Source · Select Committees · Health and Social Care Committee
Recommendation 19
19
Accepted
Paragraph: 307
Commission research into providing better mental health support and guidance for terminally ill people.
Recommendation
There is a pressing need to understand how to better provide mental health support, and guidance, for people who are living with a terminal diagnosis. We therefore recommend that the Government commission such research and report back to Parliament.
Government Response Summary
The government has accepted the recommendation by investing £3 million through the National Institute for Health and Care Research into a new Palliative and End Of Life Care Policy Research Unit to build the evidence base. It also highlights existing NHS Talking Therapies and a priority for integrating mental and physical health services for those with long-term conditions.
Paragraph Reference:
307
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
The Department, through the National Institute for Health and Care Research, is investing £3 million in a new Palliative and End of Life Care Policy Research Unit. This will help build the evidence base on all-age palliative and end-of-life care to inform policymaking in this vital area. Adults can access NHS Talking Therapies services, which provide evidence-based psychological therapies for people with common mental health conditions, including anxiety disorders and depression, implementing the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines. NHS Talking Therapies can be accessed via a number of routes, including self-referral, through a GP or via other services. The implementation of long-term condition pathways in NHS Talking Therapies has been identified as a priority to support integration of mental health and physical health services for people with co-morbid long-term conditions, such as cancer, which can include palliative and end of life care.