Sixty seconds . . . on mental health hubs

What are they?In 2021, in response to the coronavirus pandemic, NHS England announced that staff would be able to access evidence based mental health services from 41 hubs nationwide, free of charge.1That sounds like a good ideaDoesn’t it. Unfortunately, the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) has discovered that a third (13) of these hubs have closed. RCN director of England Patricia Marquis said, “If nursing staff can’t access support, how are they going to support their patients?”Good question. How did they find out?RCN contacted integrated care systems in England and received 25 responses. Of these, 13 confirmed that their hubs have closed or are about to close. A further 11 said their hubs are staying open but seven have less than a year of funding confirmed.Why are they closing?It’s a matter of money (isn’t everything?). RCN said that central government funding ended on 31 March 2023. The Department of Health…
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