More than two thirds of mental health trusts in England received increased referrals for community crisis intervention last year. Statistics, obtained by Radio 5 Live, show that the numbers of people seeking support are going up, despite spending on crisis teams being significantly cut.

The largest increase in urgent requests for intervention came from East London NHS Foundation Trust – who saw a 61% rise in referrals, while Central and North West London Trusts also saw serious rises of more than one third.

Of the trusts that received substantially more referrals, more than one in three were also forced to reduce their spending on the very service deployed to attend to the situation.

It seems as though every week we read and hear about the detrimental impact of funding cuts on our health services and, subsequently, on ourselves.

Just last week, welfare cuts were blamed for a 50% rise in mental health issues among the unemployed, while another report suggested that young people suffering similar problems are being kept in hospital beds – simply because the care they need is not sufficiently available outside. Earlier, we reported that as many as one in six employees are suffering from work-related stress, depression, or anxiety, right now.

While all these statistics are indeed worrying, and show that a significant strain is being burdened upon our healthcare services, the fact that more people appear to be reaching out for help is far from negative.

At Hygia, we like to see the positive in a situation, and if more people are seeking advice and assistance from our mental health services, then we are glad that they are brave enough to do so.

The stigma attached to mental health problems has often stopped sufferers from seeking the help they require – and this is one of the issues we address in our comprehensive mental health training courses.

We are unable to affect the impact of budget cuts on our healthcare services, but every one of us is capable of making a difference in the life of a person suffering from mental illness.

Our healthcare training service is tailored to the needs of individuals, groups, and entire workforces. We provide accredited, practical skills and academic qualifications, and we put the care of the people who need your support – and ours – at the front of everything we do.

Contact us today to discuss your training needs – and don’t ever fear contacting your local crisis team if you, or a family member or a friend, need help. Just as we are there for them, they are certainly there for you.