Mental Health Services on the NHS
The NHS has responded to the rise in mental health issues by providing services. This includes:
The Long Term Plan has made the commitment to increase investment in mental health services faster than the NHS budget overall. This includes special suicide prevention services.
Need help?
One of four people will suffer from a mental illness at some time in their lives. The good news is that there are a variety of different options to seek help, and most people recover over time. It is essential to know what help is available and who can offer it.
You can seek assistance from a variety of sources, including your doctor (primary care medical doctor) or your local health center or a community mental health team. These teams comprise of occupational and nurse psychotherapists and speech therapists. They work with clients who seek their services. You can receive individual or group therapy based on the type of help you require.
Your doctor will typically ask you to fill in the form to send you a referral to a local mental health team. They will also ask you what kind of support you need. You will then be seen by someone from a mental health team that may comprise a psychiatrist social worker or psychologist. In some cases your evaluation and treatment will be performed by a nurse specialist. If you're in crisis, contact the NHS 111 helpline for urgent support. If you are already receiving mental health services It is recommended to contact your primary team first, unless out of hours, on a weekend or 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 connected to primary care networks. These teams will improve the quality of the mental health services delivered to people experiencing a crisis, and will provide assistance to them within their communities and at home instead of in hospitals.
The plan also aimed at make crisis services more accessible by reducing waiting times and allowing more beds. It would also introduce the mental transport vehicle and ensure that all ambulances are equipped with a mental liaison nurse within the control room to improve how patients who are suffering from mental illness are assisted in emergency situations.
Treatment options
The NHS provides a variety of treatment options for mental health conditions. The less severe disorders are typically treated by GPs, while more serious disorders require specialists. These teams work across both community and primary mental health services, as well as psychiatric hospitals. You can also seek assistance in a secure space if you feel in crisis.
Talking therapies are one of the most common types of treatment for depression and anxiety. These programs, previously known as IAPT (Interactive Assessment and Psychotherapy), have seen their number of referrals increase each year since they launched 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 also an important element of treatment. They can alleviate symptoms by altering how chemicals in your brain work. They can also help minimize the adverse effects of other treatments. Your doctor will prescribe the best medication for you.
There are many different types of talk therapy, including individual therapy and group therapy. Some of these can be delivered in person, but others are available remotely. Some patients prefer face-to face treatment, but it is an individual choice. There are also a lot of charities which offer support groups and classes like Mind. Their website is full of information that is reliable, however you must be aware that there is a lot of misleading or false information available on the internet regarding mental health issues.
The NHS is improving the mental health system, but it's struggling to meet the demand. There are 54 mental health trusts in the UK and the majority of them receive funding from clinical commissioning groups to deliver their service. They are typically located in a specific region however, they can also be commissioned to provide national services.
A key issue is the insufficient resources to meet the growing demand. There are concerns about the quality of care and the shortage of psychiatrists and nurses. The NHS is working to improve these services by providing more training and introducing new ways of working. It also offers more efficient and safer ways to help people in crisis. This includes mobile crisis teams and safe spaces.
Helping you
Since the NHS was established 70 years ago, there have been many positive developments for people suffering from mental health issues. The treatment options have gotten better and social barriers have been broken down. But there's still a lot to do.
People experiencing mental health issues require the ability to access the assistance they require quickly and easily. This is why the NHS is striving to improve the services available to those who need these services. By 2020/21, we will make sure that all acute hospitals have a mental health liaison service that is available in A&E and on inpatient wards, and that 70% of these will meet the core 24 standard by 2023/24. Then mental health test uk will strive to achieve 100 percent coverage.
We will also increase services for people who need them in the community, including therapy for talking, which will give hundreds of thousands of people with common or severe mental health conditions the support they require. We will continue to work on our national Improving Access to Psychological Therapies program (IAPT) in order to ensure that more people with mental health conditions can be seen quicker by therapists who are qualified.
The NHS provides free, confidential helplines for anyone struggling with a mental health issue. Samaritans Mind and Rethink are some of the helplines available. These helplines are operated entirely by volunteers who provide 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 a variety of local organisations that can provide assistance and support to those with mental health issues. Self-help guides, coping techniques and activities can be included. Many of these organisations also provide support groups in person for those who prefer this option.
The University's Open Door Team offers a drop-in counseling service for students who are feeling down or stressed. There is also the Nightline student counselling service, which offers confidential listening and support from skilled volunteers, or details about other services. Charities such as Mind and Rethink are a great source of information and provide support in various forms that include online and through local groups. They also provide many courses and activities, from mindfulness to art groups which can be helpful for people suffering from mental health issues.
Referrals
Mental health services are under strain and GPs must make difficult decisions about the best specialist services to refer their patients to. The doctor will take the patient's medical history into account and then recommend them to a service they think could be able to assist. They can send a referral either to an NHS trust, or an independent provider.
A mental health professional will then review the referral and decide whether it's appropriate or not. If the specialist isn't satisfied with the referral they will call the GP to discuss their decision and explain the reasons. They can also request the GP to provide more information or to modify the referral.
The ability to refer patients to the local Community Mental Health Team can be made using the NHS e-Referral Service. The system allows doctors and other healthcare professionals to send patients to either an initial clinical assessment for mental health or directly to an appointment. However, not all CMHTs provide both options, and the system isn't able to be used for every kind of mental health referral.
A GP may also refer patients to a mental health specialist in the community service (CMT). They are typically operated by a large local healthcare organization or hospital. CMTs are a good choice for those who require to visit a psychologist or psychiatrist but don't require inpatient care. They also offer an early intervention program, where a psychiatrist will work with an therapist to help a person overcome a crisis or increase their quality of life.
CMTs are faced with the task of ensuring that all referrals are received within a reasonable time. Many referrals are considered urgent even though they may not be. This can cause people who aren't in crisis to be overworked and experience delays.
To address this issue, a few CMHTs have tried to establish more uniform guidelines for what constitutes an urgent referral. This has been accomplished by using a standardised referral proforma that requires a referrer to consider whether the case is urgent. The form has a checkbox that the referrer has to check when the request is urgent.