The importance of care coordination for the CAMHS community team
Introducing the Core CAMHS Clinical Care Coordination Function
This year, we will be hearing from our NHFT people and learning about the difference they make. We start with the core CAMHS clinicians, focussing on the care coordinator part of their roles. Their key aim is to create a therapeutic relationship, and give young people a voice.
NHFT’s Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) community team provides emotional wellbeing and mental health support for children and young people up to the age of 18 across Northamptonshire. The dedicated team offers a variety of interventions and therapies in both individual and group settings, working with families and support networks to help assess and treat children and young people with emotional, behavioural, or mental health difficulties.
Each young person referred to CAMHS is allocated a named worker, responsible as care coordinator. This role is an essential point of contact that liaises with all the professionals and networks involved in the patient’s care. Their key objective is to ensure that the young person gets the help they need, and the patient is involved in a collaborative plan to support their recovery.
“Being a care coordinator is a role that comes with tremendous responsibility”, says Carrie Pittuck, Advanced Mental Health Practitioner based at Newland House.
“It’s our job to help plan and navigate a young person’s treatment and care so that they get the help they need to move on. From start to finish, we are the main point of contact. As well as treatment, it’s important that a good transition is planned when patients are discharged and that they continue to get the support they need from their family and community when they leave CAMHS.”
As well as working with families and carers, a crucial part of the role is liaising with various support services from inpatients, Crisis, Intensive Outreach teams, NSTEP, CYP Eating Disorder service, ADHD and ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) teams and other CAMHS specialist services.
Cazz Broxton, Clinical Lead Nurse for Community CAMHS says, “The role can be challenging at times because external professionals, parents or carers, may have very different expectations and desired outcomes for a young person. The care coordinator gives a voice to the young person and is able to challenge or question suggestions which may not align with the individual goals of the young person.”
Cazz continues: “It’s essential that we understand each young person and their individual support network, collaborate with them to set their personal goals, and it is critical for us to always advocate for the young person’s voice and continue to review their needs” says Cazz Broxton, Clinical Lead Nurse for Community CAMHS.
Sasha O’Grady, Specialist Mental Health Practitioner, suggests that stabilisation is also a huge part of the role, “Getting people ready to access the therapy they need is important because when they become part of the programme, they may have moderate to severe mental health difficulties and need support to access or even accept the intervention they need.”
Cases are continually increasing and becoming more complex in their nature. Care coordinators work with a variety of patients, from those with mood or anxiety disorders, to those with complicated mental and physical health challenges.
Meet some of the core CAMHS community team!
Please watch the short video below and find out more about the importance of care coordination:
Experiences with young people
Having recently supported a young person who was out of school for nearly two years, Sasha explains how she helped the individual on their path to recovery:
“Through planned intervention, which included sleep therapy and working with local authorities, we went on to place the individual in a school that suited their needs. I helped write their application to the school. It’s so fulfilling to see a child move forward and thrive; that’s what it’s all about for me.”
Carrie co leads trauma pathway and has referred many patients to the ACTIVATE group, which she praises as a really positive experience for young people. The ACTIVATE programme is based on behavioural activation to support those aged between 14 and 17 experiencing low mood. The course includes practical, creative, and active experiences, including rock climbing, cooking, animal handling, group volunteering and more. These activities use the Occupational Therapy ethos of using meaningful occupation to positively influence mood and functionality.
Cazz reflects on supporting a young person who had an inpatient psychiatric stay and was pregnant, “we were able to support her throughout her pregnancy using links with the Family Nursing Partnership and NHFT Perinatal team. I supported her for two years in therapeutic work as well as care coordinating which required liaising with numerous specialist services at different points of her recovery. Now she’s discharged from CAMHS and has accessed a brilliant apprenticeship. It’s been wonderful to see her reach her goals.”
Every individual requires unique support; the care coordinator’s job is to understand their complex needs and empower them to access the right treatment for them, to fit with their goals so they can live their best lives.
The team has ambitions to grow, and there are current job opportunities. Visit www.nhft.nhs.uk/jobs.
To find out more about NHFT’s Core CAMHS team please visit www.nhft.nhs.uk/camhs.