kerrie Report post Posted October 25, 2011 (edited) hi, ive posted on here a couple of times for some advise, and the responce as been great. it really helps. i went to see the school nurse and yesterday i had a phonecall asking if it would be ok to refer him to CAMHS, i said yes and she said she would be in touch and there is a waiting list, which i understand completely. i was just wondering if anybody could tell me abit about them, what is it?, what do they do?, etc... Edited October 25, 2011 by kerrie Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mandapanda Report post Posted October 25, 2011 Hi kerrie CAMHS = Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service. This is a link to an explanation of the tiers they should be working to: http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20100202100434/dcsf.gov.uk/everychildmatters/healthandwellbeing/mentalhealthissues/camhs/fourtierstrategicframework/fourtierstrategicframework/ Being armed with a knowledge of what they should be doing, but going in with an open and friendly attitude is what I would suggest. Hopefully you will find them understanding and supportive and they will provide whatever help and support you need as a family. CAMHS services are sadly only as good as the people working in them. Our local one has been no use at all to many people, and apparently the Consultant Psychiatrist there is being sued by 4 families for allegedly misdiagnosing their children who are all in severe need of help. Many of the staff have changed in the past couple of years so we are going to try again for our youngest son. Good luck. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kathryn Report post Posted October 25, 2011 (edited) CAMHS services are sadly only as good as the people working in them. Agree with this. If you asked thirty parents on this forum about Camhs you would probably get thirty different answers! It's a long time since we were involved with Camhs, but initially when my daughter was referred we had appointments with a child psychiatrist and psychotherapist, and then severl sessions of counselling were set up with the psychotherapist. They were supportive in an ineffectual way as their experiemce of children with ASD and severe depression was limited. However we were later referred to the Camhs outreach team which included a psychiatrist specialising in ASD, and an occupational therapist who visited our house, and they were able to offer the level of support we needed as they just understood the situation better. I think it's better to be involved with Camhs than not. They are there to support you as well as your child and can be very useful allies when you are trying to get further help in school. As well as the professionals mentioned above, the team should include clinical psychologists and other specialists as well. You should be able to get further information about what your local Camhs can offer, through your GP or online. Sevices vary: I don't think all areas have such an excellent outreach service as we were referred to and I think even this one has suffered from funding cuts. K x Edited October 25, 2011 by Kathryn Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kerrie Report post Posted October 25, 2011 thankyou, i will take a look online. these will be the first time ive ever seen anybody about any of this so i guess only time will tell. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
