Partnership work recognised in HSJ Awards
The three South London mental health trusts – South West London and St George’s, Oxleas, and South London and Maudsley – have been shortlisted for the prestigious HSJ Awards, recognising their collaborative efforts to improve specialist mental health services across South London.
The Trusts’ work on many varied SLP (South London Mental Health and Community Partnership) programmes has earned three finalist positions, highlighting the innovation, patient outcomes and value for highly specialist services delivered by working in partnership.
Vanessa Ford, Chief Executive of South West London and St George’s Mental Health NHS Trust and SLP Commissioning Hub CEO, said:
“This recognition is down to the commitment to collaboration we have established across south London. SLP programmes bring together our three Trusts, two integrated care boards (ICBs), 12 local authorities, other NHS and system partners, VCSE and housing providers - and most importantly people with lived experience. Together we have co-designed and launched new clinically-led, service-user informed pathways, services and models of care that have improved patients’ lives. “It’s shown the power of partnerships. Many south London patients with complex and specialist mental health conditions now enjoy a better quality of life in less restrictive environments, closer to home, with high quality care.”
SLP entries are shortlisted as follows:
- Innovation in Mental Health category: Complex Care programme
- Innovation in Mental Health category: Adult Eating Disorders (AED) Provider Collaborative's Community Enhanced Treatment Team
- Provider Collaboration of the Year: SLP as a whole
There were more than 1,350 entries into the 2024 HSJ Awards. Full shortlist details are here: https://awards.hsj.co.uk/
The recognition comes hot on the heels of the SLP’s pioneering Police Advice and Guidance Line being shortlisted in two categories of the HSJ Patient Safety Awards - the Seni Lewis Award and Best Use of Integrated Care and Partnership Working category.
You can read more about the SLP’s work and outcomes in its Five Year Impact Report here: https://www.slpmentalhealth.com/FiveYearImpactReport/
Further background to the shortlisted entries
During the past year alone, new SLP services and programmes include a 24-7 NHS 111 for Mental Health helpline; dedicated Police Advice and Guidance line for frontline police officers attending mental health crises; a Perinatal Provider Collaborative (PC); specialist Forensic, AED and Complex Care services; and a PC Service User Involvement strategy.
The new south London AED Community Enhanced Treatment Team has transformed patient care and outcomes by taking clinical care and treatment outside hospitals and into patients’ homes and communities.
The service has reduced hospital admissions, length of inpatient treatment time, enhanced people’s quality of life, and health results (BMI measures), and created a new model of care that has transformed patient experience.
The unique south London Complex Care programme involves multi-partner working including 11 Local Authorities, ICB commissioners, housing providers and specialist VCSE services - transforming the lives of hundreds of complex patients typically with severe, often psychosis, diagnosis and significant co-morbidities.
Patients now experience new rehabilitation and recovery based pathways, and more NHS care closer to home and their communities. Innovative new services launched through the programme for this cohort include the Co-Occurring Mental Health Alcohol and Drug Rehabilitation Team (COMHART); the 12-bed Integrated Community Rehabilitation Service (ICRS) to step-down inpatients to community living more quickly and reduce overall length of stay; Peer Support Workers; and Complex Emotional Needs teams.
