Suicide rate much higher for care at home
It's claimed suicide rates won't go down in the North East until there are more hospital beds for people at crisis point.
People with mental health problems who are cared for by community crisis teams are far more likely to commit suicide than those treated in hospital, research shows.
Some 200 suicides occur every year among those receiving crisis resolution and home treatment (CRHT) - three times the figure for inpatients.
Experts behind the new study - from the University of Manchester's National Confidential Inquiry into Suicide and Homicide by People with Mental Illness (NCISH) - questioned whether there was too much reliance on home treatment.
Their report said “crisis teams are unlikely to be a safe setting for patients at high risk or who live alone”
The new study found that a third of patients under CRHT who died from suicide had been using the service for less than a week, while a third had been discharged from hospital in the previous two weeks.
Shirley Smith, from the If U Care Share Foundation in County Durham, says over-stretched services are a problem and many patients are forced to stay at home because there are no available beds. She said:
“It’s a postcode lottery as to how effective those teams are. That’s not down to the personnel, it’s down to the money and the what’s available. There are not beds.
“We have the highest rate in the country and the impact that has on mental health services when people can’t get crisis care, they end their lives.”
Professor Louis Appleby, director of NCISH and the Government's former national director for mental health, said:
“This year's report reflects the increasing reliance on crisis teams in response to the strains felt by acute mental health services.
“Our findings suggest that we are accepting too much risk in the home treatment these teams offer, and that the crisis team is now the priority for suicide prevention in mental health.”
Samantha Nicklin, head of campaigns at Rethink Mental Illness, said:
“While progress is being made in our understanding of how to support people with mental illness and prevent suicide, we are still seeing people struggling to get the help they need before they reach crisis point, with over-stretched services and patchy care across the country.”
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