{"id":13284,"date":"2017-09-11T16:07:10","date_gmt":"2017-09-11T15:07:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/unitelive.org\/?p=13284"},"modified":"2017-09-11T16:07:10","modified_gmt":"2017-09-11T15:07:10","slug":"blood-on-our-hands","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/?p=13284","title":{"rendered":"&#8216;Blood on our hands&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"fb-root\"><\/div>\n<p>Speaking in support of composite 11 on mental health funding, Unite delegate and mental health nurse Ann Crozier today (September 11) highlighted how mental health services are needed now more than ever before, especially as they face swingeing cuts from the Tory government.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<br \/>\nAs a member of Unite, which includes the Mental Health Nurses Association (MHNA), Crozier explained how the government\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s devastating cuts across public services, public sector real pay cuts, cuts to benefits and social security, along with the rise in insecure work have all contributed to a growing demand for mental health services at the same time as a sharp fall in mental health nurses.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<br \/>\n\u00e2\u20ac\u015bThere has been a decrease of just over 5,000 mental health nurses since the Tories came to power in 2010,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 she pointed out.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<br \/>\n\u00e2\u20ac\u015bOur members have warned that increased caseloads and staff shortages are leaving nurses at risk of burn-out, with them stretched too thin to provide the one-to-one care needed to avoid detentions under the Mental Health Act, which have increased.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<br \/>\nCrozier added that the closure of community health services has led people with mental health issues being unsupported as their mental health worsens.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<br \/>\n\u00e2\u20ac\u015bThese have been the actions of the Conservative led government,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 she said.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<br \/>\n\u00e2\u20ac\u015bSo when earlier this year the government said they would be expanding mental health services we were sceptical to say the least,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 Crozier added.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<br \/>\n\u00e2\u20ac\u015bBecause when Jeremy Hunt speaks of the \u00e2\u20ac\u0098historic imbalance\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 between mental health services and other health services, he seems totally unaware of the significant part he is playing in continuing and worsening that imbalance.\u00e2\u20ac\u0165<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<br \/>\nCrozier highlighted that even before the Tories\u00e2\u20ac\u2122 cuts, mental health services were already underfunded.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<br \/>\nThe situation has become so dire, she said, that even the UK\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s most senior family judge was moved to say recently that the country\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s inability to provide care for a 17-year-old who self-harms will \u00e2\u20ac\u015bleave us with blood on our hands\u00e2\u20ac\u0165.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<br \/>\n\u00e2\u20ac\u015bThis is a disgrace that this is the situation in 21st century Britain,\u00e2\u20ac\u0165 Crozier said, as she urged Congress to support the motion and continue the fight to achieve properly funded mental health services.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The motion was passed.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Speaking in support of composite 11 on mental health funding, Unite delegate and mental health nurse Ann Crozier today (September 11) highlighted how mental health services are needed now more than ever before, especially as they face swingeing cuts from the Tory government. &nbsp; As a member of Unite, which includes the Mental Health Nurses [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":13286,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[404,792],"wps_subtitle":"Unite's Ann Crozier on mental health funding","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13284"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=13284"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13284\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":13288,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13284\/revisions\/13288"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/13286"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=13284"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=13284"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/unitelive.test.igniteamt.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=13284"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}