Core mental health standards

11. Glossary

Accessible Information: Information which is accessible should be available in easy read formats, different language and adjusted to meet different communication needs, such as audio format.

Adult: A person who is over the age of 18.

Adult Secondary Mental Health Services: Secondary mental health services are usually made up of community mental health teams (cmhts) and adult in-patient mental health wards. Secondary mental health care services are there to meet the needs of individuals who have longer-term or complex psychological or mental health conditions (e.g. complex trauma, or psychotic illness) that cannot be met by their GP or other primary care services. These services are for those who are over 18 who do not meet the criteria for CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services) or Older People’s Mental Health Services. This does not include forensic mental health services and specialist addiction services.

Assessed Needs: Services should have easily understood processes in place for assessing individuals’ needs. This assessment should take a holistic approach which includes the whole person and considers their physical, social, communication and psychological and neuordivergent needs.

Carer: Someone of any age who looks after or supports a family member, partner, friend, or neighbour in need of help because they are ill, frail, have a disability or are vulnerable in some way. A carer does not have to live with the person being cared for and can be unpaid.

Community Services: This is care and support which can be accessed without the need to be admitted to an inpatient hospital ward.

Evidence-Informed: This means clinicians will make a conscientious effort to base decisions on research that is most likely to be free from bias, and using interventions most likely to improve how long or well patients live.

In-Patient Care: Mental health care and support which is delivered in a hospital ward.

Integrated Joint Boards and Health Boards: These organisations are responsible for the planning and delivery of a range of health services, including adult secondary mental health services.

Member-Led Organisation: These are organisations that are run by people who use support services, including people with experience of using mental health services, and their families and carers. They were set up to promote giving people more choice and control over how their support needs are met. Typically, they might provide information, advice, advocacy and peer support.

Moving Between Services: This is sometimes referred to as transitions between services.

Moving Out of Services: This is sometimes referred to as discharge from services.

Safety: In this document we mean the safety of people using services, their support networks and wider community as well as those who work with them when they are accessing services.

Services: In this document services means mental health and psychological services. Health Boards, Health and Social Care Partnerships and Integrated Joint Boards are responsible for the delivery of these services.

Support Network: This includes carers, family, kinship network and/or friends.

The Help I Need: This includes care, support and treatment which is based on the evidence of what is most likely to help each individual.

Trauma-Informed Practice: Being ‘trauma-informed’ means being able to recognise when someone may be affected by trauma, collaboratively adjusting ways of working to take this into account and responding in a way that supports recovery, does no harm, and recognises and supports people’s resilience. (For further information go to: www.transformingpsychologicaltrauma.scot)