I work closely with people with mental health problems to co-create goals related to their health and then use active listening, empathy, and effective communication to help them. Their goals vary as no two people are the same. Some people just want to be able to get out of bed or visit their local park or library. Others want to manage their symptoms or practice self-care. Some want to get into volunteering, education, or employment.
Broadly, I help people access information and making referrals to services that can help them. I work as part of a multidisciplinary team including psychiatrists, psychologists, nurses, social workers, and many others.
A major part of my role is triage, where I look at the referrals, gather information and decide on the best course of action for the individual I am just trying to help.
I also work with the team at the Trauma Informed Collective to ensure that NHS staff understand the impact of trauma on someone’s life. We also develop policy and strategy, deliver training, talk to teams and services, and facilitate meetings.
I very rarely have a typical day. As well as offering people support in person, online or over the phone, there’s also the administrative side of the role such as updating records booking in appointments and meetings to discuss. Not forgetting to have some lunch at some point!