3 Reasons Your Mental Health Services NHS Is Broken And How To Repair It
Mental Health Services on the NHS
There has been a huge rise in people seeking help for mental health issues, and the NHS has responded by offering services. This includes:
The Long Term Plan reaffirmed its commitment to invest more in mental health services more quickly than the overall NHS budget. This will include specialist suicide prevention work.
Get assistance
One in four of us will suffer from mental health issues at some moment in our lives. The good news is that there are many different options to seek assistance and the majority of us recover after a while. It is essential to know what help is available, and who can offer it.
You can get help from your doctor or the local health center or mental health team within your area. These teams comprise of occupational and nurse psychotherapists, as well as speech therapists. They collaborate with clients who seek their services. Based on the kind of help you need, you may be offered individual or group therapy.
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 what you require in terms of support. You will then be examined by someone from a mental health team that could include a psychiatrist, social worker or psychologist. In some instances, a clinical nurse specialist will carry out your assessment and treatment. You can call the NHS 111 helpline when you're in a crisis. If you're already being supported by mental health services, it's a good idea contact your regular team first unless it's out of normal hours, on a weekend or on a bank holiday.
The Five Year Forward View for Mental Health included plans to establish more multidisciplinary, place-based community mental health teams with links to primary care networks. These plans will aid in improving the quality of care provided to those experiencing a mental health crisis. They will also provide support in their homes and communities rather than in hospitals.
The plan aims to make emergency services available by decreasing wait times and opening up more beds. It also proposes a mental transport vehicle and ensure that all ambulances are outfitted with a mental liaison nurse within the control room to ensure that patients who are suffering from mental illness are helped in times of crisis.
Treatment options
The NHS offers a wide array of treatment options for people suffering from mental health problems. GPs typically have the ability to treat minor conditions, but more severe conditions will require a specialist team. These teams operate across primary and community mental health services as well as psychiatric hospitals. You can also seek assistance in a secure environment should you be in a state of crisis.
Talking therapies for depression and anxiety are one of the main treatments. These programs, previously referred to as IAPT (Interactive Assessment and Psychotherapy) have seen their number of referrals increase every year since they were introduced in 2008. The NHS Long Term Plan has set the goal of expanding these services to 1.9 million people by 2023/2024.
The use of psychiatric medication is also a crucial element of treatment. They can help alleviate symptoms by altering the way chemicals work in your brain. They can also help reduce the effects of other treatments. Your doctor will prescribe the right medicine for you.
A variety of talk therapy options are offered, including group therapy and individual therapy. Some of these therapies can be delivered in person, while others can be done via remote access. Some patients prefer treatment in person, but that is a personal decision. There are also a lot of charities which offer classes and support groups like Mind. Their website contains a wealth of reliable information, but you should be aware of the fact that there's plenty of misleading or false information on the internet about mental health issues.
The NHS is improving the quality of mental health care, but it is struggling to meet the demands. In the UK, there are 54 mental trusts. Most of them receive funding for their services from the clinical commissioning groups. They usually are located in a specific area, but they can be commissioned to provide national services.
The lack of resources is a major issue. There are also concerns over the quality of care, and a shortage of psychiatrists and nurses. The NHS is working to improve the services by introducing new methods of working and offering more training. It also offers safer and more effective methods to treat those who are in crisis. These include mobile crisis teams and safe spaces.
Supporting you
Since the NHS was first introduced 70 years ago there have been positive changes for people suffering from mental health issues. The treatment options have gotten better and social barriers have been smashed down. But there is much more to be done.
People who are in a mental crisis need to receive the assistance they require quickly and easily. The NHS is working to improve its services to ensure that those who need them can get assistance. 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. 70% of these services will meet 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, which includes psychotherapy, in order to provide thousands of more people suffering from severe or common mental health issues the help they require. 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, more quickly.
The NHS provides confidential, free helplines to those suffering from mental health issues. These include the Samaritans and Mind and Rethink. These helplines are operated entirely by volunteers who offer a safe place to talk or offer advice and guidance on how to manage your mental health issues.
There are a variety of local organizations that provide help and advice to those suffering from mental health issues. Self-help guides, coping strategies and other activities are all possible. Many of these organisations also provide support groups in person for those who prefer this option.
For students, there is the University's Open Door Team which offers a drop-in counselling service for those feeling low or stressed. There's also private ptsd assessment counselling service which offers confidential listening and support from knowledgeable volunteers, or details about other services. Charities like Mind and Rethink are a great source of information and can provide support in various forms, including online and through local groups. They can also offer various classes and activities, ranging from mindfulness to art groups which can be helpful for people who suffer from 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 GP will look at the medical history of the patient and recommend them to services they believe will be able to aid. They may send a referral to an NHS trust or 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 pleased with the referral, they'll contact the GP to discuss their decision and provide the reasons. They may also ask the GP for more information or to change the referral.
The ability to refer patients to the local Community Mental Health Team can be made via the NHS e-Referral Service. The system permits GPs and other healthcare professionals to refer people to either a pre-mental health clinical 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 types of mental health referrals.
A doctor may refer a patient to a mental health specialist in the community service (CMT). These are usually run by a major local healthcare organisation or a hospital. CMTs are a great alternative for those looking to see an experienced psychiatrist or psychologist but don't need inpatient treatment. They can also offer an early intervention program where a psychiatrist works with a therapist in order to assist someone in overcoming any crisis or improve the quality of their life.
CMTs are faced with the task of making sure that all referrals are received within a reasonable time. Many referrals 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 tackle this issue, a few CMHTs have tried to establish more uniform guidelines for what constitutes an urgent referral. This has been achieved by using a standardised referral proforma that requires a referrer determine if the case is urgent. The proforma has a box that the referrer can tick if the request is urgent.