CMHTs are the standard model for Health and Social Services community mental health care all over the UK. In Herefordshire they are known as Community Mental Health Services. They offer a single point of referral for people between the ages of 16 and 65 seeking specialist help for a mental health problem.

Based in them you will find (alphabetically) :

	admin staff
	community mental health nurses
	occupational therapists
	psychiatrists
	psychologists
	social workers
	support workers

The CMHTs work specifically with GP practices in a geographical "patch",so which CMHT you see will depend on which surgery you are registered with. This will also decide to which ward you are admitted at the Stonebow Unit should you need to go into hospital.

There are 5 CMHTs in Herefordshire :

South Hereford Community Mental Health Service
The Knoll
Gloucester Road
Ross on Wye
HR9 5NA
Tel: 01989 566345
Fax: 01989 762175

East Herefordshire Community Mental Health Service
Rose Cottage
Belle Orchard
Ledbury
HR8 1DD
Tel: 01531 633872
Fax: 01531 631289

North Herefordshire Community Mental Health Service
62 Etnam Street
Leominster
HR6 8AN
Tel: 01568 613202
Fax: 01568 620123

Hereford City Community Mental Health Service (2 teams)
27a St Owen Street
Hereford
HR1 2JB
Tel: 01432 265123
Fax: 01432 262407
Hours: 9am - 5pm Mon - Frid

How can I be referred ?

The Community Mental Health Services are only able to accept referrals from your GP, so you must go to your own doctor first. They only accept self referral, if you are already known to the service.
The increasing demand for mental health help means that CMHTs prioritise their services to people with the worst problems i.e. people with diagnosed mental illnesses.
This means that they are not able to offer a service to everybody that asks for one.

Who do they see ?

People with :
	schizophrenia
	manic depressive illness
	severe depression
	eating disorders
	obsessive compulsive disorder
	suicidal thoughts

Who don't they see ?

People with :
	problems related to relationship breakdown
	problems related solely to alcohol or drug use
	normal reactions to bereavement or other stressful life events

For help with these sorts of problems check other services listed on this site.
If you still feel you need the support of a specialist mental health service go back to your GP and ask him/her to re-refer you to the CMHT.

If you are referred, and the CMHT is able to offer you help, your case will be discussed at a referral meeting and allocated to a member of the team to meet you and assess your needs. That person will arrange to either come to see you at home or invite you into the office for an appointment. Sometimes your GP will ask specifically for you to be referred to a particular professional and the CMHT will always try to meet this request.

What help will I get ?
If you do receive care from a CMHT you will be allocated a Care Coordinator who will be responsible for making sure you get the help you need. In practice this is the person with whom you are likely to have most contact and it maybe a mental health nurse, social worker, occupational therapist, psychologist or psychiatrist.
You can negotiate with that person the type of help you receive. CMHTs offer a range of interventions from counselling, to medication, to group and family work, to benefits and employment advice.
The advantage of seeing someone from a community mental health team is that it should give you access to the range of help available within the team, not just to the person who is "allocated" to your case. You may be seen separately by more than one member of the team, eg a doctor and a social worker.