Here at Everyturn, our people are at the heart of everything we do. Growing, developing, and investing in our people is incredibly important to us, so we’re excited to share that we’ve recently appointed six national champions for our NHS Talking Therapies services!
Our national champions will help us to make sure we’re delivering our best in each of our specialism areas, these include:
- Ethnically & culturally diverse communities
- Older adults
- LGBTQIA+ communities
- Perinatal care
- Digital innovation
- Neurodiversity
- Veterans
- Long-term health conditions
With the guidance and support of our national champions, our colleagues at Everyturn can stay up to date on NHS Talking Therapies good practice guidance, developments, and recommendations.
This is also a great professional development opportunity for our national champions, as they will be given:
- A day per month to attend meetings, conferences, and training
- Funding for relevant learning for the role
- Support from Mona Stylianou, our Principal Clinical Lead
Let’s hear from Mona, Principal Clinical Lead here at Everyturn:
“I’m really pleased to introduce our national talking therapy specialism champions! By supporting our people to stay at the forefront of recommendations, guidance and best practice, we can make sure that the care we deliver brings about the best outcomes for the people we support.”
“Alongside this, it’s also a great development opportunity for our national champions. They’ll have opportunities to attend training and relevant learning, as well as training and supporting other colleagues in our talking therapy services.”
Let’s meet our national champions!
Lucy Henderson – LGBTQIA+ Champion
“I’m Lucy Henderson (she/they) and I work as a patient coordinator on the Kent and Medway Talking Therapies team. I am the National LGBTQIA+ Champion and work closely with the LGBTQIA+ Network Senior Committee.
Recently, I have been working with the committee to expand the network and raise awareness for various identities within the LGBTQIA+ community.
“This year, I am hoping to explore training and CPD surrounding LGBTQIA+ clients and issues for services to use in their work. I am also hoping to do some collaborations with other networks and champions to explore intersectionality and would like to continue with raising awareness for various identities in the community.”
Jamille Palmer – Ethnically & Culturally Diverse Communities Champion
“My name is Jamille, I am passionate about equality, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) in mental health services.
Minoritised individuals are more likely to be exposed to minority stressors that can worsen mental health. Despite this, we are less likely to reach out for help and support is often not specialized for our needs.
“In this current champion role I have been collating research to support proposed changes for 2024. I am eager to work on ways of improving access to service for ethnic minorities and sharing resources to support practitioners working with people from minoritized backgrounds.”
I have been focusing on supporting LGBTQ groups and will be dedicating more time towards ethnic and cultural minorities in 2024.“
Kate Williams – Perinatal National Champion
“I have been the Perinatal Lead for NHS Wirral Talking Therapies for 5 years and we are so lucky to have a busy and active perinatal community across the North West. With the support of perinatal champions at step 2 and 3 and also our community team, we are really proud of our multidisciplinary working and constant consideration of ways to improve our reach to perinatal clients.
One example of this was the setting up of an assessment clinic within the local Antenatal Department that midwives can book straight into. This resulted in the midwifery team reporting reduced barriers to referrals and better accessibility of our service for pregnant people.
“This year I hope to find out more about the perinatal pathways, services and networks across our other Talking Therapies services and to share and learn from each other.”
Also to complete an audit for this client group to look at their outcomes, our adherence to NHS Talking Therapies Positive Practice Guidance and consider any clinical recommendations.”
Natasha Hickmott – Neurodiversity National Champion
“I am a late diagnosed ADHDer and CBT therapist working In Kent and Medway. I am extremely passionate about neurodiversity affirming, evidence based, therapy that works with neurodivergent brains and supports clients to live their best lives
I am currently chair of the BABCP’s neurodiversity special interest group, have had an article on working with ADHDers published in the May 2022 edition of BABCP’s CBT Today and participate in neurodiversity BABCP conference events, with plans for multiple panel events and deliver skills classes proposed for this year. I lecture on neurodiversity to HIT trainees at the University of Surrey and deliver neurodiversity orientated training to clinical staff across a range of settings. I also provide consultancy and training to employers in effective and appropriate ways to support their neurodivergent staff. I have attended a number of trainings on Autism, ADHD and dyslexia.”
“I am really looking forward to connecting with colleagues across the organisation and supporting them to feel confident in working with neurodivergents, in a neurodiversity affirming way.”
Katie Clements – Veterans National Champion
“My name is Katie and I am a Senior PWP working for the Peterborough team.
I chose to be a veteran champion as this is something that I am very passionate about. As well as many others, within my immediate family, we have experienced firsthand the challenges veterans can face when returning home from the front lines, the very difficult adjustment that is often required with this, and the huge impact this has on an individuals mental health.
“My plan for 2024 is to link with charities in the local area and nationally, to ensure there is awareness of the great work that Everyturn offers and in particular for those individuals that may not know where to go or how to access support.”
Alysia Hutchinson – Older Adults National Champion
“I’m passionate about my role because I want to reduce the stigma around older adults seeking support; they may perceive poor mental health as an inevitable part of ageing, they may fear being a burden, and there tends to be increased concern about being judged or stigmatised.
As we all inevitably get older, mental health isn’t impacted just by physical and social issues, it is also impacted by cumulative earlier life experiences and concerns relating to ageing.
“This role has led me to complete training in long-term conditions, to better adapt around these concerns and allow people to live the best life they can. I am enthusiastic about supporting other practitioners in how we can adapt our therapies to meet the various needs of older adults and ultimately improve the accessibility of our service.”
A huge thank you to our National Champions for chatting to us!