Building public mental health skills
Development framework publication coincides with third annual Public Mental Health Summit.
Public Health England (PHE) has today (10 March 2015) published a new framework to build mental health skills in a wide range of professions working with children and adults in all areas of life, including work settings.
The framework aims to widen the responsibility for improving public mental health beyond those professions on the public health register, or with a specific role in public health. Teachers, early years workers, nurses, GPs, housing officers, psychiatrists and employers are all identified as having an important role.
The aim of the framework is to build the capacity and capability of leaders, and developing a workforce that is confident, competent, and committed to:
- promoting good mental health across the population
- preventing mental illness and suicide
- improving the quality and length of life of people living with mental illness
Professor Kevin Fenton, National Director of Health and Wellbeing, Public Health England, said:
Good mental health is essential to living a fulfilling life that has meaning and purpose. Many professions that previously may not have considered themselves as having a role do have a crucial part to play, and this framework identifies how they can prioritise and promote mental health in a variety of settings. Making mental health everybody’s business helps meet the parity of esteem challenge, and helps to improve the overall health and wellbeing of our communities.
The framework is being presented at PHE’s third annual Public Mental Health Summit (#PMH15). The summit is designed to bring together professionals working across the public health system to share local and national best practices.