What happens in an NHS mental health assessment?
What is a mental health assessment?
A mental health assessment is a conversation between you and mental health professionals to help decide what kind of support you need.
You'll need to have a mental health assessment when you go to any mental health service for help.
A mental health assessment is not a test or an exam. It is about helping you. You only have to talk about what you want to talk about. The more open and honest you are, the easier it will be to get you the right help.
What happens during a mental health assessment?
When you have a mental health assessment, you might talk to a nurse, social worker, psychologist, specialist pharmacist, psychiatrist, or a combination of these and other healthcare professionals.
Bringing someone to support you
You may be able to bring a friend or relative to support you.
Some people prefer to bring an advocate who can represent their views and interests. They can be volunteers, like mental health charity workers, or professionals, like lawyers.
What you'll talk about in your assessment
During the assessment, you and healthcare professionals will talk about your needs.
The conversation might cover:
- mental health symptoms and experiences
- feelings, thoughts and actions
- physical health and wellbeing
- housing and financial circumstances
- employment and training needs
- social and family relationships
- culture and ethnic background
- gender and sexuality
- use of drugs or alcohol
- past experiences, especially of similar problems
- your safety and other people's
- whether anyone depends on you, such as a child or elderly relative
- strengths and skills, and what helps you best
- hopes and aspirations for the future
You only have to talk about what you want to talk about but the more you're able to share, the easier it will be to find out what will work best for you.
What you can do before and during the assessment
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think about who you could take with you for support and arrange for them to come along
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make some notes about what you want to discuss before your appointment
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tick each point off during the appointment, when they've been covered
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ask as many questions as you need to about anything that is not clear
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make sure the health professional explains things to you as many times as it takes for you to really understand it
Your rights under the Mental Health Act
There are a few situations where decisions might be made about a person's care without their agreement, through the Mental Health Act. This is sometimes known as being sectioned.
This is done to protect people who may not be able to make decisions about their care because of the effects of a mental illness.
