Mental Health Services on the NHS
The NHS has responded to the rising number of mental health issues by offering services. This includes:
The Long Term Plan has made an unrepeatable commitment to increase investment in
mental health services nhs health services faster than the NHS budget overall. This will include specialist work in suicide prevention.
Helping yourself
One in four people will suffer from a mental illness at some time in their lives. The good news is that there are many ways to get help, and most of us will recover with time. However, it is important to know what assistance is available, and who can provide it.
You can seek assistance from your GP or the local health center, or a mental health team in your area. These teams are made up of nurses, occupational therapists, psychotherapists and speech and language therapists who work together with the people who utilize the service. You can get individual or group therapy depending on the type of assistance you need.
You will be asked to complete a form with 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 be seen by an individual from an interdisciplinary team of mental health professionals like psychiatrist, psychologist or social worker. In some cases a clinical nurse specialist will perform your assessment and treatment. You can call the NHS 111 helpline when you're in crisis. If you are already receiving mental health support, it is best to contact your primary team first, unless out of office hours, on a weekend or a bank holiday.
The Five Year Forward View for Mental Health detailed plans to establish multidisciplinary team of mental health professionals in the community that are linked to primary care networks. These teams will improve the quality of the mental health services delivered to people experiencing a crisis, and provide support to patients in their own homes and communities instead of in hospitals.
The plan also aimed to make crisis services more accessible by reducing waiting times and
Mental Health Services Nhs allowing more beds. It would also include a mental transport vehicle and ensure that all ambulances are equipped with a mental liaison nurse within the control room to improve how people experiencing a mental crisis are supported during emergency situations.
Treatment options
The NHS offers a variety of treatment options for people suffering from mental health problems. Disorders that are less severe are usually treated by GPs, while more serious conditions require a specialist team. These teams operate in primary and community mental healthcare services, as well psychiatric hospital. You can also seek help in a secure space if you feel in crisis.
Talking therapies are among the most popular forms of treatment for depression and anxiety. Formerly known as IAPT, these programs have seen referral numbers increase each year since they were introduced in 2008. The NHS Long Term Plan commits to expanding these programs so that 1.9 million people can access them by 2023/2024.
Psychiatric medications are another crucial part of treatment. They can help alleviate symptoms by altering the way the brain's chemicals work. They can also help ease side effects of other treatments. Your doctor will prescribe the best medicine for you.
A wide variety of talking therapy treatments are available including group therapy and individual therapy. Some of these are delivered in person, while others can be done online. Some patients prefer face to face treatment, but it's a matter of choice. There are also a lot of charities that provide support groups and classes like Mind. The site contains a wealth of information that is reliable, but be aware that there are a lot of false or misleading claims on the internet concerning mental health issues.
While the NHS is improving its mental health services but it's still struggling to keep up with demand. In the UK, there are 54 mental trusts. Most of them receive funding for their services from the clinical commissioning group. They typically are located in a particular region however, they can also be commissioned to deliver national services.
The absence of resources is a major issue. There are also concerns about the quality of care and there is a shortage of psychiatrists and nurses. The NHS is working to improve the quality of care by delivering more training and developing new ways of working. It also introduces more secure and efficient methods to assist people in need, such as mobile crisis teams and secure areas.
We are here to help you
Since the NHS launched 70 years ago there have been a lot of positive developments for people suffering from mental health issues. Treatment options have gotten more diverse and social barriers are breaking down. But there is much more to be done.
Patients who are experiencing mental health issues must be able to access the help they require quickly and easily. That's why the NHS is striving to improve the quality of services for those who need them. By 2020/21 we will ensure that all acute hospitals have a mental-health liaison service that is available in A&E and on inpatient wards and that 70% will meet the core 24 standard by 2023/24. Then we will strive for 100 percent coverage.
We will also increase services for people who require them in the community, such as psychotherapy, in order to provide hundreds of thousands more people suffering from severe or common mental health conditions the support they need. We will continue to develop our national Improving Access to Psychological Therapies programme (IAPT) in order to ensure that more people suffering from mental health issues are seen faster by qualified therapists.
The NHS provides confidential, free helplines to anyone struggling with mental health issues. Samaritans Mind and Rethink are some of the helplines that are available. These helplines are operated by trained volunteers. They offer an environment where you can talk in a safe manner, or offer guidance and information on how to manage your mental health concerns.
There are also a number local organisations that can provide support and guidance to people with mental health issues. These can include self-help guides,
mental Health services nhs coping strategies, and activities to try. Many of these organizations offer support groups that meet face-to-face to those who prefer it.
For students, there's the University's Open Door Team which offers an opportunity to consult with a counsellor at any time for those who feel down or stressed. Nightline is a student counseling service that offers private listening as well as information and support from experienced volunteers. Charities such as Mind and Rethink are a excellent source of information and can provide support in a variety of ways, including online and through local groups. They can also offer many courses and activities, from mindfulness to art classes which can be helpful for people suffering from mental health issues.
Referring someone to you
With mental health services under pressure, doctors are forced to make difficult decisions regarding the services they will refer patients to. The doctor will take the patient's medical history into account and then refer them to a service they think will be able to help. They may refer a patient to an NHS trust or an independent provider.
A mental health specialist will then evaluate the referral and decide whether it's appropriate or not. If the specialist isn't satisfied with the referral, they'll call the GP to discuss their decision and explain why. They can also request the GP for more details or to modify 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 lets doctors and other healthcare professionals direct patients to an initial clinical assessment service for mental health or directly to an appointment. However there are some exceptions. CMHTs provide both options, and the system cannot be used for every kind of mental health referral.
A GP might also decide to refer a patient to a specialist community mental health service (CMT). These are usually run either by an enormous hospital or a local health care organization. CMTs are a great option for people who wish to see an experienced psychiatrist or psychologist but don't need inpatient treatment. They can also provide an early intervention service in which a psychiatrist works with a therapist in order to help someone overcome a crisis or improve the quality of their life.
One of the biggest challenges faced by CMTs CMT is ensuring that all suitable referrals are allocated within the appropriate timeframe. Many referrals are deemed urgent, even if they may not be. This can cause patients who aren't in a crisis to be overworked and experience delays.
To tackle this issue, some CMHTs have tried to establish more uniform standards for what constitutes a referral urgent. This was achieved through a standardised form which asks the referrer if they believe the case is urgent. The form has a checkbox that the referrer is able to tick when the request is urgent.
