Good primary mental health services should be based on sound clinical judgement informed by NICE guidelines. The demand for evidence-based healthcare leads to disillusionment with a purely biological model of health. There is a push for quality research into mental illness to include combined effective diagnosis and treatments.

While there is still a lack of effective treatment for the severe mental illnesses, talking therapies are used effectively to treat depression. Further work is carried out to identify the role of talking therapies in treating the most complex cases. The introduction of talking therapies as part of the complex mental disease treatment results in the integration and redefinition of the mental health workforce.

Research funding is secured to implement significant changes to the way commissioning is applied.

Proposed workforce impact

• Increased demand for clinical psychologists and other trained talking therapists
• Increased demand for academic psychiatrists
• Consultants have more accountability and need to use rigorous evidence-based outcomes to provide treatment with measurable outcomes
• The assessment of risk and the use of recovery models become more important
• Increased demand for practitioners with specialist skills
• Increased demand for high levels of knowledge and competence in new therapies and treatment methods, particularly among psychiatrists, as this will enable them to keep up to date with latest advances, not just in terms of medicines.

Sources or references

• DH, (2012), Simple guide to payment by results
• DH, (2012), No health without mental health
• Joint Commissioning Panel for Mental Health, (2012), Guidance for commissioners of primary mental health care services

Additional research questions

• What is the impact of Payment by Results (PbR) in mental health?

Some of the information in this section is provided by stakeholders and expert groups, and does not necessarily represent the views of the CfWI.