Mental Health Services on the NHS
The NHS has responded to the increase in mental health issues by offering services. This includes:
The Long Term Plan reaffirmed its commitment to increase investment in mental health services more quickly than overall NHS budget. This will include specialist work in suicide prevention.
Get help
One of four of us will have mental health issues at some moment in our lives. The good news is that there are many avenues to seek help, and most of us will improve over time. However, it is important to know what assistance is available and who can offer it.
You can seek assistance from a variety of sources, including your GP (primary medical doctor for primary care), your local health centre or a community mental health team. These teams consist of occupational and nurse speech therapists, and psychotherapists. mental health diagnostic assessment collaborate with people who use their services. Based on the type of assistance you require you might be provided with individual or group therapy.
You will be asked to fill out a form from your GP so that they can refer you to a mental health professional in the community. They will also ask what type of assistance you require. Then, you will be viewed by a member of a mental health team that could include a psychiatrist, social worker or psychologist. In some cases your evaluation and treatment will be performed by a specialist in clinical nursing. If you are experiencing an emergency, you can contact the NHS 111 helpline for immediate support. If you're already being assisted by mental health services, it's best to contact your regular team first, unless it's outside of normal hours, on a weekend or on a bank holiday.
The Five Year Forward View for Mental Health detailed plans to create multidisciplinary team of mental health professionals in the community that are connected to primary care networks. These teams will increase the quality of mental health care delivered to people experiencing a crisis, and offer support to them in their homes and community rather than in hospitals.
The plan also aimed to help make crisis services more accessible by reducing wait times and allowing more beds. It also proposed to introduce mental health transport vehicles and ensure that all ambulances have a mental health liaison nurse in their control rooms to ensure people suffering from a mental health crisis are supported in emergency situations.
Treatment options
The NHS offers a range of treatment options to treat mental health issues. GPs are usually able to treat milder conditions, but more severe issues will require the assistance of 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 get help if you are feeling in a crisis.
Talking treatments for anxiety and depression are among the main treatments. These programs, formerly known as IAPT (Interactive Assessment and Psychotherapy) have seen their number of referrals increase every year since they were launched in 2008. The NHS Long Term Plan commits to expanding these services to ensure that 1.9 million people will be able to use them in 2023/2024.
Psychiatric medications are also a vital part of treatment. They can improve symptoms through altering the way that chemicals function in your brain. They can also help lessen the negative effects of other treatments. Your doctor will recommend the right medication for you.
A variety of talk therapy treatments are available, including group therapy and individual therapy. Some of these are delivered in person, but others can be delivered via a remote device. Some patients prefer to receive treatment in person, but that is a personal choice. Mind is one of the organizations that offer support groups and classes. Their website has a lot of trustworthy information, but you must be aware that there's a lot of inaccurate or misleading information available on the internet regarding mental health issues.
While the NHS is working to improve its mental health services but it's still struggling to keep up with demand. There are 54 mental health trusts across the UK and the majority of they receive funding from clinical commissioning organizations to deliver their service. They are typically located in a particular region however, they are also able to be commissioned to provide national services.
One of the main issues is the lack of resources to meet the growing demand. There are also concerns over the quality of care and the shortage of psychiatrists and nurses. The NHS is working to improve these services by offering more training and introducing new ways of working. It also offers more efficient and safer methods to treat people who are in crisis. This includes mobile crisis teams and safe space.
Helping you
Since the NHS was first introduced 70 years ago, there are positive changes for those with mental health issues. Treatment options have expanded and social barriers are being taken down. But there is more to be done.
People who are in mental health issues should receive the help they require quickly and easily. The NHS is working to improve its services so that people in need can get help. We will ensure that no acute hospital is without a mental health liaison in A&E departments and wards for patients by 2020/21. 70 percent of these services will meet the "core 24" standard by 2023/24. We will work towards 100% coverage thereafter.
We will also increase services for the community, such as talking therapy, to offer support for hundreds of thousands of people with mental health issues regardless of whether they are common or severe. We will continue to work on the national Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) program to ensure that more people are treated by trained therapists quicker.
The NHS provides confidential, free helplines to anyone struggling with mental health issues. These include the Samaritans, Mind and Rethink. These helplines are operated by trained volunteers. They provide the opportunity to talk with someone in a secure environment or provide advice and information on how to deal with your mental health issues.
There are also local organizations that can offer support and guidance to people with mental health issues. Self-help guides, coping strategies and other activities are all possible. A lot of these organizations offer face-to-face support groups for those who prefer this method.
mental health diagnostic assessment offers a drop-in counseling service for students who are struggling or stressed. There is also the Nightline student counselling service that offers confidential listening and support from experienced volunteers, or information on other services. Charities such as Mind and Rethink are a excellent source of information and can provide support in a variety of ways such as online and through local groups. They offer a variety of courses and activities including mindfulness classes to art classes, which are beneficial for those with mental health issues.
Referrals
With mental health services under pressure, GPs have to make difficult decisions about which specialist services they can refer patients to. The doctor will take into consideration the patient's medical background and recommend them to services they believe will be able assist. They may send a referral to an NHS trust, or to an independent provider.
A mental health professional will then review the referral and decide whether it's appropriate or not. If the specialist doesn't like the referral, they will call the GP and explain why. They may request the GP to alter the referral or request more details.
Referrals to the local Community Mental Health Team can be made through the NHS e-Referral Service. The system allows doctors and other healthcare professionals refer patients to either an initial clinical assessment service for mental health or directly to an appointment. Not all CMHTs provide both options, and the system cannot be used for all types of mental health referrals.
A GP might decide to refer a person to a specialist community mental health service (CMT). These are usually operated by a large local healthcare organisation or a hospital. CMTs are a good choice for those who have to see a psychiatrist or psychologist but don't require inpatient treatment. They also provide an early intervention service in which psychiatrists collaborate with therapy therapist to assist a person overcome a crisis or improve the quality of their life.
CMTs face the challenge of making sure that all referrals are made within a reasonable time. mental health assessment report are considered urgent even though they may not be. This can cause patients who aren't in a crisis to be rushed and suffer delays.
To address this issue certain CMHTs are working to establish more uniform standards for what constitutes an urgent referral. This is being achieved through the use of the standardised referral forma that requires a referrer to determine if the case is urgent. The proforma includes a box for the referrer to check if they feel the referral is urgent.