RETHINK BURDEN OF DISEASE texts:

Mental Health Resistance Network

Dear Mr Winstanley,

Members of the Mental Health Resistance Network (MHRN) and our friends at Disabled People Against Cuts (DPAC) were included in your mail-out below. We were shocked and bewildered that Rethink thought it acceptable to use the term “disease burden” in relation to mental health in a bulk mail-out. In this context it is brutal language and has caused offence to those of us who live with mental distress and to other members of the disability movement who have received your mailing.

“Disease burden” is a specialist piece of jargon used in disease informatics but, even when used in this context, disabled people do not accept that it is neutral. No language is neutral and this term should never have been used in a mail-out to random disabled people. You are no doubt aware that the words “disease” and, above all, “burden” are highly toxic to disabled people and those living with mental distress. It was crass to send this out willy nilly. Is there no sensitivity at Rethink?

We urge you to issue an immediate apology to all of the people who received this mailing and rightly experienced it as offensive and hurtful.

Yours sincerely,
Denise McKenna
Co-founder, MHRN


Manifesto for Better Mental Health
Dear
Today we’re launching A Manifesto for Better Mental Health which sets out practical changes that a future Government must make in order to ensure our mental and physical health are valued equally. We’ve joined forces with our colleagues across mental health to agree on five key areas we are calling on all political parties to commit to if they are elected in 2015.
Mental health accounts for 23% of the disease burden, but it gets just 13% of the NHS budget and funding has been cut even further for the last three years.
This is not acceptable. The next Government must seriously tackle this issue.
That’s why we need YOU. You can help us secure change by:
Send a card to your MP with the Manifesto’s key priorities for action
1. Fair funding for mental health
2. Give children a good start in life
3. Improve physical health care for people with mental health problems
4. Improve the lives of people with mental health problems
5. Better access to mental health services

Share our asks on social media and raise awareness
Our ‘Manifesto for Better Mental Health’ has been written with the Centre for Mental Health, Mental Health Foundation, Mental Health Network, Mind and the Royal College of Psychiatrists.
Together we intend to turn this tide. Our time has come.
Thanks for your continued help and support,

Mark Winstanley
Chief Executive

'Burden of disease' - response
23 August 2014
In response to concerns over the use of the phrase 'disease burden', Mark Winstanley, CEO of Rethink Mental Illness said: "We sincerely apologise if any offence was caused by our use of the phrase 'disease burden' in our recent email to our supporters.

"Health organisations campaigning on a wide range of issues have been using this term for many years. It is widely accepted by health professionals and policy makers as the correct term for quantifying the national impact of a health problem as measured by financial cost, mortality or morbidity.

"It is in this spirit which we use the phrase to highlight this nationally important issue. It is in no way intended to imply that individuals affected by mental illness, or other diseases or disabilities are a burden."

ENDS

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