South Tyneside Psychiatric Liaison Service – personalised patient information

The information contained in this booklet is important – please keep it safe.

The Psychiatric Liaison Team provides assessment of mental health, and treatment of any mental health problems, to people attending a general hospital.

Although we are employed by the mental health trust and not the general hospital, we work very closely with the general hospital team.

We aim to offer assessment within one hour of referrals from the emergency department, and 24 hours for ward referrals.

We are mental health professionals:

• specialist medical doctors (called ‘psychiatrists’)
• registered mental health nurses
• clinical psychologists
• other specialist mental health professionals, and
• administrative staff.

We are a 24 hour service based at South Tyneside District Hospital. We have been asked to see you by your general hospital team, who remain the team responsible for your overall care.

• Take part in your assessment, so that we can agree with you what needs you may have and how we might help them be met.
• Give permission to us to speak to others (for example, your family).
• Give permission for us to share information with others concerned with your care.

People who know you well, such as your family, can always speak to us. We will listen to them but will not normally share any information with them about you without your consent.

If you require an interpreter, please let your referrer know so that one can be arranged for you.

When you are seen we will always try to do the utmost possible to respect your privacy and dignity:

• You can be seen in a private area, if one is available.
• You can choose whether or not a relative, friend or advocate accompanies you.
• We will encourage you to be involved in decisions about any treatment offered.

We will usually only see you if you have given your explicit consent. Similarly, you are free to opt out of seeing us at any time.

Anything you say is treated in strictest confidence and will only be shared with other members of the team and with other people involved in your health care, such as your GP.

Members of the team work within professional Codes of Conduct and follow NHS Policies that ensure confidentiality is maintained at all times.

The only exception to this would be if the Team believed that there was a significant risk you would seriously harm yourself or others, or information was obtained about possible harm to vulnerable people such as children.

If you have any concerns at all about confidentiality please speak to any member of the team.

• A telephone review with 72hours of your assessment
• Information and a choice of possible interventions by agencies that will be able to support any plan agreed with you.
• Community follow up within the teams Delirium Liaison Pathway (DLP)

• The plan is written in this leaflet; this may be called a care plan when it is in your medical notes.
• Relevant information you gave to the psychiatric liaison staff will be given to the hospital team looking after you.
• You have the right to receive copies of any letters written to your GP.

A statutory carers assessment is available via South Tyneside Council for anyone with caring responsibilities. Please let the team know if this is something you would like to know more about and we can provide you with the necessary contact details.

Our postal address is:

South Tyneside Psychiatric Liaison Team
Ward 18 Annexe
South Tyneside District Hospital
Harton Lane
South Shields
NE34 0PL

Our telephone number is:

0191 404 1000 (extension 4112)

We use the stress bucket to explain how everyday stress can build up and up and feels too much sometimes. We try and cope the best ways that we know how.

We know that some people have more to manage in life and their buckets can often feel very full.

Different stressors drop into the bucket like water and fills it up. For example:

• money problems
• physical health worries
• poor sleep
• difficult life experiences
• housing problems
• loss of support or people we love
• stress at work or stress due to having no job

When the bucket gets too full it overflows

We try to cope the best way we know how. Sometimes these strategies can work in the short term but longer term may cause problems and be harmful.

Less helpful or harmful coping:

• Alcohol or drugs
• Self harm
• Avoiding things or people
• Putting others needs first
• Shouting or aggression

We can find ways to cope in more helpful ways.

Some coping that may be more helpful:

• Speaking to friends and family
• Moving my body, walking
• Asking for help
• Reading
• Doing things I enjoy

1. 1. What stress has been coming into my bucket in the last few days?
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1. 1. What is already in my bucket that feels stressful?
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1. 1. What are my less helpful or harmful ways of coping?
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1. What ways might help me cope better with my stress?
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• Contributors to safety plan:
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• Triggers/warning signs of a crisis
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• Individual coping strategies
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• Connecting with friends and family
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• Social prescribing options/peer networks
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• Professional/emergency supports
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• Reducing access to means/ making your environment safer
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• PLT Discharge Plan
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• Age Concern – 0191 456 6903
• Alzheimer’s Society – 0333 150 3456
• The Silver Line (older persons helpline) – 0800 470 8090
• Admiral Nurses (Dementia specialist nurses) – 0800 888 6678
• Papyrus (Prevention of young suicide) – 0800 068 4141 or TEXT 07860 039 967
• Samaritans – 116 123
• Shout! (crisis text service) – TEXT 85258
• CALM (Campaign Against Living Miserably) – 5pm to 12pm – 0800 58 58 58 (for men only). Also provide live chat on website.
• Andy’s Man Club (mens support group Mondays 7pm)  – [email protected]
• Beat eating disorders helpline – Mon to Fri, 3pm to 8pm – 0808 801 0677
• LGBTQ Support line – 0300 330 0630
• South Tyneside Adult Recovery Service (STAR/drug and alcohol support) – 0191 917 1160
• IMPACT (Domestic violence) – 07375 788 835
• Someone Cares (Survivors of abuse counselling) – 0191 257 8094
• Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) – 0800 587 6513
• Talking Therapies (Lifecycle) – 0191 283 2937
• WHIST (Women’s Help in South Tyneside) – 0191 454 6959
• National Debt line – 0808 808 4000
• Billy’s Lifeline (postvention support) – 0191 716 9555
• Initial Response Service/Crisis Team (all ages crisis team) – 0800 652 2867
• Together in a Crisis (crisis support) – 0300 131 0333
• First Contact Clinical (social prescribing) – 0191 432 9838
• Connected Caring – 0800 304 7724

• Calm Harm – free app – age 12+
  App that helps to resist or manage the urge to self-harm. You can choose a range of activities to help manage the urge to self-harm.
• Feeling Good – offers in app purchases – age 12+
  Adapted from mind coaching used in Olympic sports to develop and guide your vision of a better future.
• Thrive – free app – age 12+
  Build resilience to stress, anxiety and depression.
• Stay Alive – free app – all ages
  This app is full of useful information to help you stay safe. You can use it if you are having thoughts of suicide or if you are concerned about someone else.
• Virtual Hope Box – free app – all ages
  Simple tools for helping with coping, relaxation, distraction and positive thinking.
• Smiling Minds – free app – all ages
  Free mindfulness and meditation app for guided meditation.
• SAM – self-help app for the mind – free app – age 12+
  Provides a range of self-help techniques organised into several main wellbeing themes.
• Worry Tree – offers in app purchases – all ages
  This app helps you to record manage and problem solve your worries and anxiety based on cognitive behaviour therapy techniques.
• Daylio – offers in app purchases – all ages
  Self care journal with goal mood and happiness tracker, enables you to keep a private diary without having to type a single line.
• Kooth – website only aimed at young people
  www.kooth.com – A confidential emotional wellbeing platform for young people.
• Family Lives – website only
  www.familylives.org.uk – Family Lives provides targeted early intervention and crisis support to families.
• Clear Fear – Free App – Ages 11-19
  Provides a range of ways to manage anxiety.
• Head Space – Free App – All ages
  Learn meditation skills to help reduce stress and improve sleep.

There is a range of patient and carer information on the Trust’s website:

Self Help Guides – www.cntw.nhs.uk/selfhelp
23 guides written by NHS clinical psychologists with contributions from service users and healthcare staff. Titles cover Depression and Low Mood, Stress, Controlling Anger, Panic, Sleeping Problems, Anxiety and many more.

Mental Health Act – www.cntw.nhs.uk/resource-library
A series of Mental Health Act information leaflets in 28 languages.

Resources Search – www.cntw.nhs.uk/resource-library
Search our resources library for self-help guides, patient information, mental health and wellbeing guidance and other literature that you may find useful.

Medication – www.choiceandmedication.org/cntw
A range of patient information leaflets which provide information about medicines, side-effects and how to manage them.

A Medicines Helpline for CNTW service users and carers is available on 0191 245 6604 or by email at [email protected] (available 9am to 5pm)

If you want to make a comment, suggestion, compliment or complaint you can:

• talk to the people directly involved in your care
• ask a member of staff for a feedback form, or complete a form on the Trust website
• telephone the Complaints Department on 0191 245 6672
• email [email protected]. Please note that information sent to the Trust via email is sent at your own risk

We are always looking at ways to improve services. Your feedback allows us to monitor the quality of our services and act upon issues that you bring to our attention. You can provide feedback in the following ways:

• the quickest way for you to do this is to complete our short online survey at www.cntw.nhs.uk/yourvoice
• complete a Your Voice survey, available on wards, reception areas or from staff
• other options for sharing your feedback and experience www.cntw.nhs.uk/yourfeedback

Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS)
PALS provide confidential advice and support, helping you to sort out any concerns that you may have about any aspect of your or your loved ones care.

We act independently when handling patient and family concerns, liaising with staff, managers and, where appropriate, relevant organisations, to negotiate prompt solutions. If necessary, we can also refer patients and families to specific local or national-based support agencies.

North of Tyne
Telephone: 0800 032 0202
Email: [email protected]

Post: FREEPOST PALS
South of Tyne
Telephone: 0800 328 4397
Text: 07825 061 035
Email: [email protected]

Post: Patient Advice and Liaison Service, Garden Lodge, Hopewood Park, Ryhope, Sunderland, SR2 0NB

9am – 4.30 pm, Monday to Friday

An answerphone is available at all times for you to leave a message. A member of the PALS team will aim to return your call as soon as possible.

Further information about the content, reference sources or production of this leaflet can be obtained from the Patient Information Centre. If you would like to tell us what you think about this leaflet please get in touch.

This information can be made available in a range of formats on request (Braille, audio, larger print, easy read, BSL or other languages). Please contact the Patient Information Centre by telephone on 0191 246 7288.

Published by the Patient Information Centre
2024 Copyright, Cumbria, Northumberland, Tyne and Wear NHS Foundation Trust

Ref: PIC/750/0824 August 2024 V11

Website www.cntw.nhs.uk
Telephone 0191 246 7288

Review date 2026