Borders Ref Help Toolkit
Referrals are triaged twice weekly. During triage, CAMHS assesses:
- evidence of specific mental health difficulties
- any risk of harm to self or others
- severity of symptoms and the degree of impairment.
Should the CAMHS team feel that the difficulties noted represent mild to moderate mental health issues, then the referral may be signposted to appropriate community resources and/or direct professional consultation with members of the CAMHS team if possible.
Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services are focused on children and young people presenting with moderate (where there is significant risk of deterioration), severe and complex difficulties.
Specific scenarios where CAMHS is not the appropriate service:
- Children under 5:
In these cases, initial assessment and support should come from health visitors, public health nurses, or school nurses, who can then consult with CAMHS if necessary.
- Mild to moderate mental health difficulties:
If a child or young person's mental health needs are mild to moderate, other services like counselling or support groups may be more appropriate.
- Normal developmental changes or reactions to life events:
CAMHS is not intended to address typical childhood challenges like grief after a bereavement or adjustment to parental separation. These situations can often be managed with support from primary care and other community resources.
What makes a good referral?
Ensuring the following information is included, this allows the team to determine the most suitable course of action, and triage appropriately and as quickly as possible
- Who has given consent for this referral? If the young person is alone, how should we contact them for appointments?
- What are the current mental health concerns?
- Include: Symptoms, duration, severity, risk, level of associated distress. Why seeking help now?
- What else has been tried already and with what outcomes?
- Include: Initial advice given, strategies tried, resources/websites recommended, other services/agencies accessed and what the outcome of these interventions was.
- What are the specific difficulties that you would like CAMHS to address?
- Include: What outcomes are hoped for?
- If referral relates to a suspected eating disorder, please complete the following: -
- Physical Health Data
- HR, BP, Height, Weight and is this a loss from previous weight, BMI
- Date and results of any recent investigations
- What is the impact of the difficulties described on the young person’s day to day functioning across settings?
- Include: Impact on performance at home, school and socially.
- Any other relevant information about the young person’s circumstances?
- Include: Any triggers for the difficulties emerging, whether the problem is situation specific or more generalised, any relevant history/family history, current family circumstances, particular risk factors, any statutory measures e.g. child protection register.
- What protective factors are there?
- Include: strengths in the family, community supports, young person’s strengths.
- Is anyone else involved or have other agencies been involved previously?
- Please attach any reports from other professionals
- Physical Health Data
How to refer
- GP’s can refer via Sci – Gateway
- Schools have their own referral form which can be emailed to secretaries@borders.scot.nhs.uk
- School Nursing have their own referral form which can be emailed to secretaries@borders.scot.nhs.uk OR uploaded to EMIS 30223 and task CAMHS Admin to inform them a referral is uploaded for our attention.
- BGH, Child Protection, Health Visitors, School Nursing, SLT, OT, Paediatric BGH, Crisis Team can upload the referral to EMIS 30223 and task CAMHS Admin to inform them a referral is uploaded for our attention.
- Educational Psychology and Social Work can email camhs.secretaries@borders.scot.nhs.uk or post them to CAMHS, Andrew Lang Unit, Viewfield Lane, Selkirk, TD7 4LJ