A specialist unit for young people experiencing complex mental health difficulties will always find space for an emergency, a meeting heard.
A joint meeting of Bedford Borough Council’s Children’s Services Overview and Scrutiny Committee, and the Health Overview and Scrutiny Committee heard on Wednesday (17 July) that Evergreen is an adolescent mental health unit.
It provides specialist, short-term care for young people aged 12-17 who are experiencing complex mental health difficulties which cannot be managed safely in the community.
The eight-bed unit is based in Luton with a multidisciplinary team, which is made up of support workers, nursing, teachers, art therapist, psychology, family therapy, occupational therapy, and psychiatry.
Cllr James Valentine (Labour, Kempston West) asked: “How do you deal with emergencies and emergency admissions?
“Or related to that, how do you deal with with young people who are suicide risks, who are threatening to commit suicide, or are doing it repeatedly?”
Valentine Dube, mental health nurse and the service manager for Evergreen, said: “We work with our CAMHS [ Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service] crisis teams in the community.
“They would have an idea on the caseload of which children require services. So, if a child was to be in a crisis, for example, they’d either go through our emergency department in Luton and Dunstable Hospital or in Bedford Hospital.
“CAMHS liaison colleagues would be alerted to any young person who requires urgent care.
“The police, if they come into contact with a child who requires emergency [care]… we would be alerted by them if a child were to be picked up in the street and end up under police care,” he said.
Read: Mental health service for Bedford children waiting times causing stress
Mr Dube added that there are regular meetings with the crisis team to review any children that “come on their radar”.
“We rarely take in admissions out of hours,” he added. “But if need be there’s that provision as well. Even if we’re full there’ll always be a bed somewhere for a child who requires tier 4 [acute service as an emergency] admission.
“We haven’t come to that yet. But, there’s always provision for emergencies.”
When life is difficult, Samaritans are here – day or night, 365 days a year.
You can call them for free on 116 123, email them at jo@samaritans.org, or visit www.samaritans.org to find your nearest branch.
By John Guinn
Local Democracy Reporter
