We must build infrastructure for a needs-based system of mental healthcare

AI Summary

An article argues that mental healthcare should be organized around people’s needs rather than diagnosis alone, amid rising demand related to mental health conditions, ADHD, and autism. It calls for better training and support for healthcare professionals to make reliable assessments and connect patients with appropriate care.

The UK government commissioned an independent review in response to the recent increase in prevalence of mental health conditions, attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and autism and demand for mental healthcare.1 The review makes it clear that the patient typically presenting for mental health support to GP surgeries and mental health services has changed dramatically in a short period of time.Healthcare professionals conducting assessments therefore need better support, education, and training to ensure that diagnostic processes are conducted reliably and with confidence. This must include accurately differentiating patients who meet the threshold for diagnosis from those who do not, and those for whom other kinds of support should be available. At the heart of the independent review is the assertion that need, and not only diagnosis, should unlock support.The starting question of a prevalence review is deceptively obvious: how common are mental health and neurodevelopmental disorders? Yet this question can be...