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 more quickly than overall NHS budget. This will include special suicide prevention services.
Helping yourself
One in four of us will suffer from a mental health problem at some moment in our lives. The good news is there are many avenues to seek assistance, and the majority of us will be able to 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, including your GP (primary care medical doctor) as well as your local health centre, or a community mental health team. These teams comprise of nurses, occupational and speech therapists, and psychotherapists. They work with clients who seek their services. You may receive individual or group therapy based on the kind of help you require.
Your GP will typically require you to fill out an application form to send you a referral to a community mental health team. They will also ask you what you require in terms of support. You will then be seen by someone from a mental health team, which may include a psychiatrist, social worker or psychologist. In some cases, your assessment and treatment will be conducted by a nurse specialist. If you're experiencing an emergency, you can call the NHS 111 helpline for immediate assistance. If you're already supported by mental health services, it's a good idea to call your usual team first unless it's out of the normal hours, a weekend or on a bank holiday.
The Five Year Forward View for Mental Health included plans to establish more multidisciplinary, community-based, place-based mental health teams that have links to primary care networks. These will help to improve the quality of care provided to those suffering from a mental health crisis and offer support within their communities and homes rather than in hospitals.
The plan also aimed at provide crisis services to more people by reducing waiting times and opening more beds. It would also introduce an ambulance for mental health and ensure that all ambulances are equipped with an individual who is a mental liaison nurse in the control room to improve how people experiencing a mental crisis are supported during emergency situations.
Treatment options
The NHS provides a wide range of treatment options for mental health issues. GPs are often able to treat milder disorders, but more serious illnesses will require a specialist team. These teams work across primary and community mental health services, as well as psychiatric hospitals. You can also seek help in a secure environment if you feel in crisis.
Talking treatments for anxiety and depression are among the most popular kinds of treatment. Previously known as IAPT, these programs have seen referrals increase every 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 medications are another crucial component of treatment. They can improve symptoms through changing the way chemicals work in your brain. They can also be used to minimize the adverse effects of other treatments. Your doctor will prescribe the best medicine for you.
There are many kinds of talking therapies, including group therapy and individual therapy. Some of them are offered in person, but others can be delivered via a remote device. Some patients prefer face-to-face treatment, but it is the choice of the patient. There are also a lot of charities which offer support groups and courses like Mind. The site is full of information that is reliable however, be aware that there are many false or misleading statements on the internet about mental health issues.
While the NHS is improving its mental health care but it's still struggling to cope with demand. There are 54 mental health trusts across the UK and the majority of them receive funding from clinical commissioning organizations to deliver their services. They are usually located in a specific area, but can be contracted to provide national services.
A key issue is the lack of resources to meet the growing more info demand. There are also concerns over the quality of care, and a shortage of nurses and psychiatrists. The NHS is working to improve the quality of care by providing more training and introducing new ways of working. It also introduces safer and more effective ways to help people in crisis, such as mobile crisis teams and secure places.
Helping you
Since the NHS was established 70 years ago there have been a lot of positive developments for those suffering from mental health issues. The options for treatment have grown and social barriers have been broken down. But there is much more to be done.
People who are experiencing mental illness 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 the 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 achieving 100% coverage afterward.
We will also expand services for people who need them in the community, including talking therapies, to give hundreds of thousands of people suffering from severe or common mental health conditions the assistance they require. We will continue to work on our national Improving Access to Psychological Therapies programme (IAPT) to ensure that more people suffering from mental health conditions are seen faster by therapists who are qualified.
The NHS provides free, confidential helplines for anyone struggling with mental health issues. Samaritans Mind and Rethink are some of the helplines that are available. These helplines are operated entirely by volunteers who provide the opportunity to talk in a secure environment or offer advice and guidance about how to handle your mental health concerns.
In addition there are a variety of local organisations which can offer support and guidance for people with mental health problems. They can provide self-help guides, coping strategies, and activities to try. A lot of these organizations offer support groups that meet face-to-face for those who would prefer this type of support.
For students, there is the University's Open Door Team which offers a drop-in counselling service for those feeling down or stressed. Nightline is a student counselling service that provides confidential listening as well as information and support from experienced volunteers. Charities like Mind and Rethink can provide many sources of information and support both online and in local groups. They can also offer a variety of courses and activities, from mindfulness to art classes that could be beneficial for people who suffer from mental health problems.
Referrals
Mental health services are under pressure and GPs must make difficult choices about the best specialist services to refer their patients to. The GP will take a patient's medical history into account and read more then refer them to a specialist they think can assist. They may refer a patient to an NHS trust or an independent provider.
A mental health specialist will examine the referral to determine if it is appropriate or not. If the specialist isn't satisfied with the referral, they'll call the GP here and explain their reasons. They can also request the GP to provide more information 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 allows doctors and other healthcare professionals to direct patients to an initial clinical assessment service for mental health or directly to an appointment. Not all CMHTs offer both options and the system is not able to be used for all types of mental health referrals.
A GP might also decide to refer a patient to an expert community mental health service (CMT). They are typically run by a large local healthcare organisation or a hospital. CMTs can be a good alternative for those looking to see an experienced psychologist or psychiatrist but don't require inpatient care. They can also provide an early intervention service in which psychiatrists work with a psychotherapist to assist someone in overcoming an issue or improve the quality of their life.
One of the major challenges that a CMT is how to ensure that all appropriate referrals are assigned within the proper time frame. Many referrals are considered urgent, even if they may not be. This can result in over-working and delays for people who aren't in a crisis.
To tackle this issue, some CMHTs are trying to establish more consistent standards for what is read more an urgent referral. This was accomplished by using a standardised form which asks the referrer if the case is urgent. The form includes a box that the referrer has more info to check when the request is urgent.