“I’d make mental health services better”
“I’d make mental health services better. Because a lot of the pressure on GP practices is from people who have got mental health problems and social problems, and they’re taking up time which could be better utilised for people with physical needs. And a lot of what Jane’s been talking about is what was what they’ve been doing in their practice… is actually providing the support that people need who’ve got mental health…not necessarily clinical mental health problems but just that they’re depressed. And a lot of depression is not endogenous depression. People are depressed because of their life circumstances and until we can start addressing their life circumstances, they’ll still continue to put too much pressure on the physical side of health services. And we don’t have enough psychologists in the community. We don’t have enough counsellors in the community. I can’t go to my GP practice and just get an appointment to see a counsellor. And talking therapies take time and they’re expensive. But it is possible to use volunteers who have got the same sort of life experience and use group therapies. And education is I think, the way forward. To educate people about services and also educate them about their own problems.”