Services

Bethlem Adolescent Unit is an open adolescent unit, offering mental health care for adolescents with serious mental illness who require hospital admission. We have developed a national and international reputation for innovation and have a comprehensive, all hours emergency admission service.

The majority of the young people we treat are emergency admissions, however planned admissions can also be arranged. Admissions are accepted 24-hours a day, 365 days a year, and can be accepted under the Mental Health Act.

Approximately half of the young people admitted to our unit have psychosis. Others have problems relating to their mood, often posing a risk to themselves. We are also able to admit young people with a variety of other psychiatric or neurodevelopmental disorders, or where there is diagnostic uncertainty.

As we are an open unit, we are unable to admit young people who pose a level of risk that is not consistent with being cared for in such an environment. This judgement is always based on individual risk assessment rather than applying absolute exclusion criteria, and is reviewed regularly. People requiring care in a more secure setting can be admitted to the unit if the risk has altered.

We provide a broad range of interventions, which are delivered by a team of psychiatrists, psychologists, nurses, teachers, occupational therapists, social workers and other therapists.

We maintain close links with the person's referring team to ensure they experience a smooth transition back to the community. Day treatment is often used as a step-down service and can sometimes be used to avoid admission altogether.

**Due to Covid some appointments and groups are being offered remotely**

Community Drug and alcohol advice and treatment service for adults living in the London Borough of Bexley.

Services include:

• Daily open access clinics.
• Booked triage sessions.
• Onsite recovery groups.
• Support for addiction to prescribed and over the counter medications.
• Alcohol specific interventions
• Substitute prescribing for opiate users.
• Families and carers service.
• Health interventions.
• Confidential Needle Exchange
• Close working with the criminal justice system
• ETE
• Mutual aid groups including NA, CA and SMART Peer support and specific training

Brook Ward is a medium secure forensic unit in River House at Bethlem Royal Hospital. We provide treatment and care for men, aged 18-65, who have mental health problems and a history of offending, who are close to recovery and moving towards their independence.

A medium secure service provides inpatient care and treatment in a secure unit for people with offending behaviour. We support people through the final, managed stages of recovery. Our aim is to improve people's mental health and support their move to greater independence.

Our team of health and social care professionals includes a psychologist, a social worker, an occupational therapist and nurses. We work with people and their families and carers to develop care plans to help prevent relapses, and to help identify early warning signs so they know how to get help in a crisis.

This is a specialist service, available to people from across the UK. GPs, consultants, health professionals, referrers, commissioners and members of the public can learn more about our forensic services on our National Forensic Services page.

Overview

The purpose of our service is to ensure that mentally disordered offenders are assessed and treated effectively, in the least restrictive environment. We aim to manage the risk, reduce further offending and support recovery throughout the person's stay.

Our service is designed to support people on a pathway to recovery through a series of carefully managed stages. Each of the ward areas are associated with a specific stage, so that those people who have responded well to treatment and are close to being discharged will be cared for in a different area than those who are acutely unwell, and at the beginning of their journey. Where our admissions and intensive care ward offers enhanced physical and procedural security, our pre-discharge unit offers a high level of independence with a lower level of security, increased access to community programmes, and community outreach services fostering the development of living skills, before moving to independent settings in the community. We also offer time limited inpatient stays and community assessments.

Our service complies with the national standards set out in the Department of Health Best Practice Guidance: Specification for Adult Medium Secure Services (July 2007).