Mental Health Services on the NHS
The NHS has responded to the rise in mental health problems by offering services. This includes:
The Long Term Plan reaffirmed its commitment to invest more in mental health services faster than the overall NHS budget. This will include specialist suicide prevention work.
Get assistance
One in four of us will suffer from a mental health problem at some point in our lives. The good news is there are a variety of ways to seek help, and many of us will recover over time. But it’s important to know what assistance is available and who can provide it.
You can seek help from a variety of sources like your GP (primary medical doctor who treats patients), your local health center or a community mental health team. These teams consist of occupational and nurse psychotherapists and speech therapists. They collaborate with clients who seek their services. Based on the type of assistance you require you might be provided with individual or group therapy.
Your GP will typically request you to fill out an application form to make a referral to a local mental health specialist near me health team. They will also ask what type of assistance you require. Then, you will be viewed by a member of the mental health team, which may comprise a psychiatrist psychologist or social worker. In certain instances, your assessment and treatment will be conducted by a nurse specialist. You can contact the NHS 111 helpline when you’re in an emergency. If you are already receiving mental health support it is recommended to contact your regular team first, unless out of hours, on a weekend, or a bank holiday.
The Five Year Forward View for Mental Health outlined plans to create more multidisciplinary, place-based community mental health teams with links to primary care networks. These plans will aid in improving the quality of care given to those suffering from a mental health crisis and provide support within their communities and homes, rather than in hospital.
The plan aims to make emergency services available by reducing waiting times and opening more beds. It would also introduce mental health transport vehicles, and ensure that every ambulance has an official who is a mental health liaison in their control rooms to ensure people suffering from mental health issues are assisted in emergencies.
Treatment options
The NHS offers a range of treatment options to treat mental health issues. GPs are usually able to treat less severe illnesses, however more serious issues will require the assistance of a specialist team. These teams are spread across primary and community mental health services, and also the psychiatric hospitals. You can also seek help in a safe space if you feel in crisis.
Talking therapies are one of the most common types of treatment for anxiety and depression. Formerly known as IAPT, these programs have seen the number of people who seek them increase each year since their introduction in 2008. The NHS Long Term Plan has set the goal of expanding these services to 1.9 million people by 2023/2024.
Psychiatric medicines are another important component of treatment. They can alleviate symptoms by altering the way that chemicals function in your brain. They can also help ease side effects of other treatments. Your doctor will prescribe the right medicine for you.
A wide variety of talking therapy treatments are available which include group therapy as well as individual therapy. Some of these are delivered in person, while others can be done via a remote device. Some patients prefer to receive treatment in person, but this is a personal choice. Mind is one of the organizations that offer support groups and courses. Their website is full of reliable information, but you must be aware that there is a lot of inaccurate or misleading information on the internet about mental health issues.
While the NHS is improving its mental health services however, it is still struggling to meet the demands. In the UK there are 54 mental health assessments trusts. They receive the majority of funding for their services from clinical commissioning groups. They usually are located in a particular region, but they can be commissioned to offer national services.
The shortage of resources is a major problem. There are concerns about the quality of care and the shortage of psychiatrists and nurses. The NHS is trying to improve these services by providing more training and introducing new ways of working. It also offers safer and more effective ways to help those who are in crisis. These include mobile crisis teams, as well as safe spaces.
We are here to help you
Since the NHS was launched 70 years ago there have been positive developments for those with private mental health clinics health issues. The options for treatment have grown and social barriers have been taken down. However, there is much to do.
Patients who are experiencing mental health problems must be able to access the assistance they require quickly and easily. That’s why the NHS is striving to improve the services available to those who require these services. We will ensure that no acute hospital is without the mental health liaison service in A&E departments and wards for patients by 2020/21. 70% of these services will be in line with the “core 24” standard by 2023/24. Then we will work towards achieving 100% coverage afterward.
We will also expand community services, including talking therapy, in order to provide assistance to hundreds of thousands of people with mental health conditions, whether they are severe or common. We will continue to develop our national Improving Access to Psychological Therapies programme (IAPT) in order to ensure that more people with mental health issues are seen faster by trained therapists.
The NHS offers confidential, free assistance to anyone suffering from mental health issues. They include the Samaritans, Mind and Rethink. These helplines are run by volunteers who provide the opportunity to talk in a secure environment or offer advice and guidance on how to get a mental health diagnosis to deal your mental health concerns.
Additionally to that, there are a lot of local organizations that can provide assistance and support for those suffering from mental health issues. These include self-help guides, strategies for coping and activities to try. A lot of these organizations provide support groups in person for those who prefer this method.
The University’s Open Door Team offers a drop-in counseling service for mental health students experiencing stress or depression. There’s also the Nightline student counselling service, which provides confidential listening and support from knowledgeable volunteers, or details on other services. Charities like Mind and Rethink are a great source of information and can provide support in a variety of ways such as online and through local groups. They can provide a variety of activities and courses ranging from mindfulness to art classes that are useful for people with mental health issues.
Making a referral
With mental health services under pressure, GPs are having to make difficult decisions about what specialist services they should refer patients to. The doctor will take into consideration the medical history of the patient and refer them to services they believe will be able to assist. They can send a referral to an NHS trust, or an independent provider.
A mental health specialist will review the referral to determine if the referral is appropriate or not. If the specialist isn’t happy with the referral, they’ll call the GP to discuss their decision and provide the reason. They could request the GP to modify the referral or request additional information.
The referral to a local Community Mental Health Team (CMHT) can be made through the NHS e-Referral Service (e-RS). The system permits GPs and other healthcare professionals to refer people to either a preliminary mental health assessment or directly to an outpatient appointment. Not all CMHTs offer both options, and the system is not able to be used for all types of mental health (click for more info) referrals.
A GP may also refer patients to a community mental health specialist service (CMT). They are usually managed by a large hospital or local healthcare organisation. CMTs can be a good option for those who want to consult with a seasoned psychologist or psychiatrist but do not require inpatient treatment. They also provide an early intervention program where psychiatrists collaborate with therapy therapist to assist someone in overcoming any crisis or improve the quality of their life.
One of the challenges faced by a CMT is to ensure that all suitable referrals are allocated within an appropriate time frame. Many referrals are deemed urgent, even though they might not be. This can result in delays and over-working for those who aren’t in a crisis.
To combat this problem, a few CMHTs have tried to establish more uniform guidelines for what constitutes an urgent referral. This was accomplished by using a standardised form which asks the referrer if they believe the situation is urgent. The form includes a box that the referrer can tick to indicate if the request is urgent.