Community Mental Health Team (Adult)

The Community Mental Health Team (CMHT) currently performs two functions. The main function of the team is to support service users who require a multi-disciplinary approach under the Care Programme Approach.

The Team consists of:

• Registered mental health nurses
• Social workers
• Approved mental health professionals
• Advanced practitioner in social work
• Consultant psychiatrist
• Psychologists
• Support time and recovery workers
• Occupational therapists
• Healthcare assistants.

The Team also maintains a dedicated Registered Mental Health Nurse who supports those service users with long-term and stable mental health conditions that was previously provided by the former Recovery Team.

How to Access to Service

Service users most likely to benefit from on-going treatment, care and monitoring by the care co-ordination function can broadly be split into the following groups:

• Service users with mental health problems of mild to moderate severity where sustained attempts have been made, but have failed (i.e. an initial phase of care has been delivered without recognised improvement, and on-going specialist mental health care and treatment is required)
• Severe and persistent mental disorders associated with significant disability and/or mental health disorders leading to marked vulnerability and/or social inclusion in addition some service users may be difficult to engage
• Severe disorders of personality, i.e. which give rise to a history of severe social disability, risk of self-harm, self-neglect or a serious risk of danger to others where these can be shown to benefit by continued contact and support
• Service users in the above categories who have disorders requiring skilled or intensive treatments provided within secondary care e.g. Dialectical Behavioural Therapy (DBT)
• Service users requiring interventions under the Mental Health Act (1983).

Referrals into Service 

Transfer/referrals will be taken primarily from home treatment teams (HTT) and specialist triage assessment and referral teams (START). 

However they may also receive referrals from:

• Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust IAPT Services (via ATT)
• Inpatient services
• Prison services
• Secure services
• Criminal justice liaison teams
• Mental health liaison teams
• Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust Eating Disorder Service
• Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust Early Intervention Service
• Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service.