AIDSImpact.com:: - Santa Fe, USA 2011

Abstract #174 - Workshop: Standards for psychological support for adults living with HIV in the UK
Authors: Presenting Author: Dr Stuart Gibson - South London & Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust
Additional Authors: Ms. Sarah Zetler, Ms. Liz Shaw, Ms. Ruth Lowbury, Dr. Audrey Matthews,
Aim: The need to address the psychological well-being of adults living with HIV in the UK has received increased attention alongside the medical management of HIV infection. In 2010 the National Aids Trust (NAT) brought several key service providers and service users together to discuss a variety of service delivery issues relating to the provision of psychological support in HIV. This meeting served as a motivator for examining how psychological support services in the UK are organised and delivered. It was soon discovered that there are considerable geographic variations in how psychological support services are delivered across the country. In response to these variations, the Faculty for HIV & Sexual Health of the British Psychological Society (BPS) initiated a project in collaboration with the Medical Foundation for AIDS & Sexual Health (MedFASH) to develop Standards of Psychological Support for adults living with HIV in the UK.
Method / Issue: The purpose of the Standards is to ensure that the provision of psychological support becomes an essential element of good clinical practice, from the point of diagnosis. In this context, psychological support is defined as any form of intervention which is aimed at helping people living with HIV to enhance their mental health and their emotional and cognitive well being. It is not only provided by psychologists but by a variety of professional groups such as counsellors, health trainers, nurses and psychiatrists who work in a variety of settings. One of the strengths of the Standards is the way they can be applied to multiple providers irrespective of who commissions the services or where the services are delivered.
Results / Comments: This workshop will outline the process of developing the Standards. Each Standard will be described in detail with a discussion of how to monitor its implementation and ways to identify and overcome barriers to its delivery. The over-arching stepped care model will be described in some detail and participants will be encouraged to think about how the services they deliver (or are familiar with) map onto this model and how it could help them in developing or improving local care pathways. The second part of the workshop will focus on the importance of screening for psychological problems and ways of using the stepped care model to identify existing gaps in service delivery. The purpose of these small group discussions will be to help participants identify how to move towards addressing these gaps on both a local and national level. Participants will also be provided with a comprehensive list of references relevant to the area of setting standards in mental health. The references will be UK focused, but are relevant to other settings.
Discussion: It is hoped that this workshop will generate the beginnings of an international network for developing standards in psychological support irrespective of service settings.
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