We have yet more brilliant news for our Together in a Crisis (TIAC) team — as well as being shortlisted for the Bright Ideas in Health Awards, the service has also been shortlisted at the 2018 Excellence in Health Creation Awards, hosted by the New NHS Alliance! It is wonderful that the service’s success is being recognised on a national level.
TIAC is a pioneering new service that that supports people who are in distress due to mental ill-health, but who don’t qualify for NHS crisis team support. No one should have to struggle on alone — we’re here to make sure they don’t.
The winners of the Bright Ideas in Health Awards will be announced at the ceremony on 21 November.
More about Together in a Crisis
In 2016, the Newcastle Gateshead ‘Deciding Together’ consultation highlighted the requirement to improve local urgent care to people with a mental health need; access to the local statutory NHS Crisis Team was limited by resources.
Whilst urgent clinical need was being met, the experience of people who were assessed as not requiring an urgent clinical intervention was less positive. This was a significant system gap where people in genuine crisis were not always getting the support they needed. TIAC is a solution to this.
Our TIAC team works in close collaboration with the Newcastle Crisis Resolution and Home Treatment Team and provides non-clinical, practical, and emotional support to people who are experiencing distress that feels like a crisis.
Outcomes are measured in a variety of ways, including WEMWBS. 83% of TIAC’s clients reported a significant improvement in mental wellbeing as measured by WEMWBS. Of these, 73% reported an increase above the ‘Minimal Important Difference’ (+8.0) points on WEMWBS. These changes are statistically and clinically significant with a high degree of confidence. The mean average increase in WEMWBS of TIAC clients is +13.24.