‘Desperate’ sufferers turn to charity

DESPERATE people suffering depression, anxiety or other common mental health problems are being forced to go private or turn to charities due to a lack of timely support through the NHS.

An astonishing one-in-three people who answered the survey said they or a relative had needed mental health services in the last year.

Of those, a staggering 60 per cent were unhappy with the care they received.

Numerous people told of being forced to pay for help because of long waiting times on the NHS. Last year Manchester’s waits were the longest in the country.

“Waiting list too long, had to seek private help,” said one woman in Manchester.

A man in Bolton wrote: “I had to go private because the level of therapy and access to it, was very low and difficult.”

“Waited 18 months for an appointment that never came despite chasing up. In the end went private,” wrote another woman in Manchester.

A third woman from Manchester summed up the problem.

“We paid privately for cognitive behavioural therapy, which limited the number of sessions a close relative could access and it would be wonderful and helpful to have this high level of support available for free or at least cheaper than £65 per hour.

“Normal people can’t afford this and as a family we clubbed together to pay for the therapy. This should be governmentsubsidised or funded, with shorter waiting lists if we want to see an improvement in mental illness in the UK.”

Waiting times for CBT was a common complaint. One patient in Salford told of waiting 16 months for a session.

In some cases people have now turned to charities.

“The NHS’s provision for mental healthcare is shocking. I asked for counselling and they told me it was a nine-month wait and to take some pills,” wrote one woman from Trafford. I didn’t want to medicate myself so I reached out to mental health charity Mind. They offer counselling at ‘pay what you can’ and it’s amazing! Best counsellors ever.”

Others complained that the type of treatment often on offer through the NHS – such as group sessions or online therapy and self-referrals – was simply not appropriate, while several said appointments were not available outside of working hours.

This woman in Stockport summed up the views of many: “Underresourced. Not enough simple, low-level help like talking therapies available to head off problems before they become a crisis.”