Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- Preface
- Foreword
- Part 1 An overview of mental health problems
- Part 2 Treatments
- Part 3 Clinical problems
- Part 4 Integrating mental health
- 12 Integrating mental health into health care platforms
- 13 Integrating mental health into community platforms
- Part 5 Localising this manual for your area
- Index
12 - Integrating mental health into health care platforms
from Part 4 - Integrating mental health
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 24 March 2018
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- List of contributors
- Preface
- Foreword
- Part 1 An overview of mental health problems
- Part 2 Treatments
- Part 3 Clinical problems
- Part 4 Integrating mental health
- 12 Integrating mental health into health care platforms
- 13 Integrating mental health into community platforms
- Part 5 Localising this manual for your area
- Index
Summary
Health care platforms
The physical body and the mind work very closely together. If one is affected for any reason, often the other suffers too. Thus, mental health is an integral part of all health care work. Paying attention to mental health will make your work more rewarding and the person who you are working with more satisfied. Caring for a person's mental health should be as natural a part of your daily responsibilities as looking after their physical health. Equally important, remember to take as good care of the physical health of people with mental health problems as you do with your other patients.
The 5C model of integration
Let us start by thinking of the principles underlying all types of integrated care for mental health problems. These are the same principles as those you might use for other health conditions which affect people for long periods of time. Common examples of such chronic conditions are diabetes, heart disease and HIV/AIDS. Many common mental disorders last up to a year or more if not treated, and many relapse over time. Severe mental disorders and disabilities can last a lifetime. Therefore, we can consider mental disorder as an example of a ‘chronic condition’.
There are five principles guiding the effective integration of care of mental health problems in routine care platforms, which we call the ‘5C’ model.
• Collaborative: this word simply means a partnership. The care of people with mental health problems always involves a partnership between you and the person and all other people involved in the person's mental health care, including family members, other health care workers and, where available, a mental health worker. Your role is central in this team: you act as the link or the glue between all the other people.
• Coordinated: this means that the care of the person across care platforms should be smoothly connected. The most important platforms are: the community (e.g. in schools), the primary care facility, and specialist care. For coordinated care, there should be clearly defined care pathways, for example, defining when, how and to whom people should be referred when moving from one platform to another. To achieve this, you should identify the relevant contact person in each platform, establish a relationship with them, and agree on the procedures for communicating with them.
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- Information
- Where There Is No PsychiatristA Mental Health Care Manual, pp. 271 - 282Publisher: Royal College of PsychiatristsPrint publication year: 2018
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This content is Open Access and distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/cclicenses/
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