Using these Procedures (Community Mental Health Integrated Teams)

Southern Health Foundation Trust (SHFT) provide a range of services that are detailed below.

Social work staff from Southampton City Council are seconded into many of these services.

Early Intervention in Psychosis Team

The Early Intervention in Psychosis Team has a strong emphasis on improving people’s mental health. Support is offered throughout the evening and weekends. Services are tailored to meet the individual and their carer. The team assesses, treats and supports young people who are or who may be in the early stage of a psychotic illness. Treatment and support are offered in the Adult’s home or in local places in the community. The service is for anyone aged 14-35 who appear to be experiencing their first episode of psychosis. Services provided include:

• Educating Adults, their friends and family about psychosis;
• Creating plans to help the Adult through the crisis;
• Prescribing medication;
• Working with the Adult, family or their guardians;
• Offering one to one support;
• Supporting the Adult in education or employment;
• Assisting and supporting the Adult to continue with everyday life.

Acute Mental Health Team

The Acute Mental Health Team proactively works with service users to prevent the need to come into hospital and supports leave or discharge from hospital and supports service users awaiting mental health services. The team is a gateway to the acute in-patient beds and also safeguards Adults that may be at risk of harm or abuse.

The team supports Adults to continue to live as normal a life as possible and enables independence. It promotes and improves health and wellbeing, signposts to the most appropriate service.

The Acute Mental Health Team aims to ensure that Adults are independent, have choices and are in control. It also works in partnership with carers and families. The team is a multi-disciplinary mental health service, providing rapid and responsive assessment and treatment 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

Assertive Outreach Team

The Assertive Outreach Team targets those who suffer from a severe and debilitating mental illness, complex needs and have had difficulty engaging services in the past and have often required repeat admissions to hospital.

The team aims to improve and enhance the quality of life for service users. The team offers more assertive and practical based support. It works therapeutically, empowering Adults to make decisions about their recovery and incorporates Adult’s and carer’s views.

Community Mental Health Teams

There are three Community Mental Health Teams in Southampton. They are multi-professional and offer a range of community-based functions and interventions. They provide a single local point of access for Adults who present with severe, complex and enduring mental health problems. They provide assessment and community-based interventions with referred Adults, focusing on their needs, self-determination and recovery and agree a plan of care with the Adult. Teams are available Monday to Friday 9am to 5pm and cover is provided for weekends and bank holidays.

The aims of the Community Mental Health Teams are:

• To promote and improve mental health and wellbeing;
• To promote independence, self-reliance and recovery;
• To promote responsibility and citizenship;
• To improve quality of life for patients, families and carers;
• To assist individuals to remain within their communities and networks;
• To work collaboratively with patients and their families;
• To treat all individuals with dignity and respect.

The primary purpose of these procedures is to support seconded adult social care practitioners in mental health services to perform their statutory functions under the Care Act and the Mental Capacity Act.

Those also performing functions under the Mental Health Act should also refer to:

• Guidance on the support of mental health social workers working in NHS, independent or integrated services;
• Any available Southern Health Foundation Trust procedures.