Who are we?
The Derbyshire At Risk Mental State (ARMS) Service is a mental health team offering advice and support to people between the ages of 14-65 who are based in the community. Our team work with people who could be described as being in an “At Risk Mental State”.
Who is the service for?
People with an At Risk Mental State will have started experiencing one or more of these things:
- Being preoccupied with particular ideas or thoughts
- Unusual experiences like seeing or hearing things that others cannot
- Feeling suspicious or paranoid about others
- Confused or muddled thinking
- Noticing that things and people seem strange and unreal
Sometimes the person will also experience:
- Feeling anxious, irritable or depressed,
- Disturbed patterns of sleeping or eating,
- Preferring to spend time alone, away from family and friends,
- Struggling to cope at school, college or work.
Our aim is to help make sense of, cope with, and prevent these new experiences from getting worse.
Who works for us?
Our team includes mental health practitioners, a psychologist, CBT therapists, and community support workers.
What can the team offer?
Our support can last for up to two years, though we may offer limited contact for up to a further year. During this time, the team can offer:
- Individual talking therapy to reduce distress and support with ways of coping.
- Information about mental health difficulties.
- Support making sense of difficult experiences.
- Communication with other agencies such as your GP.
- Advice and support for carers and family members.
- Support to engage in activities that are meaningful to you.
- Support with accessing further education and employment.
- Support accessing housing and financial advice.
What happens when you are referred?
Once you are referred, we will make an initial decision about whether our team are the best team to start an assessment. It may be that an alternative team is more appropriate to meet your needs. A meeting will then be offered at a time and place that is convenient to you. This is usually completed by two of our workers. We will take time to listen to your concerns and experiences. Sometimes, we will do the assessment over a few visits. This can help us to work out if we are the best service for you and to make clear recommendations.
If you would like our support and our service is appropriate, a specific worker will be allocated and you will be offered a talking therapy, usually CBT. Our service will work with you in an individualised way in order to make the best use of all the resources and services available in the community.
How can you be referred to the team?
Referrals must be made by a professional, such as your GP, psychotherapist, or a mental health practitioner. They are able to refer using our referral email address: dhcft.armsreferrals@nhs.net
The team operates Monday to Friday, 9am-5pm, excluding bank holidays.
Feedback about our Community Mental Health Services
To make a compliment, complaint or a comment about our the ARMS service, you can contact our Patient Experience Team:
- Complete the feedback form on this site
- Email: dhcft.patientexperience@nhs.net
- Telephone: 01332 623751 or freephone 0800 027 2128
- Write to: Patient Experience Team, Kingsway House (Room 162), Kingsway Hospital, Kingsway, Derby, DE22 3LZ.
- If you have a compliment to make about a team or individual, you may also like to submit a nomination through our staff recognition scheme, the DEED scheme - Delivering Excellence Every Day.
We want to hear from you, so please contact us.
