Mental health of UK Members of Parliament in the House of Commons: a cross-sectional survey
Objectives The purpose of this study was to assess (1) the overall mental health of Members of Parliament (MPs) and (2) awareness among MPs of the mental health support services available to them in Parliament.Design An anonymous self-completed online cross-sectional survey was conducted in December...
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| Format: | Article |
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BMJ Publishing Group
2019-07-01
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| Series: | BMJ Open |
| Online Access: | https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/9/7/e027892.full |
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| author | Jayati Das-Munshi Daniel Poulter Nicole Votruba Ioannis Bakolis Frances Debell Graham Thornicroft |
| author_facet | Jayati Das-Munshi Daniel Poulter Nicole Votruba Ioannis Bakolis Frances Debell Graham Thornicroft |
| author_sort | Jayati Das-Munshi |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Objectives The purpose of this study was to assess (1) the overall mental health of Members of Parliament (MPs) and (2) awareness among MPs of the mental health support services available to them in Parliament.Design An anonymous self-completed online cross-sectional survey was conducted in December 2016.Setting 56th UK House of Commons.Participants All 650 members of the 56th UK House of Commons were invited to participate; 146 MPs (23%) completed the survey.Outcomes The General Health Questionnaire-12 was used to assess age- and sex-standardised prevalence of probable common mental disorders (CMD). Results were compared with a nationally representative survey, the Health Survey for England (HSE) 2014. Core demographic questions, MPs’ awareness of available mental health services, their willingness to discuss mental health issues with party Whips and fellow MPs and the effects of employment outside Parliament were assessed.Results Comparison of MP respondents with HSE comparator groups found that MPs have higher rates of mental health problems (age- and sex-standardised prevalence of probable CMD in 49 surveyed MPs 34% (95% CI 27% to 42%) versus 17% (95% CI 13% to 21%) in the high-income comparison group). Survey respondents were younger, more likely to be female and more educated compared with all MPs. 77% of MPs (n=112) did not know how to access in-house mental health support. 52% (n=76) would not discuss their mental health with party Whips or other MPs (48%; n=70).Conclusions MPs in the study sample had higher rates of mental health problems than rates seen in the whole English population or comparable occupational groups. Most surveyed MPs are unaware of mental health support services or how to access them. Our findings represent a relatively small sample of MPs. There is a need for MPs to have better awareness of, and access to, mental health support. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-9b37f3d551764a468cd30f2c19d3606e |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2044-6055 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2019-07-01 |
| publisher | BMJ Publishing Group |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMJ Open |
| spelling | doaj-art-9b37f3d551764a468cd30f2c19d3606e2025-08-20T02:50:25ZengBMJ Publishing GroupBMJ Open2044-60552019-07-019710.1136/bmjopen-2018-027892Mental health of UK Members of Parliament in the House of Commons: a cross-sectional surveyJayati Das-Munshi0Daniel Poulter1Nicole Votruba2Ioannis Bakolis3Frances Debell4Graham Thornicroft51 Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, London, UKHouse of Commons, London, UKCentre for Global Mental Health, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, London, UKDepartment of Biostatistics and Health Informatics, King’s College London, London, UKSouth London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, London, UKHealth Service and Population Research, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King`s College London, London, UKObjectives The purpose of this study was to assess (1) the overall mental health of Members of Parliament (MPs) and (2) awareness among MPs of the mental health support services available to them in Parliament.Design An anonymous self-completed online cross-sectional survey was conducted in December 2016.Setting 56th UK House of Commons.Participants All 650 members of the 56th UK House of Commons were invited to participate; 146 MPs (23%) completed the survey.Outcomes The General Health Questionnaire-12 was used to assess age- and sex-standardised prevalence of probable common mental disorders (CMD). Results were compared with a nationally representative survey, the Health Survey for England (HSE) 2014. Core demographic questions, MPs’ awareness of available mental health services, their willingness to discuss mental health issues with party Whips and fellow MPs and the effects of employment outside Parliament were assessed.Results Comparison of MP respondents with HSE comparator groups found that MPs have higher rates of mental health problems (age- and sex-standardised prevalence of probable CMD in 49 surveyed MPs 34% (95% CI 27% to 42%) versus 17% (95% CI 13% to 21%) in the high-income comparison group). Survey respondents were younger, more likely to be female and more educated compared with all MPs. 77% of MPs (n=112) did not know how to access in-house mental health support. 52% (n=76) would not discuss their mental health with party Whips or other MPs (48%; n=70).Conclusions MPs in the study sample had higher rates of mental health problems than rates seen in the whole English population or comparable occupational groups. Most surveyed MPs are unaware of mental health support services or how to access them. Our findings represent a relatively small sample of MPs. There is a need for MPs to have better awareness of, and access to, mental health support.https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/9/7/e027892.full |
| spellingShingle | Jayati Das-Munshi Daniel Poulter Nicole Votruba Ioannis Bakolis Frances Debell Graham Thornicroft Mental health of UK Members of Parliament in the House of Commons: a cross-sectional survey BMJ Open |
| title | Mental health of UK Members of Parliament in the House of Commons: a cross-sectional survey |
| title_full | Mental health of UK Members of Parliament in the House of Commons: a cross-sectional survey |
| title_fullStr | Mental health of UK Members of Parliament in the House of Commons: a cross-sectional survey |
| title_full_unstemmed | Mental health of UK Members of Parliament in the House of Commons: a cross-sectional survey |
| title_short | Mental health of UK Members of Parliament in the House of Commons: a cross-sectional survey |
| title_sort | mental health of uk members of parliament in the house of commons a cross sectional survey |
| url | https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/9/7/e027892.full |
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