Access To Mental Health Services For Black And Ethnic Minority People

EDM number 920 in 2001-02, proposed by Ashok Kumar on 04/03/2002.

That this House believes that access to good mental health services is one of the biggest hurdles black and ethnic minority service users have to overcome; acknowledges that the struggle of coping with a mental health problem is often compounded by the battle to have such problems recognised and identified as such; recognises the work of the Government in attempting to tackle the problem of access to services through measures such as the National Service Framework for Mental Health; but notes that there are major issues to be addressed surrounding minority ethnic mental illness, as highlighted by Department of Health statistics showing that Afro-Caribbeans are three to six times more likely to be diagnosed schizophrenic and women born in India and East Africa have a 40 per cent. higher suicide rate than those born in England and Wales; and calls on the Government to recognise and introduce measures to address better access to mental health services for black and minority people.

This motion has been signed by a total of 56 MPs.