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Mental Health Services on the NHS
The NHS has responded to the rise in mental health issues by providing services. This includes:
The Long Term Plan reaffirmed its commitment to boost investment in mental health services faster than the overall NHS budget. This will include specialist work in suicide prevention.
Helping yourself
One of four of us will have a mental health problem at some time in our lives. The good news is that there are plenty of different options to seek help and most of us recover after a while. It's important to understand the types of help available and who can provide it.
You can seek assistance from a variety of sources like your GP (primary medical doctor for primary care) as well as your local health centre or a community mental health team. These teams are comprised of nurses, occupational therapists psychotherapists, psychotherapists and speech and language therapists who work together with people who use the service. Based on the kind of help you require, you may be offered individual or group therapy.
You will be asked to complete a form with your doctor so that they can refer you to a mental health professional in the community. They will also ask what you require in terms of support. Then, you will be viewed by a member of a mental health team that may comprise a psychiatrist psychologist or social worker. In some cases a clinical nurse specialist will perform your assessment and treatment. You can contact the NHS 111 helpline when you're in a crisis. If you are already receiving support for your mental health it is recommended to contact your primary team first, unless it's out of hours, on a weekend, or a bank holiday.
The Five Year Forward View for Mental Health detailed plans to establish multidisciplinary, community-based mental health teams that are connected to primary care networks. These teams will improve the quality of the care provided to those in crisis, and offer support to them in their homes and community instead of in hospitals.
The plan also aims to make crisis services more accessible by cutting down wait times and opening up more beds. It also proposed to introduce mental health transport vehicles and make sure that all ambulances have an official who is a mental health liaison in their control rooms to improve the way people suffering from a mental health crisis are helped in times of crisis.
Treatment options
The NHS offers a range of treatment options to treat mental health conditions. GPs are usually able to treat milder conditions, but more severe conditions will require an expert team. These teams work across primary and community mental health services, and the psychiatric hospitals. You can also seek assistance in a secure environment if you feel in crisis.
Talking treatments for anxiety and depression are among the main kinds of treatment. These programs, previously known as IAPT (Interactive Assessment and Psychotherapy) have seen their numbers of clients increase each year since they were first introduced in 2008. The NHS Long Term Plan commits to expanding these programs to ensure that 1.9 million people will be able to use them by 2023/2024.
Psychiatric medicines are another important component of treatment. They can alleviate symptoms by altering how chemicals in your brain work. They can also help alleviate the side effects of other treatments. Your doctor will suggest the best medication for you.
There are many different types of talking therapies, including group therapy and individual therapy. Some of these are delivered in person, but others can be delivered online. Some patients prefer face-to-face treatment, but it is the choice of the patient. There are also a lot of charities that offer classes and support groups like Mind. Their website is full of reliable information, but you should be aware of the fact that there's plenty of false or misleading information on the internet about mental health issues.
While the NHS is advancing its mental health care, it still struggles to meet the demands. In the UK, there are 54 mental trusts. They receive the majority of funding for their services from the clinical commissioning group. They are usually located in a particular region however they can also be contracted to provide national services.
The lack of resources is a major issue. There are also concerns about the quality of care and there is a shortage of nurses and psychiatrists. The NHS is trying to improve these services by offering more training and developing new ways of working. It also provides more efficient and safer ways to help people in crisis. These include mobile crisis teams and safe space.
Supporting you
Since the NHS was established 70 years ago there have been numerous positive changes for people with mental health issues. The options for treatment have grown and social barriers have been taken down. But there is more to be done.
People who are experiencing mental illness need to receive the help they require quickly and easily. That's why the NHS is putting in the effort to improve the quality of services for those who need them. We will ensure that no acute hospital is without the mental health liaison service in A&E departments and wards for inpatients by 2020/21, and that 70% of these services will meet the 'core 24' standard by 2023/24. Then we will work towards a 100% coverage rate after that.
We will also enhance community services, including talk therapy, in order to provide support for hundreds of thousands of people with mental health issues regardless of whether they are serious or common. We will continue to work on the national Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) program so that more people can be seen by qualified therapists, more quickly.
The NHS provides confidential, free assistance to anyone suffering from mental health issues. These include the Samaritans, Mind and Rethink. These helplines are run by trained volunteers. They provide the opportunity to talk with someone in a secure environment or give guidance and information on how to tackle your mental health issues.
There are also a number local organizations that provide assistance and support to those with mental health issues. They can provide self-help guides, strategies for coping and activities to try. Many of these organisations also provide support groups in person for those who prefer this option.
The University's Open Door Team offers a drop-in counseling service for students experiencing stress or depression. There is also the Nightline student counselling service, which provides confidential listening and support from skilled volunteers, as well as information about other services. Charities such as Mind and Rethink are a great source of information and provide support in various forms such as online and through local groups. They can provide a variety of courses and activities from mindfulness to art classes that are useful for people with mental health issues.
Referrals
With mental health services under pressure, doctors are forced to make difficult decisions about which specialist services they can refer patients to. The GP will take a patient's medical history into consideration and then refer them to a service they think will be able to help. They may send a referral to an NHS trust or an independent provider.
A mental health specialist will then assess the referral and decide whether it's appropriate or not. If the specialist isn't satisfied with the referral, they will contact the GP and explain why. They could also ask the GP to modify the referral or ask for more information.
Referrals to a local Community Mental Health Team (CMHT) may be made via the NHS e-Referral Service (e-RS). The system lets doctors and other healthcare professionals to direct patients to a preliminary assessment service for mental health or directly to an appointment. Not all CMHTs provide both options, and the system can't be used for all types of mental health referrals.
A GP may decide to refer a person to a specialist community mental health service (CMT). These are usually run either by an enormous hospital or a local healthcare organisation. CMTs are a great option for those who have to consult a psychologist or psychiatrist but don't require inpatient treatment. They can also provide an early intervention service where psychiatrists work with a therapist in order to help someone overcome an issue or improve the quality of their life.
private mental health assessment of the biggest challenges faced by CMTs CMT is how to ensure that all suitable referrals are assigned within an appropriate time frame. One of the issues is that a lot of referrals are considered urgent, even though they might not be. This can cause people who aren't in a crisis to be overworked and experience delays.
To tackle this issue, some CMHTs are trying to establish more uniform guidelines for what constitutes an urgent referral. This was achieved through a standardised form which asks the referrer if they believe the situation is urgent. The proforma has a box that the referrer is able to tick when the referral is urgent.
