Mental Health: Preventative support services cannot be underestimated, but are often squeezed
Kooth Digital Health (United Kingdom)
Effective personalised digital mental health care, available to all
Written by Kate Newhouse, CMgr CCMI - Kooth Digital Health
In the stream of stats around poor wellbeing, it can be easy to miss the significance of data that points to something extremely worrying: young people are more likely to be out of work because of ill health than people in their early 40s. This research, shared today by the Resolution Foundation, urges us to look at the devastating impact of poor mental health combined with poor education outcomes on both the individual level but also nationally, affecting each and every one of us.
Huge issues like the pandemic and the cost of living crisis can leave significant mental health issues in their wake. According to the Money and Mental Health Policy Institute, people with depression and problem debt are over four times more likely to still have depression 18 months later than people without financial difficulty. In addition, people in problem debt are three times as likely to have thought about suicide in the past year.
Our data at Kooth supports this: we have seen suicidal ideation increase at a rate of 67% over the last four years and self harm by 59%, coinciding with the cost of living crisis.
While there is no silver bullet and while mental health and related issues are often connected and complex, the role of preventative support services cannot be underestimated - but are often overlooked and deprioritised when the public purse is squeezed.
Offered when mental health struggles may just be emerging, the right support provided when needed can be life-changing. The issue is often when there are no professional services available when the need arises or when there are no known services available. Of course stigma can also stop someone from asking for help.
We believe in equity of awareness and access to mental health support. By focusing on prevention and eliminating barriers to help - offering free, anonymous and professional support at the point of need - we can and must do right by our young people and our communities across the UK.