Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to Emma Dent.
There are around 350 psychiatric intensive care units but standards vary. Guidelines have been published, bu there is no obligation to follow them. A number of units are inappropriately equipped--for example, 35 per cent lack single-sex facilities. Many PICU beds are blocked by patients who should be treated in low-secure units.
There is widespread ignorance over services provided by the private and voluntary sector. These can be cheaper and more flexible, and coming from niche market tends to make them competitive. Opportunities for joint ventures with the NHS appear more timely than ever and highlight the trend towards community-based care, cohesion and co-operation.
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A group of trusts in the North have banded together to develop a model based on 13 clusters of care which allow a variety of interventions. The Information Centre for health and social care is collecting patient data in preparation for developing its own classification system. Getting staff on board is seen as vital for both projects.
Only a tiny percentage of those likely to benefit are offered talking therapies. As the cost of incapacity benefit remains high, two talking therapy pilot schemes aim to deliver accessible care for those with mild to moderate mental health problems. Concerns remain that the pilots are a one-size-fits-all approach to a wide spectrum of disorders.
Around one tenth of medium-secure patients are women, but NHS provision does not reflect this. Women patients are more likely than men to have a history of abuse or self-harm, but less likely to have committed a violent or sexual offence. Medium-secure services are increasingly being provided in-house rather than being commissioned from the private sector.