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Showing results for tags 'Mental health - CAMHS'.
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News Article
Almost 70,000 children missing out on mental health treatment
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Almost 70,000 children are missing out on mental health care they should be eligible to receive as the NHS falls short of key targets, The Independent has revealed. An internal analysis, seen by The Independent, shows in England the NHS has fallen short of a target, set in 2019, for 818,000 children to receive at least one treatment session from Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) in 2023. The actual number of children who received treatment in the 12 months to December was 749,833, falling short of the target by around 9%. The figures came as the government announced this week it would expand the number of early access mental health hubs for children to cover 50% of the country by 2025. However, campaigners urged ministers to commit to covering the entire country to help “turn the tide on the crisis” in children’s mental health services. The NHS analysis shows, as of December, CAMHS in the South West was furthest away from its targets with 78% of children seen out of those eligible. In London, 80% of the target was achieved and in the North West 105%. Laura Bunt, chief executive at YoungMinds, said: “Referrals to mental health services are at a record high with more young people than ever in need of support with their mental health. We know that many young people are struggling in the aftermath of the pandemic, facing intense academic pressure to catch up on lost learning, a cost of living crisis and increasing global instability. “Every young person should be able to access mental health support when they need it, but too many don’t get it until things get much worse. Services continue to be significantly underfunded and the number of young people receiving treatment falls woefully short of what is needed. To turn the tide on this crisis, the government must prioritise young people and their mental health by investing in prevention and early intervention.” Read full story Source: The Independent, 2 March 2024- Posted
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- Children and Young People
- Mental health - CAMHS
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Content ArticleSocial prescribing can be life changing for many children and young people, allowing them to have a voice about what matters to them, access the things they enjoy and can give them a route to achieve their ambitions. The greater choice and control that social prescribing brings also empowers them to make positive decisions, build confidence and increase self-esteem. This toolkit has been developed collaboratively by the charity StreetGames, the South West Integrated Personalised Care Team and other key partners across the UK. It is a guide to developing, implementing and delivering high quality social prescribing for children and young people. It provides a framework to help providers assess what is needed and examples of what others have achieved through social prescribing, and how. It also demonstrates how partnership working allows organisations to achieve more and support young people to have truly great lives.
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- Children and Young People
- Innovation
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Content ArticleSolving Together is a partnership that enables people with different ideas and views to put forward solutions and experiences. From Monday 9 October to Friday 3 November 2023, Solving Together is hosting a series of conversations on Children and Young People’s Mental Health that aim to get ideas on how access and waiting times for community services could be improved. The conversation topics are: Reducing inequalities in access, experience and outcomes Prevention and early intervention Experience of services Transfer of care and wider support
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- Mental health
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Content ArticleCQC's completed programme, which started in 2014, of comprehensive inspections of all specialist mental health services in England.
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- Mental health
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News ArticleA London coroner has warned the health secretary that preventable child suicides are likely to increase unless the government provides more funding for mental health services. Nadia Persaud, the east London area coroner, told Steve Barclay that the suicide of Allison Aules, 12, in July 2022 highlighted the risk of similar deaths “unless action is taken”. In a damning prevention of future deaths report addressed to Barclay, NHS England and two royal colleges, Persaud said the “under-resourcing of CAMHS [child and adolescent mental health services] contributed to delays in Allison being assessed by the mental health team”. An inquest into Allison’s death last month found that a series of failures by North East London NHS foundation trust (NELFT) contributed to her death. In her report, Persaud said delays and errors that emerged in the inquest exposed wider concerns about funding and recruitment problems in mental health services. “The failings occurred with a children and adolescent mental health service which was significantly under-resourced. Under-resourcing of CAMHS services is not confined to this local trust but is a matter of national concern,” she said. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 14 September 2023
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- Mental health - CAMHS
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Content ArticleOn 3 August 2022 an investigation was carried out into the death of Allison Vivian Jacome Aules. Allison was 12 years old when she passed away on the 19 July 2022. The investigation concluded at the end of the inquest on the 17 August 2023. The conclusion was that Allison died as a result of suicide, contributed to by neglect.
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- Self harm/ suicide
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News Article
UK children waiting 16 months on average for ADHD and autism screening
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Children with suspected ADHD and autism are waiting as long as seven years for treatment on the NHS, as the health service struggles to manage a surge in demand during a crisis in child mental health. Experts said “inhumane” waits are putting a generation of neurodiverse children at risk of mental illness as they are “pushed to the back of a very long queue” for children and adolescent mental health services (Camhs). UK children with suspected neurodevelopmental conditions faced an average waiting time of one year and four months for an initial screening in 2022, more than three times longer than the average wait for all Camhs services, according to research carried out by the House magazine and shared with the Guardian. Half of all trusts responding to a freedom of information request had an average wait of at least a year, and at one-sixth of trusts it was more than two years. The NICE guidance for autism and mental health services stipulates that no one should wait longer than 13 weeks between being referred and first being seen. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 17 July 2023 Related reading on the hub: Long waits for ADHD diagnosis and treatment are a patient safety issue -
Content ArticleSamuel Howes was 17 when he died by suicide in September 2020. Samuel had ongoing mental health issues including anxiety and depression. This led to his use of drugs and dependency on alcohol, which in turn further worsened his mental health. This blog by his mother Suzanne details her experience of the final day of the inquest into her son's death, which found multiple failings on the part of Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS), social services and the police.
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News Article
‘Buckling’ NHS fails to treat 250,000 children with mental health problems
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
A quarter of a million children in the UK with mental health problems have been denied help by the NHS as it struggles to manage surging case loads against a backdrop of a crisis in child mental health. Some NHS trusts are failing to offer treatment to 60% of those referred by GPs, the research based on freedom of information request responses has found. The research carried out by the House magazine and shared with the Guardian also revealed a postcode lottery, with spending per child four times higher in some parts of the country than others, while average waits for a first appointment vary by trust from 10 days to three years. Olly Parker, head of external affairs at YoungMinds, said the freedom of information findings showed a “system is in total shutdown” with “no clear government plan to rescue it”, after the 10-year mental health plan was scrapped. “In the meantime, young people are self-harming and attempting suicide as they wait months and even years for help after being referred by doctors,” he said. “This is not children saying ‘I’m unhappy.’ They are ill, they are desperate and they need urgent help.” Read full story Source: The Guardian, 16 April 2023- Posted
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- Children and Young People
- Mental health - CAMHS
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News Article
1,643 ‘sexual safety incidents’ in a single 59-bed children’s unit
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
A single children’s mental health hospital with just 59 beds reported more than 1,600 “sexual safety incidents” in four years, shocking NHS figures reveal. Huntercombe Hospital in Maidenhead was responsible for more than half of the sex investigations reported in the 209 children’s mental health units across the country. Despite warnings at a rate of more than one a day to the health service since 2019, no action was taken to stop vulnerable NHS patients being sent to the scandal-hit unit as a result of the 1,643 sexual incident reports. The private unit is now finally due to be closed after an investigation by The Independent revealed allegations of verbal and physical abuse, prompting the NHS to withdraw patients. The hospital since said it plans to reopen as an adult unit. Figures obtained from the NHS show Huntercombe’s Maidenhead unit, Taplow Manor, was behind 57% of the 2,875 reported sexual incidents and assaults reported at England’s child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) over the past four years. Reported incidents can range from sexually inappropriate language to serious sexual assault and rape. Read full story Source: The Independent, 11 April 2023- Posted
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- Investigation
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News Article
Children's hospital forced to close may reopen due to legal loophole
Patient-Safety-Learning posted a news article in News
A scandal-hit children’s mental health hospital set to close after an investigation uncovered allegations of severe abuse could reopen within months due to a legal loophole, it can be revealed. Taplow Manor hospital, in Maidenhead, will shut in May after the Independent exposed claims of “systemic abuse” and poor care from more than 50 former patients. Police are currently carrying out two investigations into the hospital–one into a patient death and a second into the alleged rape of a child involving staff. Active Care Group, which runs the hospital, announced last week that would close but in letters sent to staff since then, it said it was looking to retrain them with plans to “reopen as an adult acute service” in a matter of months. A loophole in the regulations means that there is nothing to stop healthcare providers from applying to the watchdog, the Care Quality Commission, to reopen, even if serious concerns have been raised about the closed operation. Read full story Source: Independent, 4 April 2023- Posted
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- Mental health - CAMHS
- Mental health
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Content ArticleNiche Health and Social Care Consulting (Niche) were commissioned by NHS England in November 2019 to undertake an independent investigation into the governance at West Lane Hospital (WLH), Middlesbrough between 2017 up to the hospital closure in 2019. WLH was provided by Tees, Esk and Wear Valleys NHS Foundation Trust (TEWV) and delivered Tier 4 child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) inpatient services. This review initially incorporated the care and treatment review findings of two index case events for Christie and Nadia who both died following catastrophic self-ligature at the unit. The Trust subsequently agreed to include the findings of the care and treatment review of Emily which related directly to her time at West Lane Hospital, even though Emily did not die at this site. This is to ensure that optimal learning could be achieved from this review.
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- Investigation
- Mental health
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Content ArticleLast week, one of the country’s largest child and adolescent mental health services, Forward Thinking Birmingham, run by Birmingham Women’s and Children’s Foundation Trust, was rated “inadequate” by the Care Quality Commission. The inspection report makes for concerning reading — not least because it speaks to a range of issues being experienced by other providers of CAMHS services across the country. CQC inspectors warned there were not enough nursing and support staff to keep people using community services from avoidable harm. Nurses told the CQC that vacancies in the service impacted on people being allocated a care coordinator — and staff were leaving largely due to handling caseloads they felt were unsafe. Part of HSJ’s Mental Health Matters fortnightly briefing, covering safety, quality, performance and finances in the mental health sector.
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- Mental health
- Mental health - CAMHS
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Content ArticleThis blog by the Centre for Mental Health looks at data about young people's mental health in 2022 from NHS Digital, highlighting the urgent need for effective mental health services and support for young people. It looks at what needs to change to improve the picture for young people's mental health including addressing child poverty, implementing whole school and college approaches and investing in early intervention support.
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- Mental health
- Mental health - CAMHS
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News ArticleA mother who has seen her suicidal 12-year-old daughter shuttled between placements and then held in a locked and windowless hospital room says she is frightened for her child’s life. Since going into care in Staffordshire nine months ago, Becky (not her real name) has attempted to take her own life on several occasions. Her case throws fresh light on the chronic nationwide shortage of secure accommodation for vulnerable children. “I am constantly told there is nowhere for her,” said her mother, who cannot be identified for legal reasons. “I fear I’ll soon be arranging her funeral due to the systemic failings in health and social care.” Becky has been alone in a locked hospital room since 27 January. The room has no window or access to the outdoors, no furniture except for a bed, and she is permitted no belongings. All human contact is conducted through a hatch. The child’s court-appointed guardian told the high court at a hearing to discuss Becky’s case that she considered “the risk to Becky’s life to be catastrophic”. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 7 February 2023
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- Self harm/ suicide
- Children and Young People
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Content ArticleYoung people and expert mental healthcare staff say patients are unlikely to receive in-patient mental health care unless they “have attempted suicide multiple times”, according to a new report published by Look Ahead Care and Support. Launched in the House of Lords, the report – funded by Wates Family Enterprise Trust and produced by experts Care Research – argues Accident and Emergency departments have become an ‘accidental hub’ for children and young people experiencing crisis but are ill-equipped to offer the treatment required. Based on in-depth interviews with service users, parents and carers, and NHS and social care staff from across England, the findings from the Look Ahead Care and Support report draws on experience of treating depression, anxiety, self-harm, suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts, eating disorders, addiction and psychosis.
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Content ArticleThis report by NHS Digital presents findings from the third in a series of follow up reports to the 2017 Mental Health of Children and Young People (MHCYP) survey, conducted in 2022. The sample includes 2,866 of the children and young people who took part in the MHCYP 2017 survey. It looks at the mental health of children and young people aged 7 to 24 years living in England in 2022, as well as examining their household circumstances, and their experiences of education, employment and services and of life in their families and communities.
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- Mental health
- Mental health - CAMHS
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Content ArticleCore20PLUS5 is NHS England's approach to reducing health inequalities at both national and system level. The approach defines a target population cohort and identifies five focus clinical areas that require accelerated improvement. This infographic outlines the specific Core20PLUS5 approach to reducing health inequalities for children and young people.
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- Health inequalities
- Health Disparities
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Content ArticleIn this Guardian article, parents reveal their heart-wrenching struggles to access NHS services, which have sometimes been too late to help their children.
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- Mental health
- Patient / family support
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News ArticleThe mother of a bullied 12-year-old girl has said her daughter struggled to get mental health support on the NHS in the months before she killed herself, and accused her school of failing to deal with inappropriate messages circulating among pupils. The mother of Charley-Ann Patterson, Jamie, told a hearing that despite being seen by three medical professionals, Charley-Ann had been unable to get mental health support in the months before her death. In a statement read at an inquest at Northumberland coroner’s court on 12 October, Jamie said her daughter had changed halfway through her first year of secondary school, when she was sent “inappropriate” and “shocking” messages by other pupils. The inquest heard that Jamie first took her daughter to a GP over self-harm concerns in June 2019, but she said she “did not believe that the GP took Charley-Ann’s self-harm seriously, potentially due to her age”. She took Charley-Ann to A&E in May 2020 after a second episode of self-harm, where she was referred to a psychiatric team and given a telephone appointment in which she was told Charley-Ann would be referred to child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS), but that “it was likely that she would not be seen for three years”. In an appointment with a nurse she was told that she would be referred to the Northumberland mental health hub for low mood and anxiety, but later learned “that this referral was never made”. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 12 October 2022
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- Bullying
- Children and Young People
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Content ArticleRestrictive practices are things that limit the rights of a person, like being able to move around freely. Restrictive Practice is used to stop a person from doing behaviours of concern. These Specialised Services Quality Dashboards (SSQD) are designed to provide assurance on the quality of care by collecting information about outcomes from healthcare providers. SSQDs are a key tool in monitoring the quality of services, enabling comparison between service providers and supporting improvements over time in the outcomes of services commissioned by NHS England.
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- Mental health
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News Article
Boy, 17, found dead after seeking mental health help ‘had not seen GP in person’
Patient-Safety-Learning posted a news article in News
A coroner has expressed concern at the difficulty of getting face-to-face appointments with GPs and other health professionals after a 17-year-old boy suffering from mental health problems was found dead. Sean Mark, who described himself as an “anxious paranoid mess”, was desperate for help but felt “palmed off” when he asked for assistance, an inquest heard. He was found dead in his bedroom four months after a phone consultation with a GP and before he had spoken to anyone in person about his concerns. The area coroner, Rosamund Rhodes-Kemp, recorded a verdict of death by misadventure, saying she could not be sure Sean had intended to kill himself. Dr Robin Harlow, clinical director of the Willow Group, where Sean Mark was a patient, said it had increased the number of face-to-face meetings. When told that Sean felt palmed off, he said: “I would want him to be seen face to face at the second time, if not the first time. We have seen a lot more face-to-face appointments since then.” Read full story Source: The Guardian (23 August 2022)- Posted
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News Article
Child deaths expose mental health unit pressures
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Deaths, staff shortages and a culture of life-threatening self-harm are exposing deep fears about the quality of mental health care in hospitals for children and young people. Since 2019, at least 20 patients aged 18 or under have died in NHS or privately-run units, the BBC has found. A further 26 have died within a year of leaving units, amid claims of a lack of ongoing community support. The NHS said it had "invested record amounts... to meet record demand". Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) units look after about 4,000 patients with many different diagnoses each year. The aim is to help them recover over a period of weeks or months through specialist care. Some patients are in and out of the units for years. The BBC has also heard serious claims regarding the unsafe discharge of patients sent home from CAMHS hospitals. Several former patients told the BBC they had serious self-harm incidents or tried to take their own life within days of returning home. Parents have described being on "suicide watch" 24 hours a day, to ensure their child's safety. Read full story Source: BBC News, 9 August 2022- Posted
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Community PostAre you currently working on an inpatient mental health ward in the UK? We would like to learn about how you feel towards restrictive practices on mental health wards. Go to https://tinyurl.com/restrictivepractices to find out more.
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Content ArticleThe Commission on Young Lives (COYL) was set up in September 2021, to propose a new settlement to prevent marginalised children and young people from falling into violence, exploitation and the criminal justice system, and to support them to thrive. Its national action plan will include ambitious practical, affordable proposals that government, councils, police, social services and communities can put into place. This detailed report by COYL examines the state of children and young people's mental health, describing the current situation as "a profound crisis." It examines the impact of the pandemic on young people's mental health, as well highlighting the lack of capacity and inequalities present in children and young people's mental health services. It then looks in detail at factors that contribute to mental health issues in children and young people and prevent marginalised groups from accessing mental health support.
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- Children and Young People
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