People in mental health crisis are set to benefit from a number of new NHS mental health facilities opening across Kent and Medway.
A dedicated mental health emergency department (ED) will be created at Medway Maritime Hospital as part of a £343 million investment to redesign mental health services across England.
In order to create it, the existing mental health Safe Haven, located opposite the hospital’s main entrance, will be upgraded to a two-storey building to provide fast, same-day specialist support for people experiencing a crisis who are medically fit and do not need treatment in ED.
Siobhan Callan, Interim Chief Executive of Medway MHS Foundation Trust, which operates the hospital, said: “We welcome this significant investment in mental health services for Kent and Medway.
“We know that mental health is just as important as physical health. By providing an alternative to our busy emergency department where appropriate, we can improve the experience for patients and help ensure they are seen by the right professionals, in the right place, at the right time.
“We look forward to working closely with our mental health partners across Kent and Medway to bring this important service to patients.”
It is one of 59 new mental health EDs being created across England, and one of three in Kent. The others will be based at the William Harvey Hospital in Ashford and the Queen Elizabeth Queen Mary (QEQM) Hospital in Margate.
Working closely with ambulance and police services, the aim is to strengthen the wider urgent and emergency mental health care pathway, and provide a calm, therapeutic environment where people can be assessed quickly, in an environment that is appropriate to their clinical needs, and connected to the right ongoing care.
Dr Afifa Qazi, Chief Medical Officer for Kent and Medway Mental Health NHS Trust which will be running the mental health units at the William Harvey and QEQM hospitals, said: “We are delighted that Kent and Medway will benefit from three dedicated mental health emergency departments. This is great news for local people and a significant step forward for mental health crisis care.
“When someone is experiencing a mental health crisis, it is vital that they can access the right support quickly, in an environment designed to meet their needs. This investment will help more people receive compassionate, specialist care at the point they need it most, while ensuring people can access the right help in the right place and supporting more people to live well in their communities.”
Safe Havens, based across Kent and Medway, offer drop-in mental health support to anyone aged 18 and over. They are an important part of Kent and Medway’s crisis response as they provide welcoming and supportive environments for people experiencing emotional distress, offering immediate support, practical advice and help to access other services. The new investment will enable Safe Havens to work as part of a strengthened and more integrated urgent and emergency mental health pathway.
Improving access to specialist assessment and creating alternatives to an emergency-department environment also builds on Kent and Medway’s existing community and hospital-based mental health provision and reflects the wider commitment to ensuring people can access timely, compassionate and clinically appropriate mental health care, 24/7.
Kate Langford, Chief Medical Officer at NHS Kent and Medway, said: “We welcome this investment, which will allow us to strengthen the whole urgent and emergency mental health care pathway across Kent and Medway.
“Our priority is to ensure that people experiencing a mental health crisis can access specialist help quickly, in the right environment and according to their individual needs.”
