Psychological therapy waiting list ‘going in the right direction’
HEALTH officials are hoping that there will be no waiting list for psychological therapies in Shetland by the end of March.
Public health and planning principal Elizabeth Robinson told a meeting of the NHS Shetland board on Tuesday that this was “really good news”.
It follows the recent appointment of Mary Roberts as NHS Shetland’s new consultant clinical psychologist.
She previously said that tackling waiting times was at the top of her agenda.
Concerns over the amount of people waiting over the 18-week standard for psychological therapies were raised last year.
This in part prompted an improvement plan being put in place for adult mental health services.
Robinson said Roberts has been working through the waiting list, which is now “massively reduced”.
She said things were now “going in the right direction”.
Psychological therapy is one of five strands of NHS Shetland’s mental health department, and the service provides access to non-pharmacological interventions for people with mental health needs.
It runs alongside the community psychiatric service, the child and adolescent mental health service, substance misuse service and the memory assessment service.
Keep Shetland’s news open to everyone
Your membership helps us report the stories that matter to Shetland — and keep them free for everyone to read.
