News Release, 14 July 2005
The Mental Health Foundation has responded to the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) consultation on Social Value Judgements. In its response, the charity warns NICE that the emphasis placed on economic factors in the guidelines as currently set out will increase discrimination against older people, people with learning disabilities, mental health problems and particularly those who self-harm.
Dr Andrew McCulloch, Chief Executive of the Mental Health Foundation and the Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities, says, “The acknowledgement by NICE of the social aspects and consequences that accompany healthcare treatments and interventions is welcomed. However, the guidelines only consider social value judgements in relation to cost effectiveness, priority setting and resource allocation. These are economic and financial issues and should not be used as a basis for making judgements on social value”.
Toby Williamson, Head of Policy at the Mental Health Foundation and Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities, believes that decisions based on economic factors alone are likely to add to discrimination against vulnerable people in need of care and treatment.
“People with mental health problems and people with learning disabilities are more likely to develop physical health problems, but are less likely to be screened or treated for these problems. We are concerned that the stigma and discrimination experienced by older people, people with learning disabilities, and people with mental health problems is often rooted in the view that people in these groups are a financial “burden” on society, and so their needs continue to go un-addressed.
There is also concern that statements relating to ‘self-inflicted illness’ could be interpreted to include people who self-harm. This would be very detrimental to a group of people who already experience a high degree of stigma and discrimination. Evidence from the Foundation’s inquiry into self-harm has found that young people who self-harm are frequently met with unsupportive and hostile attitudes from healthcare staff, and are in danger of receiving a lower standard of care.
The Mental Health Foundation recommends the guidelines include:
- An explicit statement that emphasises where someone with a disability receives health care treatment for any reason, it is illegal to discriminate on the grounds of disability.
- Reference to the Disability Discrimination Act and the Mental Capacity Act 2005 .
- A clear assertion that decisions about the provision of treatment should not be made based upon general assumptions about self-inflicted conditions, and that self-harm (and possibly other health problems) be cited as examples where discrimination is unacceptable.
- A declaration that individual need should be central in decisions concerning treatment and care, and not based age, disability or monetary factors.
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