Medway Liberal Democrats to host Public Meetings to Reinstate a Mental Health Unit in Medway
As mental health week comes to a close, we would like to draw your attention to the shortfall in acute mental health care provision for the Medway and North Kent area. We will be holding public meetings to raise further awareness and discuss possible options with local people, the police and health care professionals. The closure of the Mental Health Unit at Medway Maritime Hospital in December 2013 has seen the dispersal of acute mental health treatment services to other hospitals such as Darent Valley and QEQM in Margate. In an urban area of over 270,000 people, it is clearly unacceptable that Medway should be lacking a dedicated mental health facility. It is estimated that around a third of police time is spent responding to incidents, where intervention from mental health professionals would be more appropriate and effective. Lacking a local specialist centre simply shifts the initial response to the police and other public services. Many local people have been treated outside of the county. At a time whe
