News that 120,000 NHS mental health patients are being kept on “hidden” waiting lists for their second appointment is worrying – EAP providers have a duty to provide top-notch support wherever they can

News that 120,000 NHS mental health patients are being kept on “hidden” waiting lists for their second appointment is worrying – EAP providers have a duty to provide top-notch support wherever they can

Waiting times for second GP appointments for UK patients seeking help with their mental health are missing national targets in the tens of thousands, an alarming story in The Independent has revealed.

The article tells how figures have revealed that 122,000 patients had to wait more than eight weeks to see a GP again after their first appointment in 2018/9.

The nationally set waiting time is six weeks.

The patients in question were part of the Improving Access to Pscyhological Therapies (IAPT) scheme, which has been credited for cutting waiting times for first appointments.

But the new research reveals that while the first appointment for these patients might not take too long, they are being forced to wait far longer for their second. In the worst performing areas, it was taking up to 15 weeks for people to see a doctor again after their first visit.

These waits were described as a “hidden sucker punch” for vulnerable people who have made the brave step of asking for help in the first place, leaving them feeling at a low ebb.

EAPA UK chair Eugene Farrell says the new figures are “concerning” for those asking for help with their mental health problems.

But, he says, they also mean that employers duty of care the for mental health of employee has to be met, and timely access to support via an  EAP offers them fast and caring support at a time when they really need it.

“These figures show that when it comes to mental health, the NHS is doing its absolute best, but it is very far from able to provide an ideal service,” he says. “That’s where employers continue to have a real duty to step in and ensure that for their staff at least, they have access to an EAP which will not keep them waiting between appointments and will offer them the best of advice and support.

“Our NHS is one of the pillars of Great Britain, it really is, and our doctors and nurses and physiotherapists and all staff working for this fabulous institution are working so hard day in, day out, to make it that way. But it is not a limitless resource. Sometimes, cracks begin to show. That’s where employers can help boost our country by offering superb EAP services to take some of that strain away.”