‘Hips, knees and eyes’ funding focus ‘not fair’, says medical leader

Physical health and “hips, knees and eyes” still command the lion’s share of government money, despite persistent calls for fairer mental health funding, the Royal College of Psychiatrists’ departing president has told HSJ.

Adrian James also said future leaders must tackle bed and workforce shortages, while upcoming inquiries into poor care must allow people to speak openly without fear. 

NHS England CEO Amanda Pritchard has called the minimum investment standard for mental health “non-negotiable”. However, in an interview with HSJ, Dr James said mental health services are often missing out while “big chunks” of government money are allocated to reduce waiting lists. 

He said: “The [covid] recovery plan that was negotiated with the government really was about your hips, knees and eyes, in spite of big voices – one of them mine – saying, ‘what about the mental health backlog’. At that point, we didn’t get any extra money.”

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Source: HSJ, 18 July 2023