Personalised Care Planning

In the UK around 3% of people live with a severe mental health condition, such as bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, severe depression, or an eating disorder. Many people face huge challenges because of their conditions, and often find themselves repeatedly hospitalised. An excellent quality, holistic care plan that is tailored to each person is hugely important for ensuring that they can live well in the community.

That is why the PRSB has worked with professionals and people who use services to update its care planning standard and support improved community mental health care. Commissioned by NHS England and Improvement and published in June 2021, the care plan standard underpins the NHS delivery of more accessible and high-quality care for adults including improving access to psychological therapies, physical healthcare, employment support, and personalised and trauma-informed care. The standard ensures that the right information about a person and their needs is available in a tailored care plan that can be shared digitally with health and care professionals and individuals themselves wherever and whenever care is needed. It also includes an About Me section, which details all the personal information that a person wants their care providers to know, including vital things they need from home when in hospital and the best ways someone can communicate with them during a crisis.

The PRSB is now working with early implementers, including North East London NHS Foundation Trust and South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw Integrated Care System, to develop a toolkit to support adoption of the standard. This will include online training modules, videos, readiness audits and FAQs so that all organisations are able to implement the standard and help those who will benefit most from fully integrated care plans.