We need to talk
Welcome to Cardiff Concern's web site. This is one of the new ways you can get in touch with us and let us have your views. Please email us or contact us at our centre in Cathays. If you live in other parts of Cardiff or in Pontypridd we have local centres where we can meet you.
Counselling or the "talking therapies", as it is known, is in the news at the moment. Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Solution Focused Therapy especially are seen as effective treatments for a wide range of mental problems.
We need to talk is the title of a campaign by 5 mental health charities -
Mental Health Foundation, Mind, Rethink, The Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health, Young Minds. The five charities are calling for psychological therapies to be available on the NHS to all those who could benefit from them. Waiting times should be measured and primary care trusts held accountable for reducing them.
At Cardiff Concern we are well aware of the benefits of counseling for the individual and society at large. Already this year we have seen well over 100 people in our centres. Often they are referred to us because of long waiting lists in GP surgeries.
Paul Corry, Rethink's Director of Public Affairs, said: "We know that nationwide investment in talking therapies could make a huge difference to the lives of people with severe mental illness. There is now a clear economic and health case for such an approach. Yet for too many of Rethink's members and supporters, CBT stands not for cognitive behaviour therapy but 'can't bloomin' geddit'.
"We need sustained, national investment in talking therapies to give people with severe mental illness the best chance of recovering a good quality of life."
Mind Chief Executive Paul Farmer said: "People still wait years for access to talking treatments, yet for years NICE has recommended them as a frontline treatment for depression. Investing more money in alternative treatments will lead to long-term savings, giving people the best chance of recovery to lead full lives in society. This is a welcome further move, but provision must be stepped up nationwide."
Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health chief executive Angela Greatley said: "Working people need speedy access to effective therapy when they are off sick with depression or anxiety. Leaving it until they have lost contact with their workplace is leaving it too late and forces too many people out of their jobs. We can prevent thousands of people being excluded from work if we invest in the support they and their employers need."
Barbara Herts, Chief Executive of YoungMinds, said: "Depression in children and young people is an illness which is not always recognised but causes them great misery, impacting on their ability to function, to make and keep friends and stay in education. Psychological therapies can be of enormous help when given by practitioners who understand the developmental needs of children and the role of their families and carers in the process.
"Children and young people need expert help in an environment which is acceptable rather than stigmatising and we look forward to such services being resourced so that every child who needs psychological therapies gets help quickly."
Dr Andrew McCulloch, Chief Executive of the Mental Health Foundation, said: "Psychological therapies are vital options which should be offered to people experiencing distress. As a matter of priority, these need to be available to people who traditionally have been even less likely to receive them, including children and young people, and older people. Providing them with the range of therapies they need, at the time they need them, helps prevent problems in the future and means they can make the most of their opportunities in life. We hope the Government will expand provision as soon as possible to ensure psychological therapies are available to everyone who could benefit from them."