Question reference: S4W-29532
- Asked by: Christina McKelvie, MSP for Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse, Scottish National Party
- Date lodged: 28 January 2016
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Current status: Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 9 February 2016
Question
To ask the Scottish Government how it works with (a) the NHS and (b) local authorities to support young people experiencing mental health illnesses.
Answer
We want to drive improvements in child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) and are committed to working with NHS health boards and their partners to ensure that young people of any age get access to high quality mental health services. That is why we introduced the CAMHS HEAT referral to treatment waiting times target.
The Quality, Efficiency and Support Team (QuEST) at the Scottish Government commissions, supports and leads a number of national programmes to support improvement in the quality, efficiency and value of healthcare within NHS Scotland. QuEST mental health colleagues, in collaboration with policy leads, are continuing to provide support to NHS boards to improve data collection and deliver service improvements which are sustainable.
From 2014 to 2016 the Scottish Government has announced an additional
£150 million over a five year period for mental health. On 12 January 2016 the First Minister announced that £54.1 million of that will be used to improve access to mental health services which includes CAMHS.
The Scottish Government provides funding and strategic direction for NHS boards. It is the responsibility of NHS boards as commissioners of services to engage with local authorities and other services to ensure they meet the needs of their local population.