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 invest more in mental health services more quickly than overall NHS budget. This includes the work of a specialist in suicide prevention.
Get help
One out of four of us will experience mental health issues at some time in our lives. The good news is that there are many different options to seek help and most of us recover after a while. However, it is important to know what assistance is available and who can provide it.
You can seek assistance from a variety places, including your doctor (primary medical doctor who treats patients), your local health centre, or a community mental health team. These teams consist of nurses, occupational therapists, psychotherapists and speech and language therapists who work with people who use the service. Based on the kind of assistance you require you could receive individual or group therapy.
You will be asked to fill out a form by your GP so they can refer you to a mental health service in the community. They will also ask you what type of assistance you require. You will then be examined by a member of the mental health team, which may include a psychiatrist, psychologist or social worker. In some instances a clinical nurse specialist will carry out your assessment and treatment. If you are experiencing an emergency, you can contact the NHS 111 helpline for urgent 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 the normal hours, a weekend or a bank holiday.
The Five Year Forward View for Mental Health detailed plans to create multidisciplinary, community-based mental health teams that are linked to primary care networks. These will help to improve the quality of the care given to those suffering from a mental health crisis. They will also offer assistance in their homes and communities instead of in hospitals.
The plan also aimed to make crisis services more accessible by reducing wait times and allowing more beds. It also proposes the mental transport vehicle and ensure that all ambulances are equipped with an individual who is a mental liaison nurse in the control room to make sure that patients who are suffering from mental illness are supported during emergency situations.
Treatment options
The NHS offers a variety of treatment options to treat mental health conditions. GPs typically have the ability to treat less severe illnesses, however more serious issues will require a specialist team. These teams are located in primary and community healthcare facilities as well as psychiatric hospitals. There are also safe places where you can seek assistance for those who are in a crisis.
Talking therapies are among the most commonly used forms of treatment for depression and anxiety. These programs, previously known as IAPT (Interactive Assessment and Psychotherapy) have seen their number of referrals increase each year since they were first introduced in 2008. The NHS Long Term Plan commits to expanding these services so that 1.9 million people will be able to use them in 2023/2024.
Psychiatric medications are also an important element of treatment. They can alleviate symptoms by altering how chemicals in your brain work. They can also be used to reduce the effects of other treatments. Your doctor will recommend a medicine that is right for you.
There are many different types of talk therapies, such as individual therapy and group therapy. Some of them are offered in person, but others are available via a remote device. Some patients prefer to receive treatment in person, but this is a personal decision. iampsychiatry is one of the charities that provide support groups and classes. The site contains a wealth of reliable information but you should be aware that there are a lot of false or misleading claims on the internet about mental health issues.
The NHS is improving the quality of mental health care, but it struggles to meet the demand. In the UK there are 54 mental trusts. Most of them receive funding for their services from clinical commissioning group. They are usually located in a specific region however, they can also be contracted to provide national services.
A key issue is the lack of 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 striving to improve its services by introducing new ways of working and offering more training. It is also introducing more efficient and safer methods to assist people in need like mobile crisis teams and secure spaces.
We are here to help you
Since the NHS was established 70 years ago there have been numerous positive developments for those suffering from mental health issues. Treatment options have increased and social barriers are being broken down. But there's still a lot to do.
People who are in a mental crisis need to receive the assistance they require quickly and easily. This is why the NHS is striving to improve the quality of services for those who need these services. We will ensure that no acute hospital is without a mental health liaison in A&E departments and wards for patients by 2020/21. We will also ensure that 70% of these services will be in line with the "core 24" standard by 2023/24. Then we will work towards 100% coverage thereafter.
We will also extend services for those who require them in the community, which includes psychotherapy, in order to provide hundreds of thousands of people suffering from severe or common mental health issues the help they require. We will continue to work on our national Improving Access to Psychological Therapies program (IAPT), so that more people with mental health issues can be seen more quickly by trained therapists.
The NHS offers confidential, free helplines to anyone struggling with mental health issues. These include the Samaritans and Mind and Rethink. These helplines are run by volunteers who offer the opportunity to talk in a secure environment or offer advice and guidance on how to deal your mental health issues.
Additionally, there are a number of local organizations that provide assistance and support for those suffering from mental health issues. Self-help guides, coping strategies and activities can be included. A lot of these organizations 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 who are struggling or stressed. There's also the Nightline student counselling service, which offers confidential listening and support from knowledgeable volunteers, as well as information about other services. Charities like Mind and Rethink are a great source of information and can provide support in various forms that include online and through local groups. They can offer a range of courses and activities including mindfulness classes to art classes that can be beneficial for those suffering from mental health issues.
Referrals
With mental health services under pressure, GPs are having to make difficult decisions regarding what specialist services they should refer patients to. The doctor will take a patient's medical history into consideration 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 professional will then evaluate the referral and decide if it's appropriate or not. If the specialist isn't happy with the referral they will contact the GP to discuss their decision and provide the reason. They might request the GP to alter the referral or request more details.
Requests for a local Community Mental Health Team (CMHT) can be made through the NHS e-Referral Service (e-RS). The system lets doctors and other healthcare professionals direct patients to an initial clinical assessment for mental health or directly to an appointment. However, not all CMHTs provide both options, and the system can't be used for every kind of mental health referral.
A doctor may refer a patient to a community mental health specialist service (CMT). They are usually managed by an enormous hospital or a local health care organization. CMTs are a good choice for those who need to see a psychiatrist or psychologist but do not require inpatient treatment. They can also provide an early intervention service where a psychiatrist collaborates with an counselor to help someone overcome a problem or improve their life quality.
One of the biggest challenges that CMTs CMT is how to ensure that all appropriate referrals are allocated within the appropriate timeframe. Many referrals are considered urgent, even though they might not be. This can cause patients who aren't in crisis to be rushed and suffer delays.
To address this issue, some CMHTs have attempted to establish more uniform standards for what constitutes an urgent referral. This was accomplished by using a standardised form that asks the referrer to indicate if the situation is urgent. The proforma has a box that the referrer is able to tick when the request is urgent.