Letter to the editors
| Pages | 38-38 |
| Date | 01 October 2006 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/17556228200600016 |
| Published date | 01 October 2006 |
| Author | Philomena Harrison |
| Subject Matter | Health & social care |
38
Letter to the editors
Dear Madam/Sirs,
Iwrite in response to the publication of the article ‘The
implications of mental health law reform for service
development and workforce planning’ by Professor Peter
Kinderman, Division of Clinical Psychology, University of
Liverpool, in The Journal of Mental Health Workforce
Development,Volume 1, Issue 1.
It is well known that the Mental Health Act (1983) has
negative implications for the BME communities. This is
reflected in the over representation of black and minority
ethnic peoples among those compulsorily detained,
diagnosed as ‘schizophrenic’, Admitted as ‘offender
patients’, transferred to locked wards, given high doses of
medication etc (Fernando, 1995; 2003; Count Me In
Census, 2005). Given the existence of the latter, any moves
to amend the Act must, in the first place, address its
deficiencies in relation to ‘cultural diversity’ and racism.
The BME Mental Health Network, a loose body of BME
organisations says as much in its press release responding
to the government announcement that it intends to
amend the Act (see www.bmementalhealth.org.uk).
What the government proposes in its amendments
does not even tryto address these issues. Therefore it is
very surprising that the paper by Kinderman (2006),
reviewing the likely nature of the amendments to the Act
being prepared by the Government, fails to even mention
the need for redressing the injustices of the Act vis-à-vis
‘race’ and ‘culture’.Even more surprising, as the author
does acknowledge that ‘many people have criticised the
reforms themselves on ethical and human rights grounds’
(p22). The amendments, as they stand, will have specific
implications for practice and workforce development,
which in turn will affect BME service users in oppressive
and discriminatory ways. It is then essential that existing
and ‘new’ professionals, who will be the keepers of our
liberties under any new legislation, will have the capacity
to deliver practice that is informed by the effects of
cultural incompetence and institutional and individual
racism on members of BME communities. Some of this
work has already begun through the Delivering Race
Equality in Mental Health Care (DRE) services. (The issue
of the journal usefully opens with an article by Dr Joanna
Bennett (2006) on the ways in which training should be
designed to address the issues of race and inequality in
mental health service delivery.)
Further, it is surprising that Kinderman (2006) argues in
favour of the reforms to the Mental Health Act (1983)
being developed by the government, when the editorial
states (on p3) that he comes to a very different conclusion.
It is true, as Kinderman states, that the 1983 Act ‘merely
permits a traditional or conventional, even old-fashioned
psychiatric care regime to operate under compulsion’ (p23).
Whether one supports a ‘medical’ or a ‘biopsychosocial’
model of mental health care, a framework that addresses
the fundamental issues of oppression (in this case ‘race’) is
essential to developing good practice.
Amajor limitation of the Act for the twenty first
century is that it totally fails to address the multicultural
nature of British society and the pervasiveness within
mental health services (as in many other institutions of
our society) of institutional racism.
As practitioners and academics (responsible for education
and training), let us then collectively take everyopportunity
to challenge the inequalities in an area of practice where
liberty and human rights are at stake for particular
individuals and communities within British society.
Philomena Harrison
Director of Mental Health, University of Salford
Faculty of Health and Social Care
Email: P.Harrison@salford.ac.uk
References
Baguley I, Bailey D, Lindley P & Ryan P (2006) Editorial. The
Journal of Mental Health Workforce Development 1(1) 2–4.
Bennett J (2006) Achieving race equality through training: a
review of approaches in the UK. The Journal of Mental Health
Workforce Development 1(1) 5–11.
Fernando S (Ed) (1995) Mental Health in a Multi-ethnic Society:
AMulti-disciplinary Handbook. UK/USA/Canada: Routledge.
Fernando S (2003) Cultural Diversity, Mental Health and Psychiatry:
The Struggle Against Racism. UK/USA/Canada: Brunner-Routledge.
Kinderman P (2006) The implications of mental health law
reform for service development and workforce planning. The
Journal of Mental Health Workforce Development 1(1) 22–29.
Commission for Healthcare Audit and Inspection (2005) Count
Me In: Results of a national census of inpatients in mental health
hospitals and facilities in England and Wales. London:
Commission for Healthcare Audit and Inspection.
The Journal of Mental Health Workforce Development Volume 1 Issue 2 October 2006 © Pavilion Journals (Brighton) Ltd
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