This page provides a brief overview of the mental health treatment available on the National Health Service, how to access it and where you can turn if you run into problems.

General Practitioners (GPs)

The usual route for accessing NHS treatment is through your GP. GPs can prescribe medication, give advice and provide emotional support, and they often treat milder mental health problems themselves. They can also refer you to more specialist services.

You have the right to register with any GP surgery in your area that is taking on new patients, and most GP surgeries will let you see any doctor you choose, so it’s worth shopping around for a GP you find helpful and supportive. Some GP surgeries also have counsellors or mental health workers attached.

The NHS have a useful page of frequently asked questions here: GP FAQs

Mental Health Services

Mental health services available on the NHS include:

• counselling and psychotherapy
• psychiatrists – medical doctors who specialise in treating mental health problems
• community mental health nurses (CPNs) – their role varies, but they may provide counselling, offer advice and support, or administer medication
• hospital inpatient units
• specialist services for particular mental health conditions

For most of these services, you need to be referred by your GP or another health professional. There may be a waiting list, especially for talking treatments and specialist services. You should have some say in the type of service you are referred to, but unfortunately you can’t usually choose the individual doctor or therapist you see.

How to Find Services

You can find out which NHS services are available in your area by looking on the appropriate NHS website. Although you need a referral for most services apart from GPs, it can be helpful to know what’s out there – it may make it easier for you to decide what sort of treatment you want, and you may feel more confident asking for services you know exist.

In England, GP surgeries and some mental health services are provided by primary care trusts (PCTs), while most mental health services are provided by mental health trusts. Your PCT can also help you if you’re having trouble finding a GP. You can find details of GP surgeries and your local PCT and mental health trust below:

GP Surgeries | Primary Care Trusts | Mental Health Trusts

In Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, services are provided by health boards. For details of services in your area, go to one of the following websites:

NHS Scotland | NHS Wales | HSC Northern Ireland

If a specialist service isn’t provided by your own trust, it may be possible to be referred to a neighbouring trust, but your PCT would have to agree to fund this. Some mental health trusts, such as the South London and Maudsley NHS Trust, also provide national services which accept referrals from anywhere in the UK.

Dealing with NHS Problems

If you’re having problems accessing the help you need on the NHS, or you feel the NHS is forcing treatment on you that you don’t want, there are a number of places you can turn.

In England, every NHS trust has its own Patient Advice and Liaison Service. PALS can help resolve any problems or concerns you have. They can also provide information on the NHS, how to make a complaint, health issues, support groups and so on. A similar service is provided by Community Health Councils in Wales and the Patient and Client Council in Northern Ireland. In Scotland, you can use the Independent Advice and Support Service available through your local Citizens Advice Bureau.

Another option is to get an advocate, an independent person who can speak up on your behalf, helping you to get your views across. More information about advocates and how to find one is available from Mind.

You have the right to ask for a second opinion if you disagree with the professional who is treating you. More information is available here: How do I get a second opinion?

Finally, making a formal complaint is also an option. More information about how to do this is available on the following pages:

• How do I make a complaint about an NHS service? (England)
• NHS Complaints (Scotland)
• NHS Complaints (Wales)
• HSC Complaints in Northern Ireland

For more information about your rights, particular as far as compulsory treatment in hospital (being sectioned) is concerned, see Mind’s Rights and Legislation guides.

Further Information

Community-Based Mental Health and Social Care
Mind’s guide to the help that’s available in the community (i.e. not as an inpatient) from the NHS and Social Services.

How to Cope with Hospital Admission
Information on NHS hospital inpatient treatment.