So the Liberal Democrat Spring Conference has backed Nick Clegg’s plans for NHS reform.

The current government is obsessed with Top Down micro managment.  It does not work and it wastes vast amounts of taxpayers’ money.

The New Lib Dem guarantee will ensure patients get treated even if the NHS cannot provide the service at the required level.

It is literally a ‘Guarantee‘ not an ‘Opt Out’ such as the Tories patient’s passport scheme…

The reforms will also replace PCTs with elected Health Boards (well ok 1/3 will be councillors… sort of elected!) and some patients will get their own budgets (particularly in the case of mentally ill patients)

All good stuff.  I’m looking forward to hearing what else the Party has come up with at Conference.

Liberal Democrats sometimes like to put policy into nice little boxes, roughly corresponding to government departments.

Other parties do this too, but sometimes it is necessary to ‘think outside the box’ as it were.

With the growing environmental awareness in soceity these days the Party has tried to link its ‘green credentialls’ with the whole gamut of policies.  (From Transport, Crime through to Foreign affairs and many other issues) Its true to say that every part of policy has a envrionmental aspect and it is right for the Lib Dems to recognise this.

One such area is ‘Health.’

The magazine of the ‘Green Liberal Democrats’ produced an article on this subject.  People living near motorways have an increased chance of heart attack.  Modern urban living environments increase stress and poor mental health.

The answer to these problems isn’t Rocket Science. The Netherlands has 600 ‘care farms’, places where sufferers of Depression can recover and feel better.  The mental charity MIND talks about ‘ecotherapy’ 

So being a ‘Green Party’ is not just about Wind Turbines and Solar Heating.  Its a much broader approach… 

Nick was talking about Mental health today in PMQs (Prime Ministers Questions) and raised the good point that some patients wait 3 or more years to get a therapist.

Well I agree this is wrong and Labour has done an inadequate job of improving the Mental Health provision in the NHS.  Same old story, not enough money and not in the right places. 

Many sufferers (1 in 6 of us will be affected by Depression of some kind) could benefit from CBT (cognitive Behavioural therapy) but its expensive! and many GPs are not able or not willing to refer patients.  And the waiting lists are so long anyway (see previous point)

It also true to say that many patients need the pills.  I don’t believe this latest study paint a true picture of the situation with the anti-depressants.  The Drugs do a job.  Please don’t stop taking them untill your doctor says you can! 

My circle of friends and family include people who have suffered from poor mental health.  The older I get the more my awareness of these issues increases, And as I have mentioned in previous posts I have personal insight into this area.  

But that is another story…

What is the cost of Alcohol? 

Every Friday and Saturday the NHS is swamped with what I call ‘alocohol abusers’… People in their 20’s are being treated for liver disorders caused by Alcohol.  A whole generation is being scarred by this ‘recreational drug.

I am a Liberal and I do believe in choice, but sometimes the state has to step in.  I drink very little of ‘The Stuff’ nowadays but yes I have binged in the past.  I understand the social pressure that people are under, the so called ‘cultural differences’ that seemingly justify ‘alcohol abuse.’

So what kind of choice will we have in 20 or 30 (or 10?) years time?  And the cost financially will be prohibitive.  Yes I know the Government get upward of £30 Billion a year from the drinks industry, which kind of explains why not much is being done about the problem.

Tax on Alcohol needs to go up. Period.

Supermarkets must be subject to restrictions on discounting of Alcohol.  Strict Licenses for the sale of Alcoholic drinks must be introduced and much more effort must go into educating the public on the dangers of Mankind’s oldest drug.

And we need to introduce labels on all Alcoholic products along the lines of Cigarettes…. Then we can give people a real choice.  Live or Die?…. Discuss!

Sunshine and fresh air are good for mental health as well as physical wellbeing.
It’s not ‘Rocket Science’ (I just love that phrase… I should know!) but even these days many people don’t understand the link between the body and the mind.
MIND (the mental health charity) has recently campaigned on the subject of ‘ecotherapy.’ A good environment and physical exercise can be a good complement to drug therapy.
With nearly every family in the UK being touched my Mental Illness, in some way, its useful to know that its not just about popping pills.
And being out in the Sun at this time of year is pretty good anyway!

Well they do for some.
Nick Clegg rightly identified the issue of Mental Ill Health in our society. 1 in 4 people will suffer mental illness during their lifetime. 1 in 6 of us is ‘Mentally ill’ now….
Nick talks about Britain being a “Prozac Nation” and by this he means the ease at which medication becomes the sole solution.
Lets be clear. For many people the ‘drugs do work’ and they wouldn’t be able to cope with their lives without them. I have been there.
But there are alternative, or rather supplementary, therapies. “Cognitive Behavioural Therapy” has an important part to play for some sufferers of Depressive illnesses. But 93% of GPs prescribe anti-depresents, mainly due to a lack of resources or facilities.
Mental Health care is not glamourous. I pay tribute for the work of nurses, doctors and other key workers but there isn’t enough emphasive on on being “people oriented” ….and there isn’t the money (Weavers Croft?)
The Liberal Democrats would introduce “A Mental Health Guarantee” Maximmium waiting times would be introduced and if the NHS didn’t deliver the option of ‘going private’ would be there. Local PCTs would be made democratic and real power for change in the NHS would be devolved from Whitehall to local commisioners.
Sounds good? Well for a start maybe.