Action call as people wait years for mental health support

MENTAL health patients in Wales are sometimes having to wait years to see a specialist on the NHS and say they are not happy with the support they are receiving from their doctors.

- JONATHON HILL

It comes as one woman has told us she had to wait four years for a first appointment with a mental health practitioner due to pressures on the system - during which time she developed psychosis and became so ill she didn’t know who her husband and children were.

According to a new report published by mental health charity Mind Cymru only half - 52% - of people in Wales struggling mentally came away from their most recent GP appointment feeling hopeful for the future.

The charity said it’s clear delays for those seeking urgent clinical support isn’t sustainable and it has called on the Welsh Government to do more with an overhaul of primary care services.

Ruth - not her real name - from South Wales, told us how following repeated appointments with her GP she felt ignored and was continually told she would eventually see a mental health practitioner in hospital but she would have to wait a while due to pressures on the service.

Four years later she finally got an appointment which she said lasted 20 minutes. Ruth, a mother in her 40s who suffers with complex PTSD, said she was then told she would have to wait up to another year for a second appointment.

She said: “There have been times where I've found life very difficult, and not having that support service there via the NHS has been incredibly difficult. From my experience I know GPs do not prioritise mental health.

“You have to fill out an e-consult, which I did - telling my doctor I had suicidal ideation - and the doctor told me I'd have to wait four weeks for an appointment.”