Mental Health Act detention data continues to show worrying disparities based on ethnicity

Responding to publication of the annual Mental Health Act Statistics, Rebecca Gray, mental health director at the NHS Confederation, said:

“This new data shows that there continues to be worrying disparities in detention rates based on ethnicity which is causing significant concerns to those providing mental health services. Implementation of patient and carer race equality framework (PCREF) and adopting widespread use of advance choice documents are examples of steps that should contribute to improvement over time. 

“There is also a clear connection between deprivation and acuity of mental illness visible in today's figures. Living in areas with the most deprivation can lead to increased social stressors for people with ongoing or emerging serious mental illnesses – such as poverty and a lack of secure housing or employment. These can drive detention levels and also impact how long people stay in inpatient wards.

“There will always be a need for inpatient wards to assess and treat people when they are extremely unwell – though mental health leaders are actively implementing changes to reduce the number of incidences where people get to that point. The revised Mental Health Act will also reduce the number of and length of detentions when fully implemented. Increasing NHS and voluntary, community and social enterprise crisis services in the community designed with communities most impacted by severe mental illness will be an essential part of the evolution of mental health services.”