My mother, who is 75 years old suffers with depression and anxiety and has panic attacks. The GP referred her to the wellbeing service. She did not attend because the option was to attend a group setting. For someone with severe anxiety going somewhere new is difficult for them. Also, it does not feel tailored enough- there are things that triggered my mum's depression specifically. She did not feel a group situation would help.
Reply from NHS N&W Talking Therapies
Thank you for your feedback and we are sorry to hear that your mum did not feel that she was offered support that was tailored to her needs. We have a number of options within the service and these can be accessed via workshops or on a one-to-one basis (face to face, via telephone or Skype and online). If an individual does not feel that a group is suitable, there should always be the option of accessing support on a one-to-one basis. If this was not the case for your mum, we would be very keen to discuss it to ensure that learning takes place.
Group seminar
1
Submitted by Anonymous4th July 2017
I went to a stress course, and it was beyond useless. The wellbeing staff stood at the front and talked the group through flight or fight responses - all basic stuff. The only things that were useful were the breathing techniques - everything else was basic biology.
Reply from NHS N&W Talking Therapies
We are sorry to hear that you did not find our stress control workshop helpful. The Wellbeing Service offers a range of psychological therapies. These can be one-to-one (face to face or by telephone), online and via workshops. We are keen to hear if people are accessing support in a medium that is not helpful to them and always encourage individuals to discuss any concerns that they have with the clinician/s providing the support. If you would like to discuss other options available within the service or outside of this, please do give us a call.
Dangerous, broken system
1
Submitted by Anonymous30th June 2017
After spending months to access this service and host of failings e.g. 5 emails ignored, two wrong cluster score assessments, wrong letters, failure to read GP referral, failure to take into account special needs... etc etc etc... I was removed from this service for the reason "time is up" after some basic condescending CBT they kicked me out with no where to go, I can't leave my house, I can't use a phone, I can't work. It's been 9 months trying to get help... I'm trying to access secondary mental health but they are impossible to get to, GP referred me to see a psychiatrist twice now (before and after wellbeing) but NHS sent me back to Wellbeing and then wellbeing sent me back to NHS and I trying to get proper help now... they just ignore me too. it's been 9 months journey and I'm tried and fed up asking for help, and meeting people who just take notes and never share them so I have to start fresh with each new person.
Reply from NHS N&W Talking Therapies
Thank you for your feedback and we were saddened to hear that your experience within the Wellbeing Service was a negative one. This is not something that we would want for anyone accessing our support. As feedback is anonymous, it is not possible for us to contact you directly to discuss this further but please feel free to contact the Service and discuss your concerns with one of our managers. We are keen to ensure that everyone receives the support that is appropriate.
8 weeks and still waiting
3
Submitted by Anonymous20th June 2017
I have panic attacks and I'm extremely worried that I'll have one at work so I want professional help. I contacted the Wellbeing service 8 weeks ago and I'm still waiting to see somebody. I've got help from self-help websites online but it's not the same as one on one. By the time I get to see somebody, I could be better.
Reply from NHS N&W Talking Therapies
Thank you for taking the time to give us your feedback and I am sorry to hear that you have been waiting this length of time. As a service, we strive to see people within 15 working days from the date that we receive a referral and so it is very unusual for someone to be waiting eight weeks with no offer of appointment. Please contact us on 0300 123 1503 or email us at admin@wellbeingnandw.co.uk and we can ensure that this is looked into as a priority.
Waited 5 weeks just for a response
2
Submitted by Anonymous20th June 2017
I had to wait 5 weeks just to get a response from the wellbeing service and all they said was that there wasn't any spaces at the moment. I went back to my GP for help and they decided to move me onto IAPT. I'm going to call them today, hopefully their response time is better.
Reply from NHS N&W Talking Therapies
Thank you for your feedback. The Wellbeing Service is an IAPT service and so it is good to hear that your GP has signposted you to us and that you are going to contact us with a view to arranging an appointment. We aim to offer everyone an appointment within 15 working days from the date that they are referred and so I would be concerned if your five week wait for a response was with our service. If this was the case, please do call us directly and ask to speak with the Service Manager who will be happy to look into this further.
More face-to-face opportunities
2
Submitted by Anonymous13th June 2017
I have not found the telephone service I received as effective as if I had seen someone face-to-face to talk things through with. Trust is hugely important when you are telling someone about your mental health issues and you need to build a relationship which is very difficult in the form of telephone conversations. Having received direct one-to-one help I also know that I am less likely to do my "homework" and keep a diary because it is less motivational when you are not physically checking in with someone. More resources are needed. I have received specialist help before from a psychiatrist- I think there is need for people who are not necessarily clinicians but can give on-going face-to-face sessions gradually increasing the appointment times between them to sort of wean you off support.
Reply from NHS N&W Talking Therapies
Thank you for taking the time to leave us feedback and we are sorry to hear that you did not find the telephone support you received as helpful as seeing someone face to face. The Wellbeing Service offers a range of psychological therapies in a variety of ways. This includes face to face, telephone, workshop and online. We would always encourage someone to seek the type of therapy that best meets the difficulties that they are presenting with and in the way that is going to be most helpful to them. If you did not feel that you were given this choice, we would very much welcome hearing from you to explore this further.
Need for holistic approach
3
Submitted by Anonymous13th June 2017
I suffer with a long-term illness and I am a regular visitor to the hospital. In order to cope with the fact that my condition is life-long and challenging on a daily basis has affected my mental health. I have not found the well-being service skilled enough to deal with depression caused by a serious disease - not that we should expect mental health workers to have encyclopaedic knowledge of medical aliments. I just think there needs to be either more training for mental health workers in order to understand situations such as mine. Perhaps some could specialise more and work closely with the hospital?
Reply from NHS N&W Talking Therapies
Thank you for taking the time to provide us with feedback and we are sorry to hear that you did not find the support that we currently offer to be of use for the specific condition that you are living with. There are continuous developments in the provision of mental health services and one of the areas that we are very keen to develop in is long term conditions and the support that we are able to provide. If you would like to be involved in the service developments around this, we would very much welcome you contacting us. Our Ambassador programme offers a number of opportunities for people to improve what the Wellbeing Service offers.
10 sessions is not enough
3
Submitted by Anonymous31st May 2017
You need something to cling onto. I was offered an appointment at my GP surgery every 6 weeks which was a boost - somewhere to check in, so the support just doesn’t suddenly stop. If I take a sudden dive, it’s nice to speak to someone face-to-face. It’s reassuring. I can’t afford to pay for a private counsellor.
Reply from NHS N&W Talking Therapies
Thank you for taking the time to give us feedback and we are pleased to hear that you found having someone to talk to reassuring. As our service can be accessed by self referral, please don't hesitate to get in contact with us via our website or on 0300 123 1503 if you require support at any time in the future.
Excellent service
5
Submitted by Anonymous16th May 2017
I was with the Wellbeing service for 6 months and it made all the difference in my life. 12 months on and I haven't had a psychotic episode.
Reply from NHS N&W Talking Therapies
Thank you so much for taking the time to give us this lovely feedback. It's always great to hear when we've made a positive difference. We hope that you continue on your journey and don't feel the need to access us again in the future but please do contact us if ever you feel you need to.
Got the one-to-one support wanted
5
Submitted by Anonymous16th May 2017
I went for general counselling initially and they provided me with one-to-one support that I asked for. During my session, they asked if I had received bereavement counselling. I said no, so they offered it to me. It was very good.
Reply from NHS N&W Talking Therapies
Thank you for taking the time to provide feedback. We are really pleased to hear that your experience with us was positive and hope that you have continued to benefit from the skills that you learnt. As our service is self referral, you are welcome to contact us again at any time in the future if you need further support.