MENTAL health services in West Dunbartonshire will need “community participation and ownership” as they undergo transformation over the next five years, according to a medical expert.

Speaking at a meeting of the health and social care partnership last Wednesday, Dr Michael Smith said the strategy for 2018 to 2023 will require a significant “culture shift” in how mental health issues are treated.

The associate lead medical director for mental health services at NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde said: “I think we have ended up in a really good place. We need a big investment in community recovery.

“We’ve got specialist work we want to do around bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder.

“We just need to be careful that people can actually find their way around the system reasonably easily.”

Figures from the presentation revealed 50 per cent of adult mental health problems begin by 15 years old, while 75 per cent begin by age 18.

Childhood mental health problems also worsen in Glasgow from the age of four to seven – a statistic that Bailie Denis Agnew described as “alarming”.

Bailie Agnew said: “These are figures we have to address. I think as a board we should be working very hard. I think we should, as a board, support any development that actually improves it. Myself and my colleagues get these issues coming into our surgeries, but we are unequipped.”

Dr Smith emphasised the importance of taking pre-emptive measures, not only to save more lives but also to save money and run a more efficient service.

He continued: “If you invest in school based anti-bullying interventions and suicide training prevention by GPs you save money.

“These are not only good things to do, they actually save money overall. There’s lots of good work going on in schools across the board’s area.”

The strategy will be put to Glasgow City Council Integration Joint Board by the end of March, having been informed by the contribution of West Dunbartonshire Health and Social Care Partnership.

Dr Smith hopes to move away from a clinical approach to mental health recovery and instead to a more educational method.

He said that often during the clinical process “everything becomes therapy in a really annoying way” before emphasising “there’s more to recovery for mental health problems than just having fewer symptoms.”

A ‘college’ method would see a change in the terms used as people go through recovery. Rather than being referred to social groups, individuals would engage with fellow students, and instead of being discharged, they would graduate.

The NHS board will also look to improve the balance of care and relieve pressure on the adult mental health system by reducing the number of beds, instead investing in alternative forms of health and social care.

The bed occupancy in Greater Glasgow and Clyde is frequently operating at over 100 per cent, however, the board hopes proactive care in the community can relieve this pressure.

Dr Smith added: “Mental health services can’t do this on their own, it’s actually a civic service really. It depends on community participation and civic ownership.”