Movember

 

Helping Male Health and
Care Professionals Access Mental
Health and Addiction Treatment

Movember is an annual opportunity to raise awareness of the ongoing mental health crisis faced by men in the UK.

Out of the 1,813,432 referrals to NHS Talking Therapies (IAPT) between 2024 to 2025, only 33% were men.

This highlights the effectiveness of the factors that prevent men from seeking mental health treatment:

1. The expectation that men must be ‘strong’, ‘tough’, and ‘stoic’.
2. The stereotype that men cannot be emotional, be sad, or cry – being ‘emotional’ is seen as a feminine trait.
3. Worries that seeking mental health or addiction treatment is a failure as a man.

Feeling unable to seek appropriate treatment, men may decide to turn to unhealthy coping mechanisms, such as alcohol and illicit drugs. Between April 2024 and March 2025, 68% of adults in contact with drug and alcohol treatment services were men.

Expectations of Men and Healthcare Professionals

It’s important to recognise the similarity in expectations of both men in society and health and care professionals within the workplace. Over time, the workplace culture within the NHS has become one of ‘stoicism’- staff members are expected to hunker down and carry on, regardless of increasing caseloads, dwindling staff numbers, and longer shifts. Feelings of stress, panic, and overwhelm are simply something to be expected and accepted, rather than recognised and dealt with.

The combination of the societal expectations of men alongside the outdated workplace culture of the NHS is potent – many male health and care professionals do not seek the mental health or addiction treatment they need due to fears of being seen as a failure by their friends, families, and colleagues.

The worries of facing disciplinary action and being judged by their social network override the necessity to access the treatment they so desperately need.

How Does Practitioner Health Break Down the Barriers Faced by Male Health and Care Professionals?

NHS Practitioner Health has a variety of measures in place to ensure that health and care professionals feel comfortable registering and seeking mental health and addiction treatment with us.

Confidentiality Measures

For health and care professionals, seeking help for mental health difficulties or addiction can feel daunting. Fears about being reported to an employer or regulator may make it particularly difficult to access local services.

At NHS Practitioner Health, confidentiality is central to the care we provide. We work on the principle of “nothing about me without me”, which involves patients in decisions about their care and how their information is shared. Our secure clinical records are held separately from the NHS Spine, and we have formal memoranda of understanding with health and care regulators. These agreements allow us to provide safe, confidential treatment within agreed parameters, without automatically involving a patient’s regulator.

Find out more about NHS Practitioner Health's confidentiality measures

Specialist Clinical Team

NHS Practitioner Health’s team is made up of clinicians and therapists that have worked in healthcare and understand the unique pressures that health and care professionals face.

If you are in need of support for mental illness or addiction, don’t suffer in silence. NHS Practitioner Health is here to help health and care professionals seek treatment in a safe, confidential space, from clinicians who truly understand the pressures of working in healthcare.

Published: Nov 1, 2026