Community Mental Health Teams and Specialist Day Services for Older People: An Integrated Development

Boyd, Ben (2006) Community Mental Health Teams and Specialist Day Services for Older People: An Integrated Development. Mental Health and Learning Disabilities Research and Practice, 3 (1). pp. 21-37. ISSN 1743-6885

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Abstract

Study - Service re-design for older people with mental health difficulties is described, where the addition of an Assertive Outreach Team integrated with Day Hospital, Community Mental Health Teams (CMHTs) and existing in-patient facilities was implemented to decrease the reliance on hospital services and provide a greater emphasis on community intervention.
Method - Comparison of audit data before and after service re-design.
Main findings - Following implementation capacity for community contact increased from 48% to 66%. Bed occupancy decreased from greater than 100% to less than 61%. Assertive Outreach staff spent 55% of their working week in face-to-face contact activity compared to 34% in CMHTs.
Conclusion - Data indicate a shift in balance toward community oriented services. Further research is required to provide evidence this was as a result of implementation strategy and that service change resulted in more effective treatment.

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