Summary and Introduction
The National Service Framework for Children, Young People and Maternity Services establishes, for the first time clear standards for promoting the health and well being of children and young people and for providing high quality services which meet their needs. The importance of psychological well-being in children and young people, their healthy emotional, social, physical, cognitive and educational development is well recognised. There is now increasing evidence of interventions that improve the resilience of children and young people, promote their mental health and treat mental health problems and disorders.
One of the key factors in ensuring the successful delivery of the National Service Framework will be the workforce on whom we depend to deliver care and services which children have a right to expect. It is acknowledged that local service commissioners and providers will need to take the necessary action to ensure that their workforce is sufficient and skilled, well led and supported to deliver high quality services. Some of these solutions will be local however because of the complexity of the issues surrounding workforce improvements and the wider impact on and of changes in children and mental health services nationally the Departments of Health and Education & Skills recognise that they also have vital roles to play in offering support and guidance in helping to tackle the problems that the field may face. The National Service Framework recognises the context of the broader plans to reform the ways in which care is delivered. The NHS Plan sets out a clear programme of investment in the NHS which, over the next few years will see an expansion in staff numbers, changes in the way services are run and in the way people work. The principle across all agencies is that the service changes that are necessary will require fundamental modernisation. This applies to the numbers and type of staff employed and the value of working in partnership. We will see changes in education, training and employment of staff to deliver the flexible, multi skilled workforce that services of the future will need.
Current guidance presents us all with exciting opportunities and challenges to enable us to deliver high quality, effective services for children and young people who represent our future. In staffing a modern mental health service for children and young people that is equipped to deliver the National Service Framework across agencies and disciplines, we need to develop new ways of working, which will continue to value the contribution of our most important resource, our staff.
This will include:
- Challenging the historical demarcations between staff which serve only to hold them back from achieving their full potential
- Continued development and enhancement of flexible team work between professionals and across agencies
- The introduction of new ways of working and a new types of mental health workers
- Review of current commissioning of education and training and modernising this process to ensure it meets both the needs of those we serve and our staff.
National Service Frameworks Standards for CAMHS
Improvement, Expansion and Reform and the children’s NSF sets out the standards and milestones for improvement in child and adolescent mental health services, including year on year improvements in access.
And will:-
- Support delivery of NHS priorities by ensuring there are sufficient numbers of appropriately trained, motivated staff working in the right locations.
- Increase the number of staff available.
- Increase workforce capacity and productivity through skill mix and continuing professional development; moving work from doctors to other healthcare professionals and from healthcare professionals to the support workforce, supported by pay modernisation, and service redesign.
Targets:
- All child and adolescent mental health services to provide a comprehensive service including mental health promotion and early intervention by 2006.
- Increase child and adolescent mental health services by at least 10% each year across the service according to agreed local priorities (demonstrated by increased staffing, patient contacts and/or investment).
- Develop comprehensive CAMHS to meet proxy target
- 24/7
- Learning Disabilities
- 16/17 yr olds