Cut in mental health beds, more resources in community 10/11/14
A plan that details the steps to develop an enhanced community mental health service in the Western Isles has been approved by Western Isles Health Board.
Changes are progressing to to transform mental health services from what is currently a hospital focused model of care to a person centred, ‘recovery’ model of service provision, closer to people’s homes.
NHS Western Isles Medical Director, Angus McKellar, described the principle behind the change as ‘more care going to the patient, rather than the patient having to go to the provider’.
The health board said, whilst there will be more of a focus on enhancing community services, there will continue to be inpatient beds available when admission is required.
In the Western Isles Hospital in Stornoway, the 14 beds in Clisham Ward (older age psychiatry unit) will be cut to eight. At the same time, the five beds in the Acute Psychiatric Unit will be reduced by one.
There would be three distinct zones within a single mental health inpatient unit
which would include en-
The changes would cost around £900,000 to set up over a two year period. Extra funding and a loan finance is also required to cover double running costs for the first 24 months.
NHS Western Isles Nurse Director, Sandy Brown, explained: “Our mental health staff deliver excellent care within the current model, but the configuration is completely imbalanced, as 95% of our patients are based in the community; and between 85 and 90% of our resources are in the hospital.
“To deliver the care that patients need, it’s important that we address this imbalance and invest in community services.”
The health board says this allows for the redeployment of a significant number of staff into community teams, providing care outwith the hospital.
This would be an innovative and groundbreaking model in terms of mental health services in Scotland, said the health board.
There will be two community teams; one for Lewis and Harris and the other covering the Uists and Barra which will be very closely linked with GP practices.