Mind joins NHS to deliver physical health checks at Bexley Pantry

The NHS and Mind in Bexley teamed up to support patients with severe mental health illness.

Bexley Health Neighbourhood Care joined Mind in Bexley staff to deliver physical health checks last week. BHNC staff  conducted blood tests while Mind staff delivered height, weight, blood pressure and alcohol and smoking assesments. The details from all six phycal health checks were then passed to the GP Practice of patients.

These tests are of critical importance as people with severe mental health illness are less likely to champion their own physical health and can often ignore issues that could be resolved if tackled speedily.

Statistically the life expectancy of someone with Severe Mental Health Illness – on the SMI register – can be 15-20 years shorter than the rest of the population, so the session held at the Bexley Community Pantry was viewed as very important by NHS bosses.

Mind in Bexley has been working with the NHS over the last six months to support GP Practices to support and train their staff to better cater for patients on the SMI register.

The charity delivers four of the six physical health checks but has previously not delivered blood tests – so to have BHNC join them for a health checks day proved to be a successful partnership.

Malcolm Thomson, Head of Nursing, Quality and Professional Standards at BHNC said: “It’s really important for partients with mental health to come to a non clinical environment such as here at the Bexley Community Pantry run by Mind in Bexley.

“It is a place that they recognise and feel comfortable.  We can work with Mind in Bexley to deliver the health checks in a comfortable, supportive environment.

“The feedback that we had from all the clients that visited has been really positive. They’ve had a very good experience and can see the benefit of having physical health checks in the future.”