Community News: Mental Health Consultation to Start

A 12-week public consultation on proposals to redesign specialist mental health services for adults and older people experiencing severe or long term mental ill-health is to start on Tuesday (6 March).

The consultation relates to services available to a population of 480,000 people across Eastern Cheshire, South Cheshire and Vale Royal. Specialist mental health support is provided for approximately 7,000 adults and older people each year in these areas. 95 per cent of that care is provided in the community.

Dr Ian Hulme, GP with Meadowside Medical Centre in Congleton and clinical lead for mental health at NHS Eastern Cheshire CCG, said: “We are proposing a redesign of these services to significantly improve mental health support, with a focus on early prevention and more choice. 

"User and carer feedback, along with recent clinical audit recommendations and inspections, told us that some things in these services work well but that other things need to change for the better.

“One service user told us that they ‘deserve to thrive, not just survive’ and I, together with clinical colleagues across Eastern Cheshire, South Cheshire and Vale Royal, are united in our view that this proposed model of care will support people with specialist mental health
needs to do just that.”

Dr Teresa Strefford, clinical director for commissioning, NHS South Cheshire CCG and NHS Vale Royal CCG, said: “Most people can be supported very effectively in the community with the right range of services. 95 per cent of the 7,000 people we currently support with specialist mental health needs receive that care in the community and we want to improve it.

“The new model of care we are proposing would provide new services so that there is better access for people to help keep them well and active in the community. It would also provide much greater choice of services for those in, or at risk of, crisis, and support people with dementia and those who care for them to stay in their own surroundings.”

Dr Anushta Sivananthan, consultant psychiatrist with Cheshire and Wirral Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, added: “People have told us they want more personalised care, more support in the local community, and one point of contact for crisis care. They also want a choice of support in different places – for example, at home, in a drop-in centre or in a crisis bed and that they don’t want to be in hospital unless it’s absolutely necessary.

“We value the feedback we have already received and we now ask service users, carers and the general public to get involved with this public consultation and help us shape better services for the future.”

The consultation runs from 6 March 2018 to 29 May 2018 and no decision will be made until after the consultation findings have been fully considered. Any new service arrangements would be introduced gradually into 2019.

For more information, visit easterncheshireccg.nhs.uk where the online survey and details of the public events are published.

South Cheshire and Vale Royal Patients Urged to Keep Antibiotics Working

Infections becoming resistant to antibiotics - longer term, current treatments will no longer work
With the warning that some infections are becoming more resistant to antibiotic medicines, NHS South Cheshire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and NHS Vale Royal CCG want us to know when we should, and shouldn’t be taking them.

As the weather grows colder and winter closes in, many patients will be developing coughs, colds and flu, with some thinking they need antibiotics to treat their illness. However, in most cases they won’t be the best or appropriate way of treating symptoms.

This week (13th-19th November) is World Antibiotic Awareness Week with the theme of seeking advice from a qualified healthcare professional if you think you may need antibiotics.

Dr Fiona McGregor-Smith, GP and Prescribing Lead at the CCGs, said: “It is a common misconception that antibiotics are a cure-all, but the reality is, they just won’t work in the case of a cold or the flu. There are many different types of antibiotics and they work against bacterial infections, not viral infections, such as colds, coughs and flu.

“In recent years, the over-usage of antibiotics has actually led to the development and spread of
bacteria that are resistant to antibiotics. Where people contract infections caused by these antibiotic-resistant bacteria, they will take much longer to get better and in some cases could become seriously ill. Keeping antibiotics effective is everyone’s responsibility and we all need to take care to use them responsibly and keep antibiotics effective for our children and future generations.”
This is a global problem with the World Health Organisation saying that “taking antibiotics when they are not needed accelerates emergence of antibiotic resistance, one of the biggest threats to global health.”

Overuse of antibiotics can cause bacteria to become resistant, meaning current treatments will no longer work. Not all infections can be treated with antibiotics; antibiotics don’t cure viruses like colds and flu.

Only take antibiotics prescribed to you, do not share them with family or friends
Antibiotics are not always the answer. Do not demand antibiotics if your health care professional says you don’t need them.

Always seek the advice of a qualified health care professional when taking antibiotics Dr McGregor-Smith added: “If you have been prescribed antibiotics it’s really important that you finish taking the full course, even if you feel better. If you stop taking an antibiotic part way through a course, the bacteria can become resistant to the antibiotic.”

Your local pharmacist can help advise on the best way to manage minor illnesses including the common cold and flu. Pharmacists provide advice, support, treatment and can signpost patients to the most appropriate healthcare provider if necessary.

Further information about staying well this winter is available at www.nhs.uk/staywell.