Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services
Encyclopedia
Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) is a name for NHS
-provided services for children in the mental health
arena in the UK. In the UK they are often organised around a 4 Tiers system. Tier 3 services are typically multidisciplinary in nature and the staff come from a range of professional background.
There may be a considerable overlap between the skills and competencies of staff working in the specialist services. Tier 4 are highly specialist services for young people. These are typically inpatient units for young people who require admission into hospital, but also include a range of other Tier 4 provision. There are about 90 adolescent units in England and Wales. Tier 3 services provide care in the majority of cases requiering specialist input.
The aim is to have a team led by a consultant psychiatrist, although other models exist and there is limited evidence of what system works best. It is suggested that there should be a consultant psychiatrist for a total poulation of 75,000, although in most of the UK this standard is not met.
The service includes:
For the diagnosis and treatment of children and adolescents, generally until school-leaving age. However many services cease at the age of sixteen, whereas the continuing service would be provided by Adult Mental Health at the age of eighteen.
The organisation of CAMHS services in the UK is complex. There is a programme coordinated by National Institute Mental Health England (NIHME) to look at changing the way the workforce works. This New Ways of Working (NWW) includes CAMHS. The national Workforce Lead for CAMHS is Barry Nixon and Project Lead for NWW CAMHS is Tim Morris.
National Health Service
The National Health Service is the shared name of three of the four publicly funded healthcare systems in the United Kingdom. They provide a comprehensive range of health services, the vast majority of which are free at the point of use to residents of the United Kingdom...
-provided services for children in the mental health
Mental health
Mental health describes either a level of cognitive or emotional well-being or an absence of a mental disorder. From perspectives of the discipline of positive psychology or holism mental health may include an individual's ability to enjoy life and procure a balance between life activities and...
arena in the UK. In the UK they are often organised around a 4 Tiers system. Tier 3 services are typically multidisciplinary in nature and the staff come from a range of professional background.
There may be a considerable overlap between the skills and competencies of staff working in the specialist services. Tier 4 are highly specialist services for young people. These are typically inpatient units for young people who require admission into hospital, but also include a range of other Tier 4 provision. There are about 90 adolescent units in England and Wales. Tier 3 services provide care in the majority of cases requiering specialist input.
The aim is to have a team led by a consultant psychiatrist, although other models exist and there is limited evidence of what system works best. It is suggested that there should be a consultant psychiatrist for a total poulation of 75,000, although in most of the UK this standard is not met.
The service includes:
- PsychiatryPsychiatryPsychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the study and treatment of mental disorders. These mental disorders include various affective, behavioural, cognitive and perceptual abnormalities...
- Occupational therapyOccupational therapyOccupational therapy is a discipline that aims to promote health by enabling people to perform meaningful and purposeful activities. Occupational therapists work with individuals who suffer from a mentally, physically, developmentally, and/or emotionally disabling condition by utilizing treatments...
- Clinical psychologyClinical psychologyClinical psychology is an integration of science, theory and clinical knowledge for the purpose of understanding, preventing, and relieving psychologically-based distress or dysfunction and to promote subjective well-being and personal development...
- Psychiatric nursingPsychiatric NursingPsychiatric Nursing is a 1958 documentary film directed by Lee R. Bobker. It was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature....
- Social workSocial workSocial Work is a professional and academic discipline that seeks to improve the quality of life and wellbeing of an individual, group, or community by intervening through research, policy, community organizing, direct practice, and teaching on behalf of those afflicted with poverty or any real or...
er interface - PsychotherapyPsychotherapyPsychotherapy is a general term referring to any form of therapeutic interaction or treatment contracted between a trained professional and a client or patient; family, couple or group...
- Language developmentLanguage developmentLanguage development is a process starting early in human life, when a person begins to acquire language by learning it as it is spoken and by mimicry. Children's language development moves from simple to complex. Infants start without language. Yet by four months of age, babies can read lips and...
For the diagnosis and treatment of children and adolescents, generally until school-leaving age. However many services cease at the age of sixteen, whereas the continuing service would be provided by Adult Mental Health at the age of eighteen.
The organisation of CAMHS services in the UK is complex. There is a programme coordinated by National Institute Mental Health England (NIHME) to look at changing the way the workforce works. This New Ways of Working (NWW) includes CAMHS. The national Workforce Lead for CAMHS is Barry Nixon and Project Lead for NWW CAMHS is Tim Morris.
See also
- Child and adolescent psychiatryChild and adolescent psychiatryThe branch of psychiatry that specializes in the study, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of psychopathological disorders of children, adolescents, and their families, child and adolescent psychiatry encompasses the clinical investigation of phenomenology, biologic factors, psychosocial factors,...
- Youth Inclusion Support PanelYouth Inclusion Support PanelA Youth Inclusion Support Panel is a British arm of local government. YISPs aim to address anti-social behaviour and offending by young people aged 8-13, though some local authorities extend the age range as high as 17....
in the UK (for young people who may be at risk of committing an offence) - Child psychopathologyChild psychopathologyChild psychopathology is the manifestation of psychological disorders in children and adolescents. Oppositional defiant disorder, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, and pervasive developmental disorder are examples of child psychopathology...
for US terminology
External links
- WikiCAMHS - Online CAMHS Encyclopaedia
- Resources for CAMHS
- Child and Adolescent Mental Health – Information resource for young people, parents and professionals