MHF calls for integration

Treating physical and mental health as separate entities is flawed according to a report by the Mental Health Foundation, published last month, which made a number of recommendations for improving integrated care. Crossing Boundaries: Improving integrated care for people with mental health problems found that good integrated care for people with mental health needs remains the exception rather than the rule. It called for a fundamental change in thinking about healthcare, and for commissioners and practitioners to recognise the benefits of integrated, holistic approaches to care that involve not just health and social care services, but factors such as education, employment, housing and poverty.