Tag Archives: mental health. norman lamb

The place in Westminster which contains most light and least heat is Westminster Hall. MPs can call a debate on whatever subject and often these turn out to be thoughtful, considered affairs where people behave like grown-ups and discuss the issues rather than throw brickbats at each other.

This week, Norman Lamb led a debate on the need for early intervention when someone has had an episode of Psychosis. In fact, it was Norman and Nick Clegg who were responsible for the introduction of a maximum two week waiting time to be seen after the first episode of Psychosis.

Introducing the debate, Norman said:

Psychosis costs the NHS £11.8 billion a year. That is a vast cost. Only 8% of people who suffer from psychosis are in work, so the cost of the illness to society is enormous. The evidence of the effectiveness of early intervention in psychosis is overwhelming. It is clear that if we intervene quickly, we can have an impact on that condition, stop it in its tracks and give sufferers the chance of a good life, which the rest of us take for granted. If we neglect the condition, those people will almost inevitably suffer lives on benefits and with difficult relationships, at—this is critical—enormous cost to the state. Analysis shows that if we invested £1 in services for early intervention in psychosis, the return on that investment over a 10-year period would be £15. We might ask, “What is the reason not to do that?” It is overwhelming common sense. It is both morally right and the economically sensible thing to do.

People suffering mental ill health, he said, must be treated to the same standard as people with physical health after the government legislated for parity of esteem. If people didn’t feel that was actually happening, they would lose trust in the Government.

And he was furious at the postcode lottery and the lack of commitment to sorting service provision out in some areas: