Report calls for greater investment in mental health promotion

A new report estimates the overall cost of mental health problems in Wales at £7.2 billion a year.

The total includes the cost of health and social care provided for people with mental health problems. The costs of output losses in the Welsh economy are also included. And the third element is a monetary estimate of the human costs of mental health problems representing their impact on quality of life.

The report, ‘Promoting Mental Health and Preventing Mental Illness: the economic case for investment in Wales’ is published by the All Wales Mental Health Promotion Network. It calls for greater investment in mental health promotion and argues that this will bring economic advantages.

The report highlights how mental illnesses can often occur early in life and persist throughout adulthood. It recommends early interventions such as supporting parents and children in their early years. Support for lifelong learning, improving working lives and investing in positive steps for mental health are also recommended.

Professor Sir Mansel Aylward CB, chair of the All Wales Mental Health Promotion Network which commissioned the report, said, “Mental illness is widespread. Its consequences are multi-dimensional so the potential benefits of prevention are extremely high.

“Mental health promotion interventions can raise self-esteem and strengthen people’s life and coping skills as well as their emotional resistance.
“The report illustrates just how much mental health problems cost the Welsh economy both in terms of treatment and loss of earnings.

“Although there may be many gaps in the data, the economic benefits of improving mental health may be extensive.

“Subjective wellbeing increases life expectancy by 7.5 years. It provides a similar degree of protection from heart disease to giving up smoking. It improves recovery and health outcomes from a range of chronic diseases such as diabetes. In young people, it significantly influences the use of alcohol, tobacco and cannabis.

“A positive disposition also predicts positive social behaviour such as participation, civic engagement and volunteering.

“The report highlights how projects across Wales are making a positive difference to people’s mental health. However, more is needed. By investing in more of these projects we can improve people’s mental wellbeing and reduce the costs to our economy.”

The report concludes that, although there is now a much greater policy focus on positive mental health and wellbeing, there is still much to do. It calls for improved data on both the effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of interventions.

Phill Chick, Mental Health Development Lead for Wales commented, “This report is a seminal document in the field of mental health promotion. It will be of enormous help in informing mental health promotion approaches across Wales.

“The analysis within this publication provides powerful and clearly presented evidence on the costs of mental ill health, the benefits of mental wellbeing and potential savings that can be achieved from mental health promoting activity. It will now be widely distributed not only to local and central government but to educationalists, employers, justice agencies and anybody involved in promoting wellbeing in Wales.”

Dr Tony Jewell, Chief Medical Officer for Wales, said: "I welcome this analysis of the benefits of promoting mental health in Wales and I have emphasised the need for a greater focus on mental health in Wales.

"This not only applies to NHS services that treat people with mental health problems but also to improving the mental health and wellbeing of the population through activities in all sectors."

The report is being launched and discussed at the All Wales Mental Health Promotion Network Annual Conference in Wrexham on 17 March and widely distributed to members of the National Assembly for Wales and other key stakeholders.


Promoting Mental Health and Preventing Mental Illness: the economic case for investment in Wales (PDF)

Executive Summary (PDF)