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Child mental health
MNHQ here: parents with experience of CAMHS in Merton, Kingston, Wandsworth, Richmond and Sutton - this way please
RowanMumsnet · 29/06/2016 17:30
Hello
We've been contacted by the CAMHS service at South West London and St George's Mental Health Trust; they're interested in gathering the opinions and feedback of parents who've come into contact with CAMHS services in Merton, Kingston, Wandsworth, Sutton and Richmond.
Here's what they say:
'[We] have seen a number of discussions on Mumsnet about CAMHS and a lack of thoughtfulness of the service in working with both young people and parents. We would really value the opportunity to see how we could work with Mumsnet in the local areas we cover to improve our services.'
They're interested particularly in your thoughts on things like punctuality, responsiveness, quality, respectfulness, and the standard of care and facilities on offer.
Our lovely Local Editors in Merton and Sutton (Kate) and Kingston and Surrey (Cherry) will be cross-hosting this thread on their Local discussion boards, and we're hoping other Local Editors will be able to get involved too.
So please do use this thread to post up any experiences, thoughts and feedback you may have. Matthew Willoughby, who is the CAMHS Operations Manager at the trust, will be keeping an eye on the thread and has said he's happy to come on and respond to points that are made - probably at a specific time (webchat stylee) a bit further down the line once we've got a sense of how much feedback there is for him to take on. In the longer term, he's interested in perhaps setting up parents' feedback groups to offer regular input, and would like to include Mumsnetters in that.
Thanks in advance for your thoughts (and do remember - if you live in Merton, Kingston, Richmond, Sutton or Wandsworth and you're not already signed up to your Mumsnet Local site, do please check them out.)
seriouslyworried · 05/07/2016 07:26
Just wanted to say that DD has been under Wandsworth Camhs for 14 months. They have been great. We were referred by GP, seen within 2 weeks (tier 3) and have been going weekly since then! A few wobbles with medication not being appropriate but the actual care she receives is great and I don't know where we would be without the amazing lady she sees every week. They have also offered us therapy as a family, which has been helpful, and they are always happy to see me if I want it.
mary21 · 05/07/2016 16:39
1st experience Richmond camhs waited 4+years asd diagnosis. No follow up
2nd experience different son went to discuss add they didn't seem to know why we were there.
3rd experience about. Year ago ds1 was seen again,doctor promised to send us some info never did. A ffew months later he phoned as had a referral. I told him son already seen. He then remembered. Reminded him about info again. It never arrived!
Ambroxide · 05/07/2016 22:20
I had a good experience in Richmond, but think this was largely down to my very excellent GP who was maybe the best doctor I have ever had (now retired, sadly). He referred DD for anxiety and we heard nothing for ages but he took it upon himself to chase, chase and chase again until we were seen and helped. DD had art therapy at school with a CAMHS therapist and has been very much helped and changed by the experience. Our lives have been hugely improved by the help we got.
AliceMumsnet · 20/07/2016 11:35
Hi everyone
Sorry it's short notice, but we're just popping on to say that Matthew Willoughby from CAMHS will be coming onto the thread today at 1.30pm to respond to posts and address any feedback (webchat style). If you'd like to ask any questions and participate in the discussion do keep posting for Matthew and join us at 1.30. Thanks folks.
MatthewWilloughby · 20/07/2016 13:35
Hi everyone i am now signed in ect and happy to take questions
i will not be able to discuss individual treament concerns in an open forum due to onfidentiality but happy to have discussion outside of the thread and can supply contact details for this to happen, hope thats ok
MatthewWilloughby · 20/07/2016 14:16
@RichmondDame
Rang to make appt - answerphone, left message e
thank you for the comment. i hope that your child now has an appointment with CAMHS. sometimes calls do go to voicemail as admin staff can be taking other calls. however, all messages left need to be resopnded to, sorry if this was not the case with yourself.
MatthewWilloughby · 20/07/2016 14:32
@MrsFizzy
Since we've been going to Sutton CAMHS it has been a generally positive experience. Waiting times for appointments are short and the staff are very friendly. Whilst at the appointments the Dr is very thorough, takes his time and I've never felt rushed.
The only criticism I would have, and it's a small one really, is that one the two occasions I've called in between appointments with concerns it's been quite difficult to speak to anybody.
Hi, yes community CAMHS went through a transformation process ending in September 2014. this resulted in the diagnosis service for ASD and ADHD moving to Springfield hospital at Harewood House. after this familys would then move back to their local CAMHS team (if required) for follow up, sorry for any delays in this service, we are working to improve appointment times.
regarding telephone message, as prviously mentioned there might be times when people may have to leave a message but all messages should be followed up by the service.
thank you for nice comments about Sutton CAMHS
MatthewWilloughby · 20/07/2016 14:53
@SpookyRachel
Hi, all the five boroughs we cover operate a Single Point of Access (SPA) basically this is the front door for all CAMHS MH referrals where they enter. from here they will get directed to the service that best suits the young persons needs at that moment in time. this will happen in consultation. the SPA has a good knowledge of local resources that are avilable in their area. the contact number is below. hope thats ok
Matthew
Richmond SPA - 020 8891 7969
MatthewWilloughby · 20/07/2016 15:05
@RichmondDame
"Rang to make appt - answerphone, left message" no-one rang back for weeks and we were away when the message was left (acknowledging that we'd rung). When I did call back to make another appointment I was told that as I hadn't contacted them within 2 weeks the case had been closed and we would have to get another referral. I pointed out that I had contacted them, and that I had a message on my answerphone to prove it, the lady on the phone sounded very confused (she had already accepted that we had been called and I had the name of the person who called us) but said "the computer" had closed the case so there was no ay around it.
When you have a child in need of mental health services, your life is often difficult and can be chaotic - I am a single parent who runs their own business and having a child who requires extra support is tiring and I found this approach of "two weeks and you're out" unhelpful in the extreme. (Lets ignore for the moment the fact that I had in fact called within the two weeks window)
Getting the first referral required a visit to the GP and the thought of trying to find a window to slot in another one made me want to cry.
As it happens the school SEN manager agreed to make the referral so I'm just waiting for a second attempt at booking an appointment. Despite my son really needing a tier 3 appt (as advised by the school EP) there doesn't seem any way of getting one so we'll waste someones time having a "choices" appt despite the fact that a professional has recommended tier 3 appt.
I'm sure the two week cut off is there to make your waiting times look better but in fact they can just make already difficult lives more difficult.
hi, appears that the process broke down somehow and your case was closed even though youresponded in two weeks.
if you have not had any contact regarding appointments please call 020 3513 5183 and you can request to talk to the team manager Steve McClusky who will be happy to help
MatthewWilloughby · 20/07/2016 15:12
@MarthaElf
Discharged when dd began to speak to one person as 'we didn't need them anymore'
Took me years to get dd to speak to new people with no help from anyone.
Letter sent to all involved cc to me with 'it is interesting to note Mum suffered from pnd' at the bottom.
Made me feel great.
Also we were in temp council accommodation in a rough area at the time as landlord had remortgaged properties then done a bunk and hadn't told mortgage people he was letting.
The psychologist who came out was awful. Treated us like idiots, was condescending and awful. Our dds needs were clearly as a result of us being of a certain class.
Massively changed how she was with us when she realised we were educated and I had a degree in special needs and exh was degree educated. Seriously entirely changed how she was. We were no longer council estate scumbags
(not my opinion but clearly hers)Second time dd had had had other diagnosis in-between from elsewhere. Saw gp as dd was coping. Gp refered. Didn't get an appointment. Queried. Was told just long waiting list. Gave up after 10 months of not even the initial appointment.
Now moved but seeing a lad here died while waiting months to be seen at crisis point I don't hold much hope if God forbid I need them.
Hi, sorry that you and your family have exsperienced this. i have put my contact details in below if you want to contact me to see if we can assist with your child then please do so i will follow up for you
Matthew Willoughby
CAMHS Operations Manager
Wandsworth Management Services
South West London and St George's Mental Health Trust
Springfield University Hospital
61 Glenburnie Road
London SW17 7DJ
Email: [email protected]
Telephone: 020 3513 6542
MatthewWilloughby · 20/07/2016 15:27
@thisusernameisnotavailable
I am I child using my mums account to express how I feel.
I have been a patient at CAMHS Sutton for almost 2 years. And I have now finally found the type of therapy that is helpful for me. It has taken 1 1/2 years to finally find it.
When I was first introduced to CAMHS I was passed from pillar to post and I saw lots of people. I found it very hard to open up and for the constant string of new people difficult to cope with. Having to tell the same story again and again and again really frustrating. I found that each session brought my mood down really low, this would sometimes mean my school would have to take me to A&E for assessment.
Constantly being in the 'assessment' stage stressed me out and the constant appointments meant I missed a lot of school.
CBT was constantly offered but I found it difficult to talk so I didn't find it helpful. I tried it 3 times and did the recommended 6 weeks trial and each time came out feeling lower and lower. It was suggested I try alternative therapy such as art therapy. I think I would have found this helpful if I was actually given it. After months and months it was finally decided that I needed medication due to the constant trips to A&E. I cannot fault my Doctor at CAMHS. I find her very personable and she speaks the truth. She understands really well how I feel and she never reacts negatively. We have found a medication that works and I'm now feeling considerably better and I feel more human. I have also been doing family therapy with an amazing woman who is working really well with my family and I. I think that now I am stable I could cope with CBT better.
CAMHS is a good service once you've finally found the right thing/person to work with. But the constant assessments and being forced into CBT were a waste of time. I also wish staff were more positive and that the place was brightened up a bit to reflect that positivity.
Thank you for reading this and I hope this post will be of some use to you.
From,
A finally better teenager
hi, thank you for writing your comment and sorry that you felt you were being passed around by different staff at CAMHS.
we do have a participation officer now called LauraTyrrell who is engaging with young people that use camhs and is very keen to meet you / them. Laura has recently set up a young persons forum to help devlop a voice for young people which can help influnce how we work so we can provide a more meaningful service. we have recently done training with young people so they can sit / help with interviewing new staff.
i have put Laura's email at the bottom of his page so you can get it touch if you want and Laura will take it from there.
[email protected]
MatthewWilloughby · 20/07/2016 15:56
Hello
i have gone through a number of comments not in any particular order, sorry if I have not responded to all.
i will be on a/l from 22/07/16 rtn on 08/08/16.
I have booked to rejoin the discussion on Wednesday 10th August 2016 at 13:30 and i am happy continue joining the discussion as keen to engage with parents in different ways
however, i would like to explore the possibilities of developing a CAMHS parent group (leave the name to the parents) for CAMHS parents as this is something we need to do to create a better service. happy to meet with other clinicians at a venue thats easiest for all.
i did mention in a feedback earlier about the Single Point of Access (SPA) which is the front door for all CAMHS MH referrals, this is where GP's and other services send referrals. The SPA also holds a great deal of knowledge of the services that available in that borough.
i have put numbers down below for the SPA's for the five boroughs as this is somewhere for you to contact if you have concerns other than your GP. We would like you to see your GP in first instance but happy for you to call
Wandsworth SPA = 0203 513 6631
Kingston SPA = 020 8547 5008
Richmond SPA = 020 8891 7969
Merton SPA = 020 8254 8061
Sutton SPA = 020 3 513 3800
thank you again for your time and I hope this has been helpful
Matthew
RichmondDame · 20/07/2016 17:32
I'm sorry I missed this - I was working.
I think you somewhat missed the point I was trying to make - that for various reasons - the 2 weeks or you're out and have to sart again is the problem not that the system broke down in my case.
It is often a struggle to get children referred to start with it isn;t the beginning of the process for us - it's one stage after a long fight with school/GP's/whomever to even get as far as agreeing a referral - to find for example that you've missed your two week slot because it took 3 days to get to you then it was the weekend then you couldn't call during working hours/were away on holiday to find that even if you call in 2 weeks and 1 day you have to start all over again is soul destroying.
I see no benefit for such a short window except to make your waiting lists look better than they are in reality.
RichmondDame · 20/07/2016 17:41
In fact we had our 50 minute appt. The person we saw hadn't read the EP report (she also works through achieving for children and I had naively assumed that reviewing her report would be part of the preparation. He didn't read anything we'd brought with us - the questionnaires we'd been asked to fill in, the drama therapist's report I'd brought with me.
I had been given to understand we would be seen partly together and partly separately which didn't happen. DS is VERY resistant to strangers, refused to engage at all, I found it very difficult to discuss the severity of his problems with him present commenting "how rude of you to tell a total stranger that", I was very concerned that it actually undermined the trust we have between us and I would never agree to a meeting which puts us both in such a position again. The person we met introduced himself by name I have no idea if he was a psychiatrist, psychologist, therapist, nurse practitioner, cleaner.
The result was "well the school need to deal with issues at school and you seem to be coping" - he did agree to look into a referral to the adoption support service and I certain wouldn't agree to meeting them without having the opportunity to speak to someone separately to DS.
Unhappy would just about sum it up.
RichmondDame · 20/07/2016 17:43
I should add that (despite all evidence to the contrary!) I am happy that you are prepared to stick your head above the parapet and I am aware that you are constrained by budgets which can't be easy.
But essence I feel that if you're not in crisis currently then you're deemed to be coping so little support is offered - never mind that it might prevent the inevitable future crises.
LocalEditorMerton · 10/08/2016 12:13
Hi Matthew
For those of us who don't know very much about CAMHS in South West London, please could you talk us thro' the referral process? For example does one have to be referred via one's GP, or indeed school, or can one access the local CAMHS Team directly?
Are there any additional local services that might be useful to parents of children for whom CAHMS might not offer the most appropriate support?
Many thanks.
Kate
SpookyRachel · 10/08/2016 13:51
Hi Matthew, thanks for coming back on the thread. Can you ask you specifically about accessing the most appropriate support for adopted children? As I said upthread, I'm getting some help from a specialist therapist via the ASF but feeling increasingly unsure as to what is needed. This is my child's 3rd therapist (the last two moved on) and this chopping and changing is very negative for her and she is becoming very resistant and avoidant. The ASF has meant that suddenly there is money available and all sorts of options and providers are popping up - it is hard for a lay person to judge the quality of these or the most appropriate help. The post adoption service is seriously understaffed and not providing the kind of expert guidance that is needed. I'm really reluctant to drag my child through more assessments unless I can be very sure it is going to be helpful. Does CAMHS provide an advice service for parents? I feel I've been asking for help for 3 years but can't get anyone to engage with me!
MatthewWilloughby · 10/08/2016 13:54
@LocalEditorMerton
For those of us who don't know very much about CAMHS in South West London, please could you talk us thro' the referral process? For example does one have to be referred via one's GP, or indeed school, or can one access the local CAMHS Team directly?
Are there any additional local services that might be useful to parents of children for whom CAHMS might not offer the most appropriate support?
Many thanks.
Kate
hello
the five boroughs that we cover do have either a single point of access or referral. this means that all referrals for camhs services go to this one place. if you like its the front door to camhs services.
the referral will be processed and passed to the service that best meets the childs / young persons needs. when we talk about CAMHS this also refers to third sector / charity organisations, local authority services that offer mental health support for children and young people.
what we found when we piloted the single point off access a number of years ago was that only a third of referrals actually needed local NHS CAMHS service and the other children / young people were more suitable for support in other services.
by having single point of access means that children and young people can get to the right service as quickly as possible and they along with parents are aware of what is happening next and why.
i thought it might be best to spend some time explaining this as we have promoted this with local services like schools, loacal authority, GP's ect but unintentially not equally with parents / carers.
the single points of access are the best source of overall knowledge of mental health services for children and young people in that borough and i would be happy to explore with local mums net how we could share that knowledge of services on local sites
i have included numbers for single points of access below for the five boroughs but what i would say is try and see GP in first instance if not happy for a parent / carer to call
Wandsworth SPA = 0203 513 6631
Kingston SPA = 020 8547 5008
Richmond SPA = 020 8891 7969
Merton SPA = 020 8254 8061
Sutton SPA = 020 3 513 3800
benb2005 · 10/08/2016 14:27
Our daughter Sophie suffered serious mental illness from early teens. On 4 May this year, when she was 19, she ended her own life. She was cared for by CAMHS until she was 18 - including a number of times that she was 'sectioned' and spent time as an inpatient on Aquarius ward at Springfield. There are some great things about the CAMHS services and inevitably it has some failings. The staff are almost all extremely dedicated and caring. It is an incredibly difficult area to work in and we should be grateful that there are people who do. Hopefully most young people with mental health problems will recover enough to have a good chance in life and hopefully most will not be as seriously ill as Sophie. It is clear that resources are a huge issue for the services.
We are trying to associate some positive things with our experience of mental health services. The charitable funds for mental health services do not attract the donations that other services for children do or other NHS charities. So we supporting the charitable funds of SWLSTGs and you can read about it here and encourage people to donate and/or support the services in other ways:
bit.ly/29xoaQh
Also there was an item in the Wandsworth Guardian about her:
www.wandsworthguardian.co.uk/news/14628877.Family_of_teenager_who_made__remarkable__recoveries_at_Springfield_Hospital_raise_more_than___13_000_in_her_memory/?ref=mr&lp=7
MatthewWilloughby · 10/08/2016 16:58
@SpookyRachel
hi
the single point of access will also know about services for parents in Richmond and will be able to direct you to them / link you in.
You could also discuss concerns about your childs mental health as your child might benefit from another / additional service that might be available. However, its best to raise this with the therapist your child is seeing so not to unintentionally destable any work that they are doing with your child.
I have also been on the Richmond council web site looking for parenting support and have put link below to services relating to parents.
richmond.gov.uk/search_results?qt=parenting
hope thats been helpful
matthew
MatthewWilloughby · 12/08/2016 11:38
[quote benb2005]Our daughter Sophie suffered serious mental illness from early teens. On 4 May this year, when she was 19, she ended her own life. She was cared for by CAMHS until she was 18 - including a number of times that she was 'sectioned' and spent time as an inpatient on Aquarius ward at Springfield. There are some great things about the CAMHS services and inevitably it has some failings. The staff are almost all extremely dedicated and caring. It is an incredibly difficult area to work in and we should be grateful that there are people who do. Hopefully most young people with mental health problems will recover enough to have a good chance in life and hopefully most will not be as seriously ill as Sophie. It is clear that resources are a huge issue for the services.
We are trying to associate some positive things with our experience of mental health services. The charitable funds for mental health services do not attract the donations that other services for children do or other NHS charities. So we supporting the charitable funds of SWLSTGs and you can read about it here and encourage people to donate and/or support the services in other ways:
bit.ly/29xoaQh
Also there was an item in the Wandsworth Guardian about her:
www.wandsworthguardian.co.uk/news/14628877.Family_of_teenager_who_made__remarkable__recoveries_at_Springfield_Hospital_raise_more_than___13_000_in_her_memory/?ref=mr&lp=7[/quote]
i'm sorry to here about yur loss and our thoughts are with you and your family
thank you for your kind words
LocalEditorMerton · 19/09/2016 12:20
Hi Merton Mumsnetters
Just to flag up that SWLSTGs is hosting some events for October's Mental Health Month. The theme is ‘talk about it’ which aims to encourage discussion around mental health and stamp out stigma and discrimination.
Amongst the 50 events taking place across south west London throughout October, is Sophie Day - a tea and talk fundraiser for young mental health services. Sophie was a former CAMHS patient who sadly passed away in May. Her parents launched a remarkable fundraising campaign calling for donations to be used for the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services Aquarius Ward at Springfield Hospital. Cakes and sweets will be sold to raise funds for the Trust Charity.
RSVP on Eventbrite here: (bit.ly/2d5sBV3
You can donate here: (bit.ly/29xoaQh).
Venue
Building 28
Springfield University Hospital
61 Glenburnie Rd
London SW17 7DJ
See more at: www.swlstg-tr.nhs.uk/news-and-events/latest-news/item/let-s-talk-about-it-join-us-this-mental-health-month#sthash.SLtXYLX8.dpuf
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