Following a recent determination by The Pension Ombudsman we have revised our guidance to employers to confirm how duties should be assessed when determining Mental Health Officer (MHO) status for a member of the 1995 Section of the NHS Pension Scheme.
The SM1 form asks employers to split duties between ‘hands on’ care and treatment (i.e. direct patient contact) and duties where there is no direct contact with the patient.
The ‘care and treatment’ that counts towards MHO status requires the actual presence of a patient with a mental health condition. This means that only the time spent actually treating a patient (i.e. where they are physically present) should be recorded on the relevant section on the SM1.
Duties where the patient is not present such as team meetings, meetings about a specific patient, meetings with a patient’s relatives or carers, writing reports, updating medical notes, or any other duty where the patient is not present, must be recorded as duties not involving direct care and treatment on the SM1 form
If there is any doubt about eligibility for MHO status employers should contact the NHSBSA providing further information.