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UT decision regarding MH assessed by physiotherpaist
A new UT decision holds that limited value of report by physiotherapist on mental health issues Need for DWP to provide tribunal with written action plan
“Where, however, the disability analyst is a physiotherapist and the problems she is dealing with are mental health problems the opinion of the physiotherapist as to the conclusions to be drawn have no probative value whatsoever. This is because the physiotherapist has no professional expertise in mental health matters. Although the strict rules of evidence do not apply, a tribunal can only take into account evidence that has probative value, so that, for example the decision of another judge as to the facts is simply his or her opinion as to the facts and has no probative value …“
“I can only express my surprise that in a case where the only issue was the mental health of the claimant and its effect in relation to the mental health descriptors, the report was prepared by a physiotherapist following a 15 minute interview. It is plainly important that questions of mental health should be assessed by a disability analyst with appropriate mental health qualifications if their opinion is to be of any evidential value. Even then tribunals should beware of placing too much weight on such reports, based as they are on a very short interview with a claimant and without access to medical records.”
Considering my filing cabinet is full of reports completed by nurses and physios I will be pursuing action a la DM & MM on this issue as soon as humanely possible!
Does anyone know what training in mental health an RGN would normally receive as part of their NHS training (as opposed to anything from DWP/ATOS)?
none
I suspect as much but will ask my cohort of CPNs just to make sure…
A few CMHN’s (New term for CPN’s) will have been ward trained prior to getting into mental health, but it is a very few.
Ah, but, we need it the other way round; does an RGM who’s not gone into mental health have any training. We all suspect what the answer is but I’ll need some evidence…
I’ve asked the manager of our local complex care team. :)
We can put an RN’s name into the search at http://www.nmc-uk.org/Search-the-register/
A CPN generally comes up on the search as “Registered Nurse - Mental Health”. If an HCP comes up as “Registered Nurse - Adult”, with no further recorded qualifications, then I assume they have no particular MH training. Is there any reason that a tribunal would view it otherwise?
Depending on when they studied an RGN might have had comprehensive outcome led training in mental health or hardly any. Since the late 90s there have been 4 different curricula with massively varying levels of mental health training. Some outcome led, some merely reflective.
According to our local RMN training placement officer…