Part of the debate – in the Scottish Parliament at on 23 February 2016.
I join other members in congratulating Dennis Robertson on securing this debate. As Nanette Milne said, it continues his long-standing interest in bringing these matters to the chamber, and I thank him for bringing it to us.
I also thank Dennis Robertson for speaking very movingly about his family’s experience. I know that doing so could not have been easy for him, and none of us could fail to be moved by his doing so. It is always very important to hear about such experiences. That reflects the point that Nanette Milne made about others who have spoken publicly about their challenges and struggles with eating disorders. I recognise that it is never easy for individuals to come forward and talk about their own challenges—not necessarily just eating disorder challenges, but any form of mental health challenges. Those who do so do us a great service, as that helps us to challenge the tremendous stigmatisation issues that we know still exist and pervade.
Dennis Robertson and Malcolm Chisholm mentioned the conference that will take place this Friday. I am sorry that I will be unable to attend it, but I look forward to hearing about its outcomes.
I am very pleased to be able to respond to the debate on behalf of the Scottish Government. Doing so gives me the opportunity to join others in marking eating disorder awareness week this year and to recognise the efforts of all the people and organisations across the country who are working to raise awareness of eating disorders, including the Scottish eating disorder interest group.
I very much associate myself with Malcolm Chisholm’s remarks about the nature and impact of eating disorders as a serious mental health problem. This may be the last opportunity I have to pay tribute to his work on and the interest that he has shown in mental health over the years, so I should take it. I know that he is standing down at the election. Similarly, I may not get the opportunity between now and dissolution to pay tribute to the work that Nanette Milne has undertaken in the time that she has been an elected representative.
I listened carefully to the range of comments that were made and the issues that were raised during the debate, and I assure members of the Scottish Government’s commitment to doing all that it can to tackle eating disorders and further improve care services and support.
Both Dennis Robertson and Nanette Milne mentioned the impact of the fashion industry. Beat, which is the UK-wide eating disorder charity, acknowledges that influences are wide ranging, and although the media and the fashion industry do not necessarily directly cause eating disorders, I think that we all agree that their influence cannot be ignored. The see me programme, which the Scottish Government helps, funds work to promote mental health and wellbeing, including positive body image, through the benefits of healthy lifestyles and diet. That work is under way, but I make it clear that I accept that more can always be done. I call on all those who are responsible, including retailers and the fashion industry, to play their part in tackling unhelpful or unrealistic ideals, which can contribute to unhealthy lifestyles.
I turn to some of the work that is under way. Our improvement agenda has been driven forward over the past few years through delivery of the national mental health and suicide prevention strategies, and we will publish a new three-year mental health strategy later this year. I met Dennis Robertson last year to discuss the important issue of eating disorders as part of the engagement process around that strategy. No decisions have yet been made on the content of the strategy, but in maintaining continuity with the work that has already been progressed in recent years, some priorities naturally emerge.
I expect the new strategy to focus on encouraging the development of new models for managing mental health problems in primary care. I anticipate a focus on child and adolescent mental health and better responses to distress, and there will also be a focus on developing and measuring outcomes for improved mental health. Those are our broad priorities at present, and there are clear links with eating disorder care.
We will develop the detail over the coming months as the new mental health strategy is finalised, and there are opportunities for Dennis Robertson and indeed any member of this Parliament and those whom Mr Robertson works with on eating disorders to contribute to the process. That could include any conclusions from the conference on Friday, and I would be very happy to receive such contributions.
It is important to look forward but also to look back at some of the successes that we have had. In July last year, I was able to visit—at Mr Robertson’s invitation—both the adult and young people’s eating disorder services in NHS Grampian. I spoke to staff who work on the front line, families and those who use the services and I saw at first hand the impressive care and support that is delivered day in, day out. I saw the royal college’s MARSIPAN—management of really sick patients with anorexia nervosa—guidance being used to better manage patients and I heard about the wide range of treatments that are available and the benefits of improved access to therapies, including increased availability of family therapy. It is clear that great work is taking place in the north-east and I thank Dennis Robertson for arranging for me to visit.
Members talked about some of the funding decisions that we have made. Part of the significant additional investment of £150 million that the Scottish Government announced recently for improving mental health and wellbeing will contribute directly to the aim of working closely with NHS Scotland and its partners to ensure that we offer the best quality of life and opportunities for all people with mental health problems, including those who are living with an eating disorder. The First Minister announced in January that part of that funding—£54.1 million—will go towards directly improving access to mental health services for adults and children.
Part of the funding that the First Minister announced directly relates to the point that David Torrance made—and which has been made as part of eating disorder awareness week—about the need for a responsive workforce. We need to ensure that the workforce has the requisite skill set, and some of the funding that the First Minister announced will be used to improve workforce supply and train existing staff to better deliver services for children and young people, as well as psychological therapies for people of all ages.
Malcolm Chisholm talked about the importance of primary care and general practitioners. Again, over the next three years £10 million will go directly towards improving mental health support in primary care. I absolutely agree that we need a better response to the challenges of dealing with poor mental health in primary care settings.
The bulk of the additional investment will be invested from next year. It will take time to deliver results, but I think that the funding will make a difference to how we support people with poor mental health, including those who present with eating disorders. Dennis Robertson requested that we utilise some of the remainder of the funding specifically to help people with eating disorders. We have not decided how the entirety of the funding will be used, so I will be happy to talk to Dennis Robertson about that and consider any proposition.
I hope that what I have said demonstrates that partners across all sectors are undertaking a great deal of work to tackle eating disorders and wider mental health problems. Dennis Robertson expressed a hope that eating disorders will retain political prominence after the Scottish Parliament elections. I am confident that that will be the case. As I think Nanette Milne said, this is not a partisan political issue but a shared concern, and I am sure that it will remain high on the political agenda.
It is right that we recognise eating disorder awareness week and I reaffirm our commitment to deliver on our ambitions for improved outcomes and quality of life for everyone who lives with an eating disorder. I thank Dennis Robertson for providing us with the opportunity to do that.