that consecutive Governments have spoken about but failed to deliver.
Creating a greater understanding of conditions, such as autism and ADHD, as well as breaking the stigma around speaking about mental health conditions, so we can understand the greater contributing factors, will be central to helping people living with mental health conditions.
I have been actively engaging with Ministers from the Department of Health and Social Care and the Secretary of State, Wes Streeting, about this over the past few months, so seeing this positive action has been incredibly encouraging, and I look forward to seeing how the Department of Health and Social Care will enact the findings of the review.
Similarly to this review, the Government has also introduced new measures through the Youth Guarantee Scheme to assist the country’s young people who are not in education, employment, or training NEET).
This £750 million boost will help a section of society who have disproportionately high mental health issues, such as anxiety and depression, find their way into the workforce through apprenticeships and other schemes.
I have been a vocal supporter of measures to support our NEET population back to work, speaking in interviews and op-eds with outlets from across the political spectrum about the benefits of work improving mental health.
I often saw in my previous profession how people who are far too often written off because they are living with conditions such as depression or anxiety can thrive with the correct support and structure in place – with their work providing genuinely therapeutic effects.