Mental Health Services on the NHS
The NHS has responded to the increase in mental health problems by offering 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.
Need help?
One of four people will be affected by mental illness at one point during their lives. The good news is that there are a variety of different ways to seek help and most of us recover with time. However, it is important to know what help is available and who can offer it.
You can seek help from a variety of places such as your GP (primary medical doctor who treats patients) as well as your local health center or a community mental health team. These teams consist of occupational and nurse speech therapists, and psychotherapists. They collaborate with patients who require their services. You can get individual or group therapy depending on the type of help you need.
Your GP will usually require you to fill out the form to send you a referral to a local mental health team. They will also ask you to specify what type of assistance you require. Then, you will be viewed by a member of a mental health team that may include a psychiatrist, psychologist or social worker. In certain instances your evaluation and treatment will be carried out by a nurse specialist. If you are experiencing a crisis, you can call the NHS 111 helpline for immediate support. If you already receive mental health support, it is best to call your usual team first, unless it's outside of hours, or on a weekend, or a bank holiday.
The Five Year Forward View for Mental Health detailed plans to establish multidisciplinary mental health teams in the community that are linked to primary care networks. These teams will enhance the quality of the care provided to those in crisis, and provide support to them in their own homes and communities rather than in hospitals.
The plan also aimed at make crisis services more accessible by reducing wait times and allowing more beds. It would also include an ambulance for mental health and ensure that all ambulances are equipped with a mental liaison nurse in the control room to ensure that people experiencing a mental crisis are supported during emergency situations.
Treatment options
The NHS offers a variety of treatment options for mental health problems. GPs are usually able to treat minor disorders, but more serious conditions will require an expert team. These teams operate across both community and primary mental health services, and also the psychiatric hospitals. There are also safe places where you can seek assistance if you are feeling in crisis.
Talking about his are one of the most common types of treatment for anxiety and depression. These programs, formerly known as IAPT (Interactive Assessment and Psychotherapy) have seen their referral numbers increase every year since they were introduced in 2008. The NHS Long Term Plan commits to expanding these programs so that 1.9 million people will be able to access them by 2023/2024.
Psychiatric medications are another crucial part of treatment. They can improve symptoms through changing the way chemicals work in your brain. They can also help reduce the side effects of other treatments. Your doctor will suggest the best medication for you.
A wide variety of talking therapy options are offered which include group therapy as well as individual therapy. Some of these are delivered in person, while others can be delivered remotely. Some patients prefer face to face treatment, but it's a matter of choice. There are also a lot of charities which offer support groups and classes like Mind. Their website contains a wealth of information that is reliable, however you must be aware of the fact that there's a lot of inaccurate or misleading information on the internet about mental health issues.
While the NHS is advancing its mental health services, it still struggles to keep up with demand. There are 54 mental health trusts across the UK and the majority of are funded by clinical commissioning groups to provide their service. They are typically located in a specific area, but can be commissioned to deliver national services.
The lack of resources is a major problem. There are concerns over the quality of care and the shortage of nurses and psychiatrists. The NHS is striving to improve its services by introducing new methods of work and providing more training. It also provides more efficient and safer methods of treating those who are in crisis. These include mobile crisis teams and safe spaces.
Helping you
Since the NHS was launched 70 years ago there have been a lot of positive changes for people with mental health issues. Treatment options have gotten more diverse and social barriers are breaking down. But there is much more to be done.
People who are in a mental crisis 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 these services. We will ensure that every acute hospital is without a mental health liaison service in A&E departments and wards for patients by 2020/21, and that 70 percent of these services will be in line with the 'core 24' standard by 2023/24, working towards 100% coverage thereafter.
We will also expand services for the community, such as talking therapy, to offer support for hundreds of thousands of people with mental health issues, whether they are common or severe. We will continue to develop the national Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) programme so that more people can be visited by therapists who are qualified, faster.
The NHS offers free, confidential helplines to anyone struggling with mental health issues. These include the Samaritans, Mind and Rethink. These helplines are operated entirely by volunteers who offer an environment where you can talk to someone in a safe manner or offer advice and guidance on how to manage your mental health concerns.
There are also a number local organizations that can offer help and advice to those suffering from mental health issues. Self-help guides, coping techniques and other activities are all possible. A lot of these organizations provide support groups in person for those who would prefer this type of support.
For students, there is the University's Open Door Team which offers an opportunity to consult with a counsellor at any time for those feeling low or stressed. There's also the Nightline student counselling service that offers confidential listening and support from experienced volunteers, or information about other services. Charities such as Mind and Rethink are a great source of information and can provide support in a variety of ways that include online and through local groups. They also provide many classes and activities, ranging from mindfulness to art classes, which may be useful for those living with mental health problems.
Referrals
With mental health services under pressure, doctors are forced to make difficult decisions regarding what specialist services they should refer patients to. The GP will take a patient's medical history into account and then recommend them to a service they believe can assist. They may send a referral either to an NHS trust, or to an independent provider.
A mental health professional will review the referral to determine if the referral is appropriate or not. If the specialist isn't happy with the referral they will contact the GP to discuss their decision and explain the reason. They could request the GP to change the referral or request more information.
Requests for a local Community Mental Health Team (CMHT) can be made through the NHS e-Referral Service (e-RS). The system allows GPs and other healthcare professionals to refer people to either a mental health assessment or directly to an appointment with an outpatient. Not all CMHTs offer both options, and the system is not able to be used for all kinds of mental health referrals.
A GP may refer a patient to a community mental health specialist service (CMT). These are usually run either by an enormous hospital or a local healthcare organization. CMTs are a great option for those who need to consult a psychologist or psychiatrist but don't require inpatient treatment. They can also provide an early intervention service, where a psychiatrist will work with the counselor to help someone overcome a problem or improve their life quality.
One of the major challenges that a CMT is to ensure that all referrals are assigned within the proper time frame. Many referrals are considered urgent, even if they may not be. This can lead to delays and over-working for those who aren't in need.
To address this issue some CMHTs are trying to establish more consistent guidelines for what constitutes an urgent referral. This was achieved through an established form that asks the referrer to indicate if the situation is urgent. The form has a checkbox that the referrer has to check to indicate if the request is urgent.