You are here: Home: Health and social care: Mental health: Mental health services

Mental health services

Care Programme Approach

The Care Programme Approach (CPA) is the process which Mental Health Service providers use to co-ordinate the care for people who have mental health problems. CPA was introduced by the Government in 1991, and updated in 1999. It has four main elements, which are

• Systematic arrangements for assessing the health and social needs of people accepted into specialist mental health services.
• The formation of a care plan which identifies the health and social care required from a variety of providers.
• The appointment of a care co-ordinator to keep in close touch with the service user, and to monitor and co-ordinate care.

Regular reviews, and where necessary agreed changes to the care plan.

CPA will apply to any one who is accepted by specialist mental health services. This means that anybody who has a serious mental health problem who is referred to mental health services will be included in CPA.

This means that someone (usually from the Community Mental Health Team) will work closely with you to assess your needs and to work out a care plan with you to meet those needs. This person is known as your care co-ordinator and s/he will be responsible for ensuring that your care plan is regularly reviewed.

The care co-ordinator

The care co-ordinator will normally be a Community Psychiatric nurse, a Mental Health Social Worker, a Consultant Psychiatrist or an Occupational Therapist, in unusual cases it may be a Psychologist.

The care plan

You will be given a copy of your care plan, which will have been written, following your assessment. The care plan will contain information about the following:

• Your mental health needs including medication
• Risk assessment information, and how any risks will be managed
• Arrangements for physical care which you need
• Any actions needed with regard to accommodation
• Any arrangements needed for domestic support
• Any action needed for occupation, training or employment
• Any requirements regarding your income
• Any actions required to meet your cultural or faith needs
• What arrangements are being made to promote your independence
• The date and time of your next planned review.

Carer involvement

We would aim to involve your carers wherever possible in your assessment and care planning. This is so that we can make sure that you get the best care possible, and that we make sure that we give you and your carers the support that you need. We will of course always ask for your permission to do this. If you have a carer who provides a lot of care for you on a regular basis, we will offer them an assessment and care plan in their own right.

Confidentiality

All information about you and your mental health is confidential and will be treated as such. It is necessary at times to share information within the mental health service in order to provide the best quality care for you, and the strict rules of confidentiality continue to apply in these situations. The only time when information will be passed on without your consent is where a court orders it, or when it affects the safety of you or someone else.

back to top