Agenda item

To follow

The Chair invited to the table:

• Ellie Chesterman, Interim Head of Commissioning, Mental Health and Dementia, LBB
• Barry Day, Managing Director, Barnet Division/Deputy Chief Operating Officer, Barnet, Enfield and Haringey Mental Health Trust (BEH MHT).

Dr Djuretic reported that the presentation by mental health users at the last HOSC meeting had been fed back to colleagues and that Barry Day, Managing Director, BEH MHT is at the meeting to respond.

Mr Day commented that the Trust has a lot of work to do, and this had increased since the pandemic. The Trust has introduced Dialogue Plus, a different way of care planning and communicating with service users and part of a large national community mental  health transformation programme. This involved working to change language, for example to ‘how can I help you?’ rather than ‘what is wrong with you?’. 

Mr Day reported that access to services is key, particularly for patients in crisis. He reported that during September 2022, 91-97% of assessments were undertaken within the right time. The Psychiatric Liaison Service has targets to see people and assess them within an hour and achieved this at Barnet General Hospital for 97% of patients during the same time period. The Crisis Home Treatment Team has a target to assess a patient within four hours and achieved this 100% of the time in Barnet since September 2022.

Mr Day reported that additional mental health workers are being employed in primary care. The Trust is also working on its organisational culture, and feedback is important.

Ms Chesterman noted that the feedback from residents at the previous HOSC meeting was appreciated.  A Crisis Pathway Group has been set up to look at challenges patients have accessing services, with colleagues from the Mental Health Trust, Integrated Care Board, Primary Care and voluntary care. A Crisis Café provider is also involved; Mind Crisis Café is commissioned by the Trust as an alternative to secondary care, to provide on-the-day assessment of mental health needs. Also a Wellbeing Programme, package of counselling, access to group sessions, including peer-led sessions, is being developed.

Ms Chesterman added that the Trust works with service users and the Mental Health and Carer Forum to ensure that residents are involved in tenders when commissioning services, to help to shape how services are designed and delivered.

Ms Chesterman added that a Mental Health Charter for Barnet is being developed, with residents’ involvement. This is relevant not only for Trusts but also businesses and organisations across the Borough. She added that it is recognised that there are inequalities around access to service. Recently NCL ICB Inequalities Fund invested in Arts Against Knives which is helping colleagues to engage with young black men, who are over-represented in mental health inpatient services. Some creative ways, involving music for example, are being found to improve engagement with this group.

Mr Day reported that Barnet has twice as much voluntary sector engagement around mental health services than the other NCL Boroughs. Work is ongoing to create a proactive community and to connect with the services the voluntary sector can offer, including befriending, engagement with social prescribers, and alerting residents to the services available. Mr Day reported that he would be keen to return to the HOSC in 6-12 months’ time to present on the Community Transformation Programme and to receive feedback on this.

The Chair enquired whether outcomes had yet been analysed. Mr Day responded that services users had already fed back on the impact the changes have had on their lives, but there is more work to do. Mr Day would be invited back to present to the HOSC.

Action: Governance Officer

Cllr Stock asked how the environment in A&E could be changed to better support the experience of patients in crisis and how they could be made aware of where to go when in crisis. Mr Day responded that he would speak to commissioners about this. Ms Chesterman reported that there are hospitals that have different systems eg a Mental Health Assessment Unit which the Trust can learn from.

The Chair noted that she would be keen to speak to Mr Day and Ms Chesterman  as part of her role on the North Finchley Partnership Board where its work on regeneration includes considering physical and mental health. For example the Partnership Boards considers planning applications and how these will work for the community. 

Cllr Cornelius noted that the residents who spoke at the last meeting about access to mental health services provided a different picture to the one presented by the Trust.  Mr Day responded that the data he presented is very recent data in relation to the Crisis Team.

Dr Djuretic suggested that the Barnet Health Champions could help to disseminate information across the Borough.

Cllr Cornelius requested that some of the group who spoke on their personal experiences of mental health services at the last meeting, come back when Mr Day next attends, to provide their more recent feedback on whether they have found services to have improved. This was agreed.

Action: Governance Officer

Cllr Cornelius enquired how many lay people are part of the Trust’s groups. Mr Day responded that this varies on the group, but there are insufficient service users in every area at the moment. The Trust is employing two Service User Engagement Workers and is also working closely with the BCC.

Cllr Cornelius asked where the LB Camden and the LB Islington have separate Mental Health Trusts. Mr Day responded that they are separate but all work in partnership with a Joint CEO, leadership team and Chair.

The Chair thanked Mr Day and Ms Chesterman for their helpful presentation.

RESOLVED that the verbal update was noted.