That escalated quickly!

Having had a couple of weeks away from work, I sat at my desk this morning pondering what I could write about next when a statement from the British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy ('BACP') on LinkedIn in response to comments made by health minister Stephen Kinnock made it easy!

I've attached a link to the comments made by Kinnock, which can be found in the Independent. https://apple.news/AGaQBnn9ATKKsPcEOznMqdg. If you don't want to read the article yourself then he is passing comment over how easy it is for a therapist to set up their own business and advertise their services. He also goes on to comment about how therapists in private practice are unregulated and are diagnosing mental health conditions.

The response by the BACP was about how their members don't diagnose mental health conditions as it is out of their professional remit as well how their members undergo extensive training 'that can take several years'

The thing I've found difficult in this content being posted by both Kinnock and the BACP is that actually how difficult things are for the people who are struggling massively with their mental health. The system is broken and ultimately, it's the client who suffers.

Whilst the BACP do some things well and you aren't listed on their website without providing evidence of your qualifications, which in theory provides some level of comfort to a client searching which therapist to place their trust in, it's not foolproof. It is worth remembering that the BACP are a membership body and not a regulatory body. It's all well and good the BACP claiming that 'their members don't diagnose mental health conditions' but the reality is, how can they be so sure? Yes there is a complaints procedure and a code of ethics, but if a client makes a complaint about a therapist that is upheld, there appears to be very little in the way of consequences afterwards.

As a therapist, I would be happy for regulation. I would be happy for regulation if it means that clients are engaging therapists knowing that their is a minimum standard to their training, experience or CPD. I would be happy for the client to know that there is a meaningful complaints procedure designed to protect them. If a client approaches me for therapy, I would be more than happy to provide them with evidence of my qualifications and insurance should they ask for it. Transparency is the key.

But the government also needs to take much more accountability than they are. Waiting lists for funded mental health services are ridiculous. Once you've navigated the minefield of which public service or charity might be able to help, jumped through their hoops, waited your turn in line, been allocated a therapist (of which you've not had any input over who it is), you then are probably going to be told that you can have 6, 8 or maybe 12 sessions of therapy to try and deal with some complex mental health issues with a therapist you didn't choose.

Governments do need to take control over the mental health situation in this country, but they also need to fund it properly. If it was structured, funded and regulated, then maybe, just maybe those needing help with their mental health wouldn't find their way to a therapist who claims to be that after doing a £29 course they've seen on Facebook.