By Dr Gareth Jarvis, Medical Director at Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust
To provide the best healthcare for our patients we need to do things differently. Research by the World Health Organisation (WHO) suggests that to strengthen mental health care we need to build community networks and move away from care in hospital.
This is what our mental health crisis assessment service (MHCAS) is doing. It is a therapeutic alternative to attending A&E and provides therapy, meals and washing facilities and is available 24/7. The service opened in November 2022 at St Charles Hospital and helps people facing a mental health crisis get the support that they need. There is time to allow the person to lead their assessment, to understand what their needs are and referrals can be made by emergency services, but also include family members and community services, it also means more people can be supported when they need it.
We now recognise that for some individuals, receiving treatment at home once their needs are understood is better and avoids restrictive hospital admissions. The service has robust links to other services and support to help stay well at home. MHCAS also avoids people having to wait in A&E which can be a stressful environment for the individual and their families.
Some people will still need to go to hospital but their treatment can start earlier which is better for them and can reduce the length of time they have to be there.
We have been investing in mental health significantly and are spending more money, seeing more patients and employing more staff than before the pandemic.
Our current consultation on acute mental health is proposing to:
- Expand the mental health crisis assessment (MHCAS) service (piloted at St Charles) and move it to the Gordon Hospital.
- Keep 67 inpatient beds at St Charles (as now), supplemented by the MHCAS at the Gordon Hospital with room for 12 patients, including space for 4 patients to be admitted overnight alongside a full range of community-based services.
We want to provide the best care and support possible for people with serious mental health care needs in Westminster and Kensington and Chelsea. Proposed changes to the Gordon Hospital will give us the opportunity to transform local mental health care and help us provides mental health services in line with how mental health care is changing.
To find out more about the consultation and share your views, click here.