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Autism and Intellectual Disability Intensive Intervention Team (AID-IIT)

How our service can help you

AID-IIT is a Tier 4 national and specialist outpatient CAMHS team covering the London area. We are based at the Maudsley Hospital and work closely with the Service for Complex Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders (SCAAND)

Our aim is to reduce or prevent where possible inpatient CAMHS admissions for children and young people with Intellectual Disabilities (ID) and Autism, or to support young people already in inpatient care with a successful and timely transition back to the community.

  • Service Borough Covers: National (Child and Adolescent services) Treatment type: Outpatient

  • Contact the service

    Site Location: Maudsley Hospital Known As: SCAAND AID-IIT Email: AIDIIT@slam.nhs.uk Phone Number: 0784973 3789
  • Address: Michael Rutter Centre,
    De Crespigny Park,
    London,
    SE5 8AZ
  • Business Hours/Visiting Hours: Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm

    • Other essential information

  • Conditions: aspergers, complex mental health, neuro-disability, learning disability, AID-IIT, Autism, Autism Spectrum Disorders, Intellectual Disability, Learning Disability, Preventing CAMHS inpatient admissions, Supported discharge, Transforming Care, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, challenging behaviour, self-harm, self-injurious behaviour, mental health.

Referrals

We offer assessment, consultation, intervention, advice and support to services, families, and young people to try to best meet the needs of young people with intellectual disabilities, Autism and complex mental health needs including challenging behaviour in the community. AID-IIT it work collaboratively in addition to, not instead of, local CAMHS services and other local services supporting the young person.

Our team puts flexibility and multi-disciplinary perspectives at the core of our work. We offer multi-disciplinary assessment and consultation across London, which may include outreach work to the young person’s home, or in-reach work to an inpatient ward. Our service includes the following disciplines:

  • Clinical Psychologists
  • Child and adolescent Psychiatrists
  • Nursing
  • Occupational therapists
  • Speech and language therapist
  • Senior Educational Psychologist
  • Assistant Psychologists
  • Family therapy and social work
  • Administration support

 

If this was not what you were looking for:

The SCAAND services see young people who have, or might have, neurodevelopmental disorders like autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder or learning disability with additional mental health or behaviour problems, as well as young people with psychological problems associated with head injury, functional conditions or genetic conditions. Our teams work together and refer between services as necessary.

This page relates to the NHS England funded AID-IIT service to support young people with Intellectual Disability and Autism Spectrum Disorder from across London who are at risk of hospital admission. The AID-IIT service within SCAAND has close links with the specialist outpatient component of SCAAND, as well as a number of specialist Outpatient CAMHS services including the Mental Health of Intellectual Disabilities service.

Additionally, we have links with other teams within National and Specialist CAMHS, within SLaM more broadly, King’s Health Partners and the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience.

For young people who do not have a complex autism presentation, you may be looking for our specialist outpatient teams who see young people with a range of neurodevelopmental presentations:

Interventions

AID-IIT works jointly with teams in a child or young person's local area for a short but intensive period. We offer a range of activities depending on the needs of the child or young person, their family and the local network’s needs. This includes:

  • Complex multi-disciplinary assessment of the young person’s needs leading to formulation and recommendations for their support
  • Multi-disciplinary interventions and support to the young person and their family. This will be adapted in the context of their diagnosis of Autism or intellectual disability
  • Consultation, training and advice to other professionals
  • Attendance at Care, Education and Treatment Reviews (CETRs), Care Programme Approach (CPA), as well as other network and care planning meetings

Eligibility criteria

Referrals need to be made by an NHS CAMHS clinician who knows the young person. Young people can be referred if they meet all of the criteria below:

  • Children and young people under the age of 18
  • Have a diagnosis of a learning disability or Autism
  • Children and young people who are at a high risk of being admitted to a CAMHS inpatient unit
  • Children and young people who are currently residing within an inpatient unit, or have recently been discharged from an inpatient unit due to mental health difficulties or significant challenging behaviour.
  • Have a home address and local CAMHS within a London borough
  • Children and young people who are currently open to, and will remain open to, their local CAMHS service as long as:
    • The local CAMHS service are committed to joint working with AID-IIT
    • The child or young person should have an allocated care co-ordinator within the local service.

Exclusion:

  • Young people 18 years or older at the time of referral
  • Young people who are not at risk of inpatient admission
  • Young people who are not open to a local CAMHS or where local CAMHS are not actively involved

Outcomes

Our outcomes include:

  • Reduction in the number of inpatient admissions, or the length of stay in inpatient care for young people with a diagnosis of a learning disability or Autism.
  • Young people’s needs are met in the community, avoiding hospital admission where possible.
  • Increased confidence reported by the family or carers, and local professionals that they feel able to work together to meet the young person’s complex needs in the community.
  • Reduced rates of re-admission through improved discharge planning and community care plan implementation
  • Improved wellbeing and quality of life for young people with learning disabilities and Autism and their families or carers.

Care Options

AID-IIT is fully funded by NHS England; we do not accept ICB funded referrals.

Young people must have a sufficiently complex presentation, and meet the full criteria outlined in the eligbility tab in order to meet the threshold for the service.

If a child or young person meets the eligibility criteria. the service may be able to offer one, or a combination, of the care options below:

  • Indirect work only: consultation and advice to local professionals
  • Direct multi-disciplinary assessment of the young person’s needs and recommendations for effective community support.
  • Direct multi-disciplinary interventions to the young person, parents/carers and others supporting them.

AID-IIT will always offer a professional or consultation meeting with existing local and inpatient professionals involved as a first step before deciding whether direct assessment or intervention with a young person will be appropriate from AID-IIT.

Our experts

Dr Catherine Sholl, Consultant Clinical Psychologist and Team Lead - read more

Dr Josephine Church, Clinical Psychologist - read more

Dr Jessica Gash, Counselling Psychologist  - read more

Dr Dominic Wrein, Highly Specialist Clinical Psychologist - read more

Sarah Gilbert, Occupational Therapist - read more

Millie Pittam, Speech and Language Therapist - read more

Scott O’Hare, Clinical Nurse Specialist

Laura Wilby, Senior Educational Psychologist - read more

Rachel Isaku - read more

Eirini Skouta

 

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