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MH18.2012 Identify the physical health needs of individuals with mental health needs

Overview

This standard covers identifying an individual's physical health needs and their ability, or that of their carer, to address these needs in line with the individual's mental health needs, taking account of risks. This standard applies to anyone responsible for identifying the physical health needs of individuals with mental health needs and determining appropriate courses of action to promote their physical health. Users of this standard will need to ensure that practice reflects up to date information and policies. Version No 2

Knowledge and Understanding

You will need to know and understand:
  1. relevant individual and mental health specific legislation and how this should inform and guide the assessment of need
  2. the principles of needs-led assessment and person-centred planning
  3. how an individual’s physical and mental health needs may be linked and impact on one another and why it is important to be aware of this
  4. how routine ageing processes can influence physical health and the impact this can have on mental health needs
  5. the importance of acknowledging your own values and assumptions when carrying out an assessment, and strategies for dealing with these
  6. why the individual's views of their own needs should be listened to and due weight given to individual preferences and choices
  7. your legal and organisational status and your powers and responsibilities in relation to decision-making and resource-holding
  8. data protection legislation and the implications for the recording and storing of information
  9. the importance of recognising and valuing difference and diversity
  10. why it is important to record situations in which preferred options are not feasible due to agency policy or resource constraints
  11. the policy and procedures to follow in situations where valid consent cannot be obtained
  12. the background information which is necessary for the assessment to proceed effectively
  13. how to integrate and synthesise all of the information about an individual's physical and mental health needs so that they can be considered as a whole and what to do with pieces of information which seem inconsistent with the rest
  14. how to review information gathered about the individual holistically
  15. how to structure assessment records so that they contain all of the necessary information and are suitable for others to use
  16. who has the right of access to information held on records in line with current legislation
  17. the risks which there may be in various courses of action for the individual and how to assess these realistically
  18. the effects of commonly used medications in mental health
  19. the guidelines for using medication in mental health
  20. how to balance risks, assess individuals' needs, resource availability and service priorities
  21. how to enable an individual to give their consent if a referral to another practitioner is required
  22. the purpose of recording agreements reached with individuals and how to do this effectively
  23. methods of communicating assessment information to others balancing the duty of confidentiality, any agreements made with the individual, risks and duty of care
  24. the resources which are available to meet the individual's needs within your own and other services, including specific provision catering for older people
  25. the priorities of the services for different groups and how these affect the services you are able to provide or refer to
  26. how to determine whether the individual's needs should be met even if resourcing of the service makes this difficult and what to do in these situations
  27. the arrangements which may need to be put into place for further assessment or interventions and the capacity of the service to provide these
  28. the roles, structures and functions of the different agencies to whom referrals maybe made
  29. how to determine whether a referral is appropriate to services provided by the agency concerned
  30. the rights of practitioners to refuse referrals and the reasons why this might be done
  31. the quality, quantity and type of information which needs to be provided when making referrals and any differences that arise as a consequence of the information systems used by an agency
  32. how the nature of the relationship between the significant other(s) and the individual may alter the extent to which you ask them to be involved, or the individual would wish for them to be involved
  33. how to interpret signs from the individual as to their wishes, although they may not make these explicit
  34. how to encourage individuals and their significant others to assess their own needs and the reasons for doing this
  35. methods of explaining clearly to individuals and their significant others the outcomes of the assessment
  36. the different fears and concerns which individuals and their significant others will have about the assessment and its outcomes and how to recognise and respect these whilst at the same time being open and honest with those concerned
  37. how to encourage significant others to support the individual
  38. how to interpret the information provided by individuals and their significant others and feed this into the assessment process

Performance Criteria

You must be able to do the following:
  1. explain the agency and legislative requirements for sharing information with others
  2. maintain and update your knowledge about physical health and wellbeing as and when required
  3. encourage and support individuals and significant others to contribute to the identification of the individual's physical health needs
  4. obtain appropriate and necessary background information about the individual's physical health needs
  5. work with individuals and significant others to identify the individual's physical health needs and their particular requirements
  6. ensure your assessment of the individual's physical health needs provides a balanced picture, taking full and appropriate account of:
    1. their mental health needs
    2. their ability to undertake their own health care
    3. the ability of significant others to meet the individual's health care needs
    4. any risk to the individual, their carer, family, community or care practitioners
  7. seek advice and support from an appropriate source when the needs of the individual and the complexity of the case are beyond your role and ability
  8. use information on the individual's physical and mental health needs as a whole to inform subsequent action
  9. explain the agency and legislative requirements for sharing information with others
  10. negotiate agreement with the individual and significant others on the information which will need to be shared, and with whom
  11. maintain complete, accurate and legible records of your assessments in a format which allows other practitioners to use them easily
  12. communicate records of assessments only to those authorised to see them in accordance with organisational, professional and legal requirements for confidentiality of personal information
  13. communicate with individuals and significant others in a manner that emphasises the two way nature and role of the individual as an informed equal partner in the process
  14. explain the outcomes of the assessment to individuals in an appropriate manner, level and pace
  15. agree the subsequent action to be taken with the individual, based on:
    1. the consent and wishes of the individual
    2. the information gained from the assessment of the individual’s physical health needs
    3. input received from different professional roles
    4. an evaluation of the level of risk inherent in each option
    5. the resources available to meet the individual’s physical health needs
    6. the priorities of the services involved
  16. if required, agree the need to refer to another practitioner with the individual and give them appropriate support to understand and cooperate with the decision
  17. comply with agreed referral criteria and provide all necessary information when a referral to another practitioner is required
  18. provide appropriate advice and guidance when it is agreed that the individual and/or significant others are capable of undertaking the individual’s health care
  19. agree a course of action with the individual and significant others which achieves a balance between the interests of the individual, any inherent risks and the legal duty of care
  20. maintain accurate, legible and complete records of agreements reached with individuals and the resulting action to be taken
  21. communicate agreements and decisions about meeting the physical health needs of individuals with all those involved in implementing or monitoring the required actions, ensuring consistency with legal and organisational policies on confidentiality

Additional Information

This National Occupational Standard was developed by Skills for Health. This standard links with the following dimension within the NHS Knowledge and Skills Framework (October 2004): Dimension: HWB2 Assessment and Care Planning to Meet Health and Wellbeing
MH18.2012 Identify the physical health needs of individuals with mental health needs
Final version approved March 2012 © copyright Skills For Health,
For competence management tools visit tools.skillsforhealth.org.uk