Practitioner Health, a free national mental health support service for GPs and primary care staff, will be funded beyond next year until 2029, it has been announced.
The service was commissioned until March 2026 only, while a review into NHS staff mental health support took place – leading to uncertainty about its future.
However, this week health minister Karin Smith told the House of Commons that ‘looking after the mental health of hardworking National Health Service staff is a priority for the Government’.
In response to a question asked by MP Cat Eccles, chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Healthcare Workers, as to what would happen to Practitioner Health after next March, Ms Smith said: ‘Work is being completed to re-commission this service for the next three years, aligned to the multi-year Spending Review, from 2026 to 2029. ‘
Practitioner Health is a self-referral, confidential service and offers treatment for a range of mental health and addiction issues, supporting health professionals to remain in or return safely to work.
In 2024/25, 6,339 health professionals signed up, a slight decrease compared with the year before, data in Practitioner’s Health annual report has shown. GPs accounted for 39% of that figure.
The report said that ‘anxiety is the dominant reason for seeking help, but low mood and symptoms of depression in the workforce are growing’. And it said the last year saw an increase in older members of the workforce seeking help, ‘weighing up decisions to retire early due to impact on mental health’.
In addition, ‘higher level of identification of domestic violence’ was an issue in health and care professionals, the report noted.
However, in 2024/25 the service helped more than 800 people back into work following treatment and led to average scores for people with anxiety and depression being reduced.
Tom Reynolds, director of policy and communications at the Medical Defence Union, said they had been campaigning for months to get MPs and ministers to support Practitioner Health’s long-term future.
He added: ‘We are absolutely delighted that the Government has announced its commitment to ensure its future for a further three years.
‘NHS Practitioner Health has had an overwhelmingly positive impact and provides a vital service to healthcare professionals in England who need specialist help and may struggle to access support elsewhere. This is so important as the demands of working for the NHS can be immense, and healthcare workers face many challenges which may impact their personal health and wellbeing.
‘The NHS, regulators like the GMC, and all those involved in the delivery of healthcare must play their part in taking care of the people who care for us.’
Last year, NHS England (NHSE) said it would no longer fund the service to take on new registrations from hospital doctors and that it would review its offer to all staff groups in the long term.
However, NHSE was forced to U-turn on its plans to axe new secondary care registrations following strong criticism from the profession, including from the BMA and the Doctors’ Association, who called the decision ‘short-sighted’ and ‘cruel’.
