NHS deficits cast a long shadow

The warning signs have been flashing for a while, but it was only last week that a clearer picture emerged of the way NHS deficits have impacted on mental health services, reports The Guardian.

A report from Rethink, the mental health charity, concludes that mental health is being disproportionately hit by NHS belt-tightening in the wake of deficits estimated at around £700m.

The report, A Cut Too Far, identifies £30m-worth of cuts in mental health services across England and suggests that further cuts are likely as trusts struggle to balance their books.

If Rethink is correct, then it means that despite repeated reassurances from government that all areas of mental health are a high priority, the reality is that when other parts of the NHS are struggling financially, it is - as usual - the "Cinderella service" of acute mental health provision that is squeezed.