Psychological Services

Transcription

1 Psychological Services Acute Inpatient Care Alnmouth, Warkworth and Embleton St George s Park Hospital Patient information leaflet Shining a light on the future

2 Introduction This leaflet provides information about psychological services on Alnmouth, Warkworth and Embleton adult acute admission wards at St George s Park Hospital. Who are we? We are a team that includes an Art Psychotherapist and Clinical Psychologists: Dr Selma Ebrahim Consultant Clinical Psychologist Dr Elodie Gair Senior Clinical Psychologist Dr Charlotte Aynsworth Clinical Psychologist Heidi Mayer Assistant Psychologist Joanne Noble Art Psychotherapist What is a Clinical Psychologist? Clinical Psychologists are trained in a range of evidence-based talking therapies to help people understand and cope better with mental health problems. Clinical Psychologists don t prescribe medication, they help by talking with people and exploring their problems, and sometimes they draw and write things down, if it helps. Our Consultant Clinical Psychologist, Dr Selma Ebrahim, is an Approved Clinician which means she leads the care of those who may benefit from a psychological approach. This includes trauma, personality disorder and self-harm, anxiety, depression and psychosis. Other members of the psychology team are involved in supporting and co-delivering the psychological interventions indicated. Supporting staff The psychology team helps people in lots of ways, not only through one to one appointments and group work, we also: work closely with the staff to help support you facilitate family meetings attend ward meetings with you liaise with members of your community team if you would like psychological support when you are at home complete research projects to help develop effective interventions evaluate our services to improve them work alongside the multi-disciplinary staff on the ward 2

3 Who do we see? If you are happy for us to see you, we would see you if you were on Alnmouth, Embleton or Warkworth ward. What can we offer? You can meet with your Psychologist in a one to one appointment or in a group session. Psychologists work closely with other members of the team. A Psychiatrist who is a medical doctor will provide advice on medication and your physical healthcare needs. The nursing team provide ongoing nursing support. We also work with Occupational Therapy, Exercise Therapy and Physiotherapy. One to one When you first meet your Clinical Psychologist they will start by getting to know you, and with your help develop an understanding of where and how your problems developed. One part of this may include some questionnaires about your mood, or thinking skills such as memory and attention if you have specific concerns in these areas. What kind of problems can we help you with? The Clinical Psychologist can then offer brief talking therapies and interventions for difficulties such as: Anxiety Feeling angry Self-harm Suicidal thoughts Voice hearing How you relate to other people Self-soothing Problem solving Management of emotions Wellbeing and crisis management planning Sometimes this work needs to continue after you are discharged from the ward; our Clinical Psychologist can offer a small number of transition appointments. These can be in your home, outpatient department at St George s Park Hospital, or your community team base. We will then talk about what psychological support you would like, or may need when you are at home. 3

4 Groups Do you struggle to be with others or feel anxious around other people? Groups help you learn ways of managing these feelings without the pressure of saying anything. Sometimes the groups are run with an occupational therapist. You can also hear the experiences of other people which may help you to think about your own. Groups are helpful because you can learn and practice skills with other people in a social environment. The Managing Emotions group helps you talk about ways of dealing with stressful situations. Please ask your key nurse or activity co-ordinator when this group runs on your ward. Art therapy Art therapy involves using art and discussion with an Art Psychotherapist. The Art Psychotherapist will help you to express and communicate your feelings and thoughts using a range of art materials. Emphasis is put on the process of making your art rather than the end product. Through discussion with the Art Psychotherapist about your art work and your difficulties, you may begin to gain understanding about yourself. This may help you to manage your feelings better. You do not need to be good at art or have any prior experience in art to attend art therapy. Art therapy can happen in one to one meetings or in a group setting. If you are interested in finding out more about art therapy please talk to ward staff. They can arrange for the Art Psychotherapist to come and meet you on the ward to discuss art therapy input and to discuss your current needs. Benefits of art therapy Using art materials to express your feelings can provide a way of communicating experiences that are difficult to put into words. It can help you understand how your experiences (past and present) affect your relationships. Improved confidence and self-esteem. Developing an increased understanding of yourself may help you recognise and cope better with your difficulties in the future. If you would like any further information, please see the Acute inpatient care Art Therapy Group patient information leaflet. Family meetings Several clinicians from the ward based team, including psychological services are part of the Acute Inpatient Care family meetings team. If you are interested in a meeting with members of your family to help open communication and understand things a little better, please see the Family Meetings leaflet or ask your key nurse. Confidentiality Everything you tell the Clinical Psychologist or Art Psychotherapist is kept confidential and would only be shared with professionals supporting your care. If we felt there was a risk to you, someone else, or if there are any child protection concerns we would have to share this information with others involved in your care. We would try to talk to you about this first. If you have any concerns at all about confidentiality, please speak to your Clinical Psychologist or Art Therapist. 4

5 Service user feedback Here are things service users have told us about what they found helpful from psychological services: Improved wellbeing, less stressed as someone knows the extent of problems I face daily. My confidence has grown. Positively, the structure and quality of the contact has improved my relationships. Having someone to confide in about frustrations and problems I face. Everything Everything - I've never left an appointment feeling there has been no value. I've always taken something away. Feeling listened to helps me Just that I had someone on my side for a change. You may find it helpful to look at the following local and national websites for support: The British Psychological Society Meditation and mindfulness support and app hearingthevoice.org/ Hearing the voice - interdisciplinary voice hearing research Information about Recovery Colleges in the North East, including Newcastle, Northumberland and Sunderland Come and Meet Each Other peer led support in North Tyneside Substance use support Free confidential online or face to face support groups mindfulrecovery.info/durham-mindfulness/ Meditation and mindfulness support 5

6 Supportive peer groups for people with mental health problems in various locations, e.g. Newcastle, Alnwick, Hexham, North Shields, Jarrow launchpadncl.org.uk Service user forum and development The Hearing Voices Network mhne.org.uk Mental Health North East contactmorpeth.org.uk Mental Health support in Morpeth Recovery College Collective References The British Association of Art Therapists What if I have a comment, suggestion, compliment or complaint about the service? If you want to make a comment, suggestion, compliment or complaint you can: talk to the people directly involved in your care ask a member of staff for a feedback form, or complete a form on the Trust website (click on the Contact Us tab) telephone the Complaints Department Tel: We are always looking at ways to improve services. Your feedback allows us to monitor the quality of our services and act upon issues that you bring to our attention. You can provide feedback in the following ways: - the quickest way for you to do this is to complete our short online survey at - complete a Points of You survey, available on wards, reception areas or from staff. - some areas of the Trust have electronic feedback touch screens, staff can help you to use these. 6

7 Further information about the content, reference sources or production of this leaflet can be obtained from the Patient Information Centre. This information can be made available in a range of formats on request (eg Braille, audio, larger print, easy read, BSL or other languages). Please contact the Patient Information Centre Tel: Published by the Patient Information Centre 2017 Copyright, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust Ref, PIC/788/0817 August 2017 V1 Tel: Review date 2020 Follow 7