Mental Health Services on the NHS
There has been a huge rise in people seeking help for mental health issues and the NHS has responded by offering services. This includes:
The Long Term Plan has made the commitment to increase the amount of money spent on mental health services more quickly than the NHS budget in general. This will include specialized work in suicide prevention.
Helping yourself
One in four of us will suffer from mental health issues at some point in our lives. The good news is that there are a variety of ways to seek help, and most of us will recover with time. It is crucial to know what help is available and who can offer it.
You can seek assistance from your doctor or your local health center or a mental health team in your local area. These teams are comprised of nurses, occupational therapists psychotherapists, psychotherapists and speech and language therapists who work together with the people who utilize the service. Based on the type of help you need you could receive individual or group therapy.
Your GP will usually request you to fill out a form so that they can send you a referral to a community mental health team. They will also ask what type of assistance you require. You will be consulted by a member of a mental team like psychiatrist, psychologist or social worker. In some instances the clinical nurse specialist will perform your assessment and treatment. If you are experiencing crisis, call the NHS 111 helpline for immediate support. If you're already being assisted by mental health services, it's a good idea call your usual team first, unless it's out of normal hours, on a weekend or a bank holiday.
The Five Year Forward View for Mental Health detailed plans to create multidisciplinary mental health teams in the community that are linked to primary care networks. These teams will increase the quality of mental health care that is provided to those who are in a crisis, and offer support to patients within their communities and at home instead of in hospitals.
The plan also aimed to help make crisis services more accessible by reducing waiting times and opening more beds. It also proposed to introduce mental health transport vehicles and ensure that all ambulances have an official who is a mental health liaison in their control rooms to ensure that those suffering from a mental health crisis are supported in emergency situations.
Treatment options
The NHS offers a wide array of treatment options for people suffering from mental health problems. Less severe disorders are often treated by GPs, while more severe conditions require an expert team. These teams are located in primary and community health services for mental health as well as psychiatric hospitals. You can also seek assistance in a secure environment when you are in a crisis.
Talking therapies are one of the most commonly used forms of treatment for depression and anxiety. Formerly known as IAPT the programs have seen referrals increase each year since they were introduced in 2008. The NHS Long Term Plan commits to expanding these programs to ensure that 1.9 million people will be able to access them by 2023/2024.
Psychiatric medicines are another important aspect of treatment. They can improve symptoms through altering the way that chemicals function in your brain. They can also help minimize the adverse effects of other treatments. Your doctor will recommend the right medication for you.
There are many kinds of talk therapies, such as group therapy and individual therapy. Some of them are offered in person, while others can be done remotely. Some patients prefer face-to face treatment, but it's an individual choice. There are a variety of charities which offer support groups and courses, such as Mind. The site is full of reliable information, but be aware that there are a lot of false or misleading statements on the internet about mental health issues.
While the NHS is advancing its mental health care, it still struggles to meet the demands. There are 54 mental health trusts across the UK and the majority of are funded by clinical commissioning groups to deliver their service. They are usually located in a specific region, but they can be commissioned to provide national services.
The main issue is the insufficient resources to meet the demands of the rising population. There are also concerns about the quality of care, and a shortage of psychiatrists and nurses. The NHS is trying to improve the quality of care by introducing new ways of work and providing more training. It also introduces safer and more effective methods to treat people in crisis. These include mobile crisis teams and safe space.
Helping you
Since the NHS was established 70 years ago there have been numerous positive developments for people suffering from mental health issues. The treatment options have increased and social barriers have been smashed down. But there is more to be done.
Patients who are experiencing mental health issues must be able to access the assistance they require quickly and easily. That's why the NHS is striving to improve the quality of services for those who need these services. We will ensure that every acute hospital is without a mental health liaison service in A&E departments and wards for inpatients by 2020/21. 70 percent of these services will meet the "core 24" standard by 2023/24. Then we will work towards achieving 100% coverage afterward.
We will also extend services for people who require them in the community, such as psychotherapy, in order to provide hundreds of thousands of people suffering from severe or common mental health issues the help they need. We will continue to develop our national Improving Access to Psychological Therapies programme (IAPT) in order to ensure that more people with mental health conditions are seen faster by therapists who are qualified.
The NHS provides free, confidential helplines to anyone suffering from a mental health issue. Samaritans Mind and Rethink are some of the helplines that are available. These helplines are run entirely by volunteers who offer a safe place to talk or give advice and information about how to handle your mental health concerns.
In addition, there are a number of local organizations that can provide support and guidance to those suffering from mental health issues. These include self-help guides, coping strategies and activities to try. Many of these organizations also offer support groups that meet face-to-face for those who prefer this method.
The University's Open Door Team offers a drop-in counseling service for students feeling down or stressed. There's also book a mental health assessment counselling service which provides confidential listening and support from knowledgeable volunteers, as well as information on other services. Charities like Mind and Rethink are a excellent source of information. They can provide support in a variety of ways, including online and through local groups. They can offer a range of classes and activities, from mindfulness to art classes, which are beneficial for those with mental health issues.
Making a referral
With mental health services under pressure, doctors are forced to make difficult decisions about which specialist services they can refer patients to. The doctor will take the patient's medical history into account and then refer them to a service they think can assist. They may send a referral to an NHS trust or an independent provider.
A mental health specialist will then review the referral and decide if it's appropriate or not. If the specialist isn't satisfied with the referral they will contact the GP to discuss their decision and explain why. They can also request the GP for more details or to change the referral.
The referral to a local Community Mental Health Team (CMHT) can be made through the NHS e-Referral Service (e-RS). The system allows doctors and other healthcare professionals to refer patients to either a preliminary assessment for mental health or directly to an appointment. Not all CMHTs offer both options and the system can't be used for all kinds of mental health referrals.
A GP may also refer a patient to a community mental health specialist service (CMT). These are usually operated by a large local health organization or a hospital. CMTs are a great option for people who wish to see an experienced psychiatrist or psychologist but do not require inpatient treatment. They also offer an early intervention service where a psychiatrist will work with a psychotherapist to help a patient overcome a crisis or improve their quality of life.
CMTs face the challenge of making sure that all referrals are made within a reasonable time. Many referrals are considered urgent even though they may not be. This can lead to delays and over-working for those who are not in crisis.
To combat this problem, some CMHTs have tried to establish more uniform standards for what constitutes a referral urgent. This was achieved through a standardised form that asks the referrer if they believe the situation is urgent. The form has a checkbox for the referrer to check when they believe that the referral is urgent.