What are the mental health services available for young people in Market Harborough?
Both PCNs (Primary Care Networks) in Harborough have now employed Mental Health Practitioners to work within general practice and support patients with mental health issues. These are for patients aged 18 or over. For patients aged 17 and under there is a defined pathway from the GP practice through to CYP (Children’s and Young Persons) services who may want to work with other organisations to coordinate care for younger people.
In addition, there are mental health services based at both St Luke’s Treatment Centre and in Wigston (this base serves a large geographical area including Market Harborough). Specialist services for younger people (under 18) are provided by Leicestershire Partnership Trust’s (LPT) Children’s and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) which can be accessed through your general practice. The Improved Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) services are available with online advice and self-referral but these are available to over-18s only.
How can young people access the digital platforms for primary and mental health care?
Visit your GP Practice website and create a log in for the online system. Then you can access your records, make requests for appointments, prescriptions, ask questions, access information about your practice and the services available. In addition, Practice websites have links into other services that can be accessed either online or via telephone.
How do you advertise this information to young people?
We are working with partners within Harborough, not least Harborough District Council, to develop improved digital platforms that will inform and educate. In addition, both PCNs are developing websites which link into and compliment the practice websites. In addition to this we are very keen to work with younger people to tailor our digital platforms and presence to the needs of younger people.
This is something that we really want to improve on and this partnership with the Speak Out Magazine is a good start but we would very much like to learn more about how our younger population like to be communicated with so we can ensure that we are able to get our message out there.
How are you making these services more desirable for young people to use/access?
The NHS and its constituent parts were set up in 1948 to serve the population as a whole. That population is now very different to 74 years ago and the ways in which individuals learn about, access and use services has changed beyond recognition. Now there is awareness that different sections of society (age, ethnic background, gender, etc.) access services in various ways. One of the reasons for the LILT wanting to work with younger people is to allow it to inform its member organisations to work more effectively with younger people and design their services, and access to those services, in a way that make them desirable to young people. Recognising that the health and wellbeing of individuals is affected, both positively and negatively, by the environment and how the individual interacts with it means we are working together to improve access to and knowledge of a wide range of services from classic health provision through to exercise and outdoor activities.
This is our third article in partnership with LILT. You can read previous articles by visiting our partnerships section. In our Wellbeing section you will find useful resources and information to help with mental health.
