The Cassel Hospital offers treatment to adults with severe and complex personality disorders, and young people with emerging personality disorders who may often have exhausted all other avenues of help from mental health services.
Patients are treated at Cassel for a minimum of 9 months and a maximum of 33 months:
The 9-month inpatient treatment accepts referrals from the whole of the UK, whilst the outreach service offers up to 24 months of treatment for those within easy reach of London.
The treatment path is determined by the patient's individual circumstances and resources available locally. Progression from the inpatient to the outreach service is therefore not automatic. Patients will have a break in between these two phases of treatment (where applicable) to complete the ending and consolidate their learning.
Our approach and outcomes
We aim to provide evidence-based treatment to reduce people’s symptoms and improve their quality of life. We audit treatment outcomes on a continuous basis to monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of our treatment.
Research shows that our treatment:
- Reduces the number and severity symptoms
- Reduces self-harm and suicidal ideation (considering or planning suicide and suicide attempts)
- Improves interpersonal relations
- Improves occupational capacity
- Reduces use of local mental health services
- Is cost effective.
Referrals to the Cassel Hospital can be made must be made by a consultant psychiatrist or by the local community mental health team (adult mental health services or child and adolescent mental health services for young people at the stage of being transferred to adult services), with clearly stated support from the responsible consultant. It is important that patients are involved in the referral process, support it and have an idea of what the treatment involves.
For more information about referrals, or if you have any questions before you make a referral, please contact:
Cheryl Pavitt
Telephone: 0208 483 2953
Email: cheryl.pavitt@nhs.net
As a national specialist (Tier 4) personality disorder service, we have a contract with NHS England for the majority of our beds.
Local mental health services in England can refer patients for treatment, with no need to apply for funding and without costs to their local health budgets.
Patients from Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland will require funding from the local authorities responsible for out-of-area treatments.
Inclusion criteria
To be considered for funding, patients must meet the following criteria:
- Age 17.5 years and above at time of referral, 18 years by time of admission
- Diagnosis of Emerging or Severe Personality Disorder or Complex Emotional Needs
- Need for a Tier 4 service due to local mental health services being unable to meet the patient’s needs
- The referral has the support of the local Consultant Psychiatrist and agreement from the regional NHS England specialist commissioner
- At point of admission the patient has a home where they can return to at weekends.
Exclusion criteria
Patients won’t be accepted for treatment funding if any of the following applies to them:
- Active risk to others
- Acute substance addiction.
Publications
We’ve published a wide range of research articles and papers in peer-reviewed journals.
Enquiries
For information about the work of the research unit and internships, please contact:
Sofia Robinson
Telephone: 020 8483 2972
Email: sofia.robinson@westlondon.nhs.uk
We’re a multidisciplinary team of nurses, clinical psychologists and psychotherapists and specialist community support.
Senior team
Clinical Lead
Dr. Kimberley Barlow
Consultant Psychiatrist in Psychotherapy, Cassel Hospital and Outreach Service
Dr. Miriam Barrett
Consultant Psychiatrist in Psychotherapy, Inpatient Clinical Lead
Dr Beate Schumacher
Head of Psychotherapy and Social Work
Amanda Mackenzie
Senior Nurse
Daksha Samani
Senior Social Worker
Melissa Ellison
Service Manager