Tell us a bit about your background
I am a registered mental health nurse, and have been registered in this profession for approximately 10 years. I trained at the University of Central Lancashire, and then worked in Preston in an acute inpatient setting before moving to the Preston home treatment team. I later went on to work within the Wrexham home treatment team before moving to this post as the team manager for the Crisis Resolution Home Treatment Team in April 2013. My professional interests include service user involvement in the development of services, and professional education for students.
Tell us more about the service
The CRHT in North Powys opened in May 2013. To date we have received 419 referrals into the team, and our service is open 7 days a week, from 9am to 9pm Monday to Friday, and 11am to 7pm at weekends and Bank Holidays. The objective of the team is to provide an equal alternative to inpatient care, and to facilitate early discharge from hospital when it is safe to do so.
What staff roles do you have on the team?
The team consists of one team manager, one team secretary, one health care support worker and six registered nurses. The team is also having an additional 3 members of staff in the future. The team is also supported by a dedicated Consultant Psychiatrist.
Who can refer people for the CRHT service?
The Community Mental Health Team can refer people into our service, during the hours of 9am to 5pm. Out of hours, the CRHT does accept referrals from ShropDoc, which is the out of hours GP service.
Can people of all ages be referred?
We look after people aged 18 or over with a functional* illness.
What happens if someone experiences a crisis outside of your usual hours?
It can be useful to write a contingency plan with your care coordinator (if you have one), which can be used to highlight what needs to happen in an emergency. I would suggest that you contact your on call GP or in an emergency attend your local Accident and Emergency Department.
What is the nature of the service provided by a Crisis Resolution Home Treatment Team?
The CRHT is a short term but intensive service. The team visits service users on a frequent basis, up to twice a day, providing the same service as you would receive in hospital. When someone is referred into the CRHT team, the team will arrange an assessment as soon as possible. The team will then develop a care and treatment plan with that person, with the aim of supporting and aiding recovery.
Who can refer people for the CRHT service?
The Community Mental Health Team can refer people into our service, during the hours of 9am to 5pm. Out of hours, the CRHT does accept referrals from ShropDoc, which is the out of hours GP service.
Can people of all ages be referred?
We look after people aged 18 or over with a functional* illness.
What happens if someone experiences a crisis outside of your usual hours?
It can be useful to write a contingency plan with your care coordinator (if you have one), which can be used to highlight what needs to happen in an emergency. I would suggest that you contact your on call GP or in an emergency attend your local Accident and Emergency Department.
What is the nature of the service provided by a Crisis Resolution Home Treatment Team?
The CRHT is a short term but intensive service. The team visits service users on a frequent basis, up to twice a day, providing the same service as you would receive in hospital. When someone is referred into the CRHT team, the team will arrange an assessment as soon as possible. The team will then develop a care and treatment plan with that person, with the aim of supporting and aiding recovery.
How do you promote a person’s recovery?
As a relatively new service in North Powys, how has the CRHT impacted on provision of mental health services generally?
The CRHT has had huge benefits in supporting those who really don’t want to go into hospital, and would rather stay at home. The team does, however, understand that sometimes hospital is necessary, and the CRHT will try to facilitate an early discharge with our support at the earliest opportunity when it is safe to do so.
Are there any specific needs that can be well-addressed by the CRHT?
The CRHT can help with practical issues such as housing etc, and will do all they can to ensure carers are supported.
Do you refer people on to other services?
When someone has recovered in the CRHT, their care is either referred on to additional mental health services or another appropriate service, or their care is handed back to the GP. In all cases the CRHT writes to the GP to ensure that the GP is aware of our intervention and any changes we may have made to the person’s care or treatment.
What are the challenges for a CRHT in a large rural area like North Powys?
The distance of travel that is required within this area is a challenge for the team, but it does not cause us too many problems once you become familiar with the area.
What are the most rewarding aspects of the work you do?
For me it is rewarding to see people recover at home, within a familiar setting, as opposed to a hospital setting. I feel that you are able to work with people more creatively and independently at home, as hospital can sometimes be restrictive.
How would you like to see mental health services developing in North Powys in the next few years?
From the view of the CRHT we would like to help and support more people to recover at home. We understand that hospital admissions will always be needed at times, but if we can reduce the stress of going into hospital for the client and their family, this may limit the amount of time it takes to recover.
Twice a week, the whole team meets in a confidential environment to discuss each person that the CRHT is caring for. This allows the team to do its very best for the people we care for, and to support recovery in a timely manner. People who have used our service have been positive about their experience with us. The team does share the entire CRHT caseload, and people who do use our service can see all members of the team.
As a relatively new service in North Powys, how has the CRHT impacted on provision of mental health services generally?
The CRHT has had huge benefits in supporting those who really don’t want to go into hospital, and would rather stay at home. The team does, however, understand that sometimes hospital is necessary, and the CRHT will try to facilitate an early discharge with our support at the earliest opportunity when it is safe to do so.
Are there any specific needs that can be well-addressed by the CRHT?
The CRHT can help with practical issues such as housing etc, and will do all they can to ensure carers are supported.
Do you refer people on to other services?
When someone has recovered in the CRHT, their care is either referred on to additional mental health services or another appropriate service, or their care is handed back to the GP. In all cases the CRHT writes to the GP to ensure that the GP is aware of our intervention and any changes we may have made to the person’s care or treatment.
What are the challenges for a CRHT in a large rural area like North Powys?
The distance of travel that is required within this area is a challenge for the team, but it does not cause us too many problems once you become familiar with the area.
What are the most rewarding aspects of the work you do?
For me it is rewarding to see people recover at home, within a familiar setting, as opposed to a hospital setting. I feel that you are able to work with people more creatively and independently at home, as hospital can sometimes be restrictive.
How would you like to see mental health services developing in North Powys in the next few years?
From the view of the CRHT we would like to help and support more people to recover at home. We understand that hospital admissions will always be needed at times, but if we can reduce the stress of going into hospital for the client and their family, this may limit the amount of time it takes to recover.
Many thanks to Graham for the update. If you have any queries relating to the Crisis Resolution Home Treatment Team in North Powys, you can comment below.
*This term is defined online on an NHS jargon-busting website: "A term for any mental illness in which there is no evidence of organic disturbance (as there is with dementia) even though physical performance is impaired".
