Next BSMHD Members meeting, Bristol - 24 June 2010

The next BSMHD members meeting will be held in Bristol on Thursday 24th June 2010 at Easton Community Centre, Kilburn Street, Bristol, BS5 6AW from 11am to 3.30pm. The meeting will be an opportunity to meet fellow BSMHD members, staff from the local Health Services and Deaf Organisations. There will be a presentation by AWP about mental health services for deaf people in the Bristol area and an update on the national activities BSMHD is involved in including the European Mental Health and Deafness Congress in Cambridge in November, the Improving Access to Psychological Therapies for Deaf People National Development Project and the Diploma in Integrative Counselling taught in BSL.

 

Improving Access to Psychological Therapies for Deaf People

The IAPT for Deaf people National team have launched their website at www.deafiapt.org.uk . The website will develop to be a resource for professionals to provide them with support and information about improving access to psychological therapies for Deaf people.

 

European Congress on Mental Health and Deafness, Cambridge - November 2010

The Call for Papers has now closed and the submissions are being reviewed by the scientific committee. The first draft programme will be announced in early July. The venue for the Congress is Fitzwilliam College, Storey's Way, Cambridge CB3 0DG. www.fitz.cam.ac.uk . Full details at www.esmhdcongress2010.org

 

Healthy Deaf Minds meeting, Bristol - 30 June 2010

The next Healthy Deaf Minds meeting in Bristol will be held on 30 June 2010, 7pm- 9pm, at the Bristol Deaf Centre, 18-19 Kings Square, Bristol, BS2 8JL. The title of the meeting is: "Knowing Your Rights and Choices (Advocacy)". The presentation is in BSL with voice over, text screen and deaf relay. The Bar will be open and a free buffet provided.

 

Specialist National Service to support Deaf Children and their families launches in the North East

The National Deaf CAMH North East Outreach Service is based at Benton House in Newcastle upon Tyne and is part of the National Deaf CAMH Service, which was launched on the 10 October 2009, and provides a specialist mental health and treatment service for deaf children with a range of emotional and behavioural problems. The national service has four specialist centres at York, Dudley, London and Taunton, as well as six smaller outreach services across England, including Newcastle. The northern arm of the national service is run by North Yorkshire and York Community and Mental Health Services.

The arrangement will bring equality of access, with children referred if they fulfil the following criteria:

1. They have a mental health condition where referral to a specialist Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS) is appropriate (for example, a Children’s Global Assessment Scale Score of 50 or below) AND

2. If they have either:
• a severe or profound hearing loss, or
• BSL as their preferred/first language, or
• a significant language impairment related to moderate to profound hearing loss.

Where a hearing child has a parent who is a British Sign Language user, or has a severe or profound hearing loss, the service will also consider assessment. Some 90 per cent of deaf children are born into hearing families, and that can lead to communication problems. This lies at the root of many of the serious problems faced by some deaf children as they grow up. Other children have complex problems relating to birth injury, infection or genetic conditions. As well as direct referrals the new service will also support professionals working with families. For accepted referrals the service can offer the following:

• Assessment of a child’s emotional and developmental needs
• Therapeutic support that can be provided to individuals, families and groups
• Deaf awareness for individuals and groups
• Support and advice for the family
• Group work for young people and for parents
• Advice and consultation for teachers, care staff and other professionals working with deaf children.

The service delivery team includes psychologists, nurses, psychiatrists, deaf family support workers, social work practitioners and therapists, with both deaf and hearing professionals in the team. For more information contact: Rachael Hayes, Clinical Team Manager. Email: [email protected]

 

Occupational Therapy Peer Support Group Meeting

The first meeting of this group took place on Tuesday 16th March 2010 this year. This group is aimed at Occupational Therapists working in the field of Mental Health and Deafness across the UK. Meetings will be held 3 times a year and will be held in locations in both northern and southern areas to allow occupational therapists from various regions the opportunity to attend these meetings.

The next Occupational Therapy Peer Support Meeting will take place on: Wednesday 14th July 2010 1pm to 5pm at the John Denmark Unit, Bury New Road, Prestwich, Manchester, M25 3BL. The theme for our next meeting is “Assessments”. Please contact Fiona Hughes for further information: [email protected]

 

Mental Health and Deafness Training

Following a two-year pilot project supported by the North East Mental Health and Learning Disabilities Commissioning Unit, two ‘first of their kind’ modules are being offered by Northumbria University.

‘Supporting D/deaf People With Mental Health Issues’ and ‘Supporting D/deaf People With Complex Mental Health Needs’ cover a range of topics, aimed at working more effectively with D/deaf people with mental health problems. There are 16,500 D/deaf people in the North East requiring mental health care and currently too few practitioners with the expertise and experience to support them. Services have a duty to provide appropriate care and these modules are an excellent way of equipping staff with the required knowledge and skills. Background D/deaf People’s Mental Health: Training for Mainstream Mental Health Professionals, is a project run in collaboration between Northumbria University and the North East Mental Health and Learning Disabilities Commissioning Unit. Using Towards Equity and Access (TEA) funding, it has employed a process of structured consultation with local practitioners, and helped develop the two modules.

MH0603 – Supporting Deaf People with Mental Health Issues: Introduction to supporting D/deaf including people with mental health issues; Understanding D/deaf culture; Providing good service to D/deaf people in the community

MH0604 – Supporting Deaf People with Complex Mental Health Needs: Examining complex practice issues when working with D/deaf people; Focus on specific practice areas, including people within forensic (criminal) settings or with behavioural needs

For further information please contact: Mental Health and Deafness Project. Tel: Angela Ridley (0191) 215 6312 Email: [email protected]

 

Alcoholics Anonymous for Deaf/British Sign Language users

Deaf British Sign Language users meet every Friday 7.30pm - 8.30pm. This is a small group so that BSL users can have an AA meeting in their primary language. The meetings are held in room 3 at The Methodist Church, 19 Hinde Street, London W1U 2QJ. For further details contact: Bernard O'Donohue Text 07835351918 or email: [email protected]

 

Deaf CAMHS Training

Northumbria University and the North East Mental Health and Learning Disabilities Commissioning Unit are offering training and education opportunities in the field of Deaf CAMHS. This pilot project will be the first of its kind and will be ideal for any individual working (or interested in working) with Deaf children and families.

Suitable for practitioners from healthcare, social care, education and a range of other backgrounds; Ideal for D/deaf professionals; Free for all; Include 10 taught sessions (each lasting three hours) over a period of 10 months (from September 2010 to June 2011); Optional University accreditation; Speakers include leading names in the field; Full communication support available.

Places are limited, so for further information / application contact Philip Hodgson. Tel: 0191 215 6225, email: [email protected]. For further information on Northumbria University’s education opportunities in the field of Mental Health and D/deafness please contact Angela Ridley. Tel: 0191 2156312, email: [email protected] or visit http://www.mentalhealth-deafpeople.co.uk/media/The-Deaf-Word.pdf