We need GPS to plug the Covid mental health gap

Years ago a GP acquaintance of mine drily commented on his bafflement that he had studied medicine for nine years, yet had “somehow ended up as a social worker”.

In the intervening two decades, society’s perception of mental health has undergone a 180-degree turn. At least that is the lip service paid in public.

The reality is very different, as attested by shocking new figures that point not just to a mental health crisis but to a primary care emergency.

Put simply, people who are feeling depressed, distressed, anxious or hopeless are finding it increasingly difficult to access help and support.

Data from the Office for National Statistics show that one in five adults experienced depression in early 2021 – more than double pre-pandemic levels.

Yet far fewer cases of depression were diagnosed in adults last year, compared with 2019, largely because people felt they didn’t want to place more pressure on the NHS.

But I have a friend who did seek urgent help after her anxiety symptoms escalated to the point where she could no longer cope. She never even got to talk to a doctor; the receptionist advised her to take a long walk instead, because “nature is a great healer”.

I have previously backed calls for a psychological triage network to be introduced at GP surgeries, where patients can either self-refer or be directed by their family doctor.

I very much hope this will happen – but for now, we must deal with circumstances as they are.

Hand-wringing over the emotional toll taken by Covid-19 is not enough. Mental illness requires professional, targeted, early intervention; otherwise it becomes far more intractable and is exponentially more expensive to treat.

Much has been made of the need to address the post-coronavirus backlog of routine operations and cancer procedures. Mental health must be included in that recovery plan.