Mental Health Scrutiny and Assurance Literature Review

Tender description

The Scottish Government, on behalf of Scottish Ministers, wishes to commission a rapid review of the literature relating to the governance and scrutiny of mental health services, with a primary focus on secondary mental health services. The aim of the work is to provide the Scottish Government with timely, robust information about current scrutiny and governance of mental health services and highlight potential areas where changes could be made to improve these arrangements, drawing on good practice, found in mental health services and other relevant public services, locally, nationally and internationally. The Scottish Government, on behalf of Scottish Ministers, wishes to commission a rapid review of the literature (including grey literature) relating to the governance and scrutiny of mental health services, with a primary focus on secondary mental health services. The aim of the work specified here is to provide the Scottish Government with timely, robust information about current scrutiny and governance of mental health services and highlight potential areas where changes could be made to improve these arrangements, drawing on good practice, found in mental health services and other relevant public services, locally, nationally and internationally. The proposed literature review will establish current governance and scrutiny arrangements in Scotland, both at a local and national level, including the statutory roles, functions and powers of Healthcare Improvement Scotland, the Mental Welfare Commission, the Scottish Public Services Ombudsman and others, highlighting good practice where found. This review should also bring together international evidence and best practice, establishing what good scrutiny and assurance should look like for mental health services and wider public services within the Scottish context. The findings will be used to inform the development of new policy around scrutiny and assurance and changes to the powers of external scrutiny bodies. Where possible, we are looking for realistic and practical examples of how scrutiny and assurance can be improved, reflecting the key points made in David Strang’s Independent Review of Mental Health Services in Tayside.