Poor mental health 'linked to unemployment'

15th February 2010

People who have psychological problems are more likely to be unemployed, a new report has suggested.

A review by the Sainsbury Centre for Mental Health, based on a seminar conducted earlier last year, stated that individuals with these forms of illness are also associated with poor physical wellbeing, low income and less education.

Social inclusion is important, it claimed, adding that intolerance and prejudice harm "whole populations".

The document said: "Mental health stigma and discrimination exacerbate broader social and health inequalities and present major challenges for people with mental health problems to live as equal citizens in society."

As such, the organisation explained, a fair and accurate indicator of the issues affecting psychological wellbeing are important in creating a standard metric for measuring the public services requirements of certain areas.

Writing in a blog post for charity Mind recently, a contributor named only Izzi described the stigma of having a mental health condition as "haunting".