Hackney has ‘highest level of anxiety by population’ – with medics seeing ‘significant demand’ for mental health care

Homerton Hospital. Photograph: courtesy the Homerton

Demand for mental health support in Hackney is still high after the pandemic – with 2,000 people calling a crisis line every month.

So far this year, emergency medics at Homerton Hospital have referred 391 patients a month for treatment.

East London NHS Foundation Trust (ELFT) said the number of people going to casualty for help with poor mental health is higher than in the rest of east London.

The average length of stay in hospital has gone up from 33 days in 2020 to 54 days this year.

Sharon Evans, who leads the crisis team for City and Hackney, said there has been an increase in patients who have not used the service before.

Some of the reasons these people are in distress include suicidality, self-harm, and depression.

Dr Olivier Andlauer, clinical director for City and Hackney at ELFT, said: “Hackney is a borough that presents the highest level of anxiety by population.”

He said there has been a 20 to 25 per cent increase nationally in need for mental health care after the pandemic.

There are also inequalities at play, with people twice as likely to need support if they live in more deprived areas.

There is a “significant demand” for help from the crisis line.

It saw a peak of 3,000 calls a month in 2020, during the pandemic, and is still averaging nearly 2,000 a month this year.

The demand outstrips the staff’s capacity to deal with the need, especially as some calls are very complex, Hackney’s health scrutiny commission was told this week.

The health service is looking at centralising the phone line across three east London boroughs to help deal with demand and cut waiting times.

The service is also seeing an increase in the use of private beds and B&Bs.

Borough director Jed Francique assured councillors that B&Bs are only used if there is a wait for a resident’s home to be ready, rather than an “indefinite stay”.