Peer Support Workers Mental Health Team.
The Adult Mental Health Peer Support Service has been developed as part of the Community Mental Health Transformation Programme to increase alternative mental health support for people who live in Gateshead. We provide non-clinical interventions to support with accessing health and community resources
We offer a free and confidential NHS service for people aged 16 and over who are registered with a GP in Gateshead who are not currently receiving support from the Community Treatment Team or accessing Crisis Services.
Our team consists of Community Mental Health Development Workers and Mental Health Peer Support Workers who work in the five areas in Gateshead, known as Primary Care Networks, linked to GP Practices.
Peer Support Workers.
Peer Support Workers are people who have lived experience of mental health and getting help with it. They use this and extra training to help others who are struggling with their mental health.
Peer Support focuses on people’s strengths and hopes. It helps people build skills to recover and look after their wellbeing.
Through their lived experience they empower others to feel connected, valued and fulfilled.
We support people by:
- Talking through emotional challenges
- Sharing tips on how to cope
- Giving practical support and advice
- Bringing peer support to groups
- help set goals for recovery
- help people connect with community resources and support networks.
Peer Support Workers helping people with ‘dual diagnosis'.
‘Dual diagnosis’ means having a mental health problem alongside alcohol or substance misuse.
Our Dual Diagnosis Peer Support Workers use their lived experience of addiction and mental ill-health to help others with these problems to recover.
These workers understand first-hand that getting the right help at the right time is harder for people with dual diagnosis. They use their own experience of treatment to help people access support to improve their mental health, substance misuse or both.
Perinatal Peer Support Workers helping people with “Perinatal” mental health.
Perinatal’ is the period when you become pregnant and two years after giving birth.
Our Perinatal Peer Support Workers use their lived experience of mental ill-health during their own perinatal period to help others experiencing similar problems.
Our service has been primarily funded under the 1001-day programme in the aim to support fathers, co-parents as well as mothers throughout Gateshead within the perinatal period. We are able to offer nonclinical interventions to support with accessing health and community resources. We also provide support in via 1-2-1 appointments and group work.
Our primary aim is to aid: -
• mild to moderate perinatal mental health difficulties
• perinatal mental health support for fathers and co-parents
• primarily universal parent–infant relationship support
Non clinical intervention
A non clinical intervention in Mental Health Peer Support is about offering support without focusing on medical treatment of diagnoses. It is about connecting with someone through shared experiences, listening and providing encouragement. The goal is to create a safe and supportive space where people feel empowered to take steps on their recovery journey. It is all about practical help, emotional support and genuine human connection.
This could include:
- Helping you to find resources in your community.
- Navigating the health system and support individuals to access these services.
- Supporting with meeting the specific needs of clients in each locality.
- Adding to existing mental health provision.
- Offering support to groups, focusing on emotional support, sharing experiences, education and practical activities.
- Working to overcome mental health stigma.
- Joint working with organisations to support a smooth transition between services.
PCN Networks
The Peer Support Worker Team works across the 5 Primary care networks in Gateshead.
Primary Care Networks (PCNs) are groups of GP practices across the UK that work together, along with other healthcare providers and community services, to deliver more coordinated and comprehensive healthcare at a local level, with a focus on proactive, personalised care.