advocate - a person you can turn to for information, advice and other help to get the treatment and support you would like. Can attend meetings with you and help you to say what you want or can express your views for you. Many people could act as your advocate - friends, relatives or a member of staff like a nurse or social worker. However, it can be difficult to say some things to people who are close to you, like relatives, and sometimes people want to have the support of someone in addition to staff. For these reasons, many people prefer to use trained, independent advocates.
Approved Social Worker (ASW) – a social worker who has responsibility, with two doctors, for assessing you if you may need admitting to hospital.
art, drama and music therapist - helps you work through and recover from a mental health problem by using or releasing your creativity.
care coordinator - responsible for coordinating your Care Plan.
community psychiatric nurse – works with people who live in the community and are going through mental health problems.
consultant psychiatrist - a doctor who is medically responsible for you if you are receiving help from mental health services.
counsellor - aims toenable you be more in control of your own life by exploring emotional difficulties and helping you to understand yourself and your relationships with others.
gateway worker – works with urgent mental health problems and crises as they arise in primary care.
general practitioner – ('GP' or 'family doctor'). Usually the first professional to be involved with a mental health problem. Can refer to other more specialised services.
graduate mental health worker – helps people with information within a GP practice.
housing support worker – helps someone with mental health problems with their housing needs.
keyworker – a term commonly used for a member of staff with specific responsibility towards a particular individual.
Mental Health Act Manager - an independent member of a panel responsible for hearing your application to be discharged from hospital, and for ensuring the 1983 Mental Health Act is used appropriately.
mental health practitioner – usually based with a group of GP practices, has a short term counselling role for people with common mental health problems, and promotes ental health within the community.
occupational therapist - works with you to help you learn or relearn skills after a period of mental distress.
psychiatrist - a medical doctor who has undertaken specialised training in the treatment and care of people with mental illness and people with a learning disability. The psychiatrist may diagnose illness, prescribe medication and other forms of appropriate treatment, and decide when to admit you to and discharge you from hospital.
psychologist – helps you in coping with emotional and behavioural problems, and life crises.
psychotherapist – aims tohelp you to be more in control of your own life by exploring emotional difficulties and helping you to understand yourself and your relationships with others. Provides consultation and treatment, using short and long term psychotherapy, one to one, or in groups.
service user development worker – has personal experience of mental distress, often employed on a particular ward, to help you get involved in deciding on your own treatment and care.
social worker - can provide help, advice and information about a range of practical problems