#ARCimpacts
The MINDED project – placing an in-house psychology team in GP practices
to support mental health care in areas of blanket deprivation.
- New pilot project will embed clinical psychologists or an in-house psychology team, into GP practices in some of our most disadvantaged communities
- Patients can benefit from longer appointments and direct support
- Pilot also aims to reduce pressure on already-stretched GPs
- The work will be evaluated by researchers from the NIHR ARC North East & North Cumbria
- It aims to make a direct difference to mental health care and outcomes in areas of blanket deprivation
Watch the video to find out more
A new project supported by the NIHR Applied Research Collaboration (ARC) North East and North Cumbria (NENC) will see clinical psychologists employed within general practices serving disadvantaged communities in our region, in order to improve care.
The pilot intervention is called ‘MINDED’, which represents the working title of ‘Mental health IN the Deep EnD’, and it is being trialled across six Deep End GP practices in Gateshead, Newcastle, Sunderland and South Tyneside.
What do we mean by ‘Deep End GP practices?
‘Deep End’ GP practices are those which work within some of the most deprived communities in the country, and the North East and North Cumbria area has developed its own Deep End Network of GP practices – where up to 96 percent of registered patients live in the most deprived areas.
The Deep End GP Network for our region involves 38 GP practices – which is just over half of those that have been identified as serving areas of blanket deprivation in our region.
Researchers from the ARC North East & North Cumbria have worked hand-in-hand with GPs to co-design the Network, to ensure that it meets the needs of Deep End primary care professionals and the communities they serve.
MINDED pilot shaped by GPs’ concerns
The MINDED pilot was shaped by concerns raised by Deep End GPs and practice staff in the region as part of an earlier piece of research work led by the ARC NENC and Deep End GPs, where primary care professionals identified mental health problems such as anxiety and depression, as amongst the most fundamental issues facing patients.
Mental health concerns account for a third of GP appointments, and research suggests many GPs’ high workloads prevent them from providing good-quality mental health care. This issue is even more pronounced in areas of severe socioeconomic deprivation.
Alongside this, the risks of diagnosing poverty-related distress as mental illness are a concern for GPs working in areas of deprivation, as this may lead to inappropriate treatment.
Deep End patients need more time and support
Deep End primary care staff said they needed more time and support to help patients with mental ill health, whilst also protecting their own mental wellbeing. As a result, the MINDED pilot was developed to address this need.
Through the MINDED intervention, patients presenting with mental health problems will be offered 30-minute consultations with a clinical psychologist based in their own GP practice, who can conduct a thorough assessment and provide patients with time to explore their problems and start to identify solutions.
What’s different about the MINDED pilot?
MINDED offers something different because it employs an in-house psychology team who can work directly with patients with more complex needs, within a GP setting.
The team members are trained in a range of interventions, including those that promote autonomy and mental wellbeing, minimise social exclusion and inequalities. They also will link with other professionals to help patients engage in activities such as employment, education and leisure.
The scheme aims to improve the quality of primary mental health care in the most disadvantaged communities, and improve outcomes for patients most in need.
How has the work been funded?
The MINDED pilot intervention is funded by the North East and North Cumbria (NENC) Deep End Network through the regional Integrated Care System (ICS) for the North East and North Cumbria.
Researchers from the NIHR ARC North East and North Cumbria and Fuse, the Centre for Translational Research in Public Health, in collaboration with Keele University, will monitor and evaluate the pilot as it is embedded, and explore how best to measure its impact.
The evaluation of the MINDED pilot has been funded through the NIHR Three Research Schools Mental Health Practice Evaluation Scheme.
Exploring GPs’ and patients’ experiences
Dr Sarah Sowden from Newcastle University is part of the team leading the research work.
She said: “Our evaluation will aim to explore the feasibility and acceptability, for patients and GPs, of embedding clinical psychologists in general practice in areas of severe socioeconomic deprivation. The study will also explore – with patients and GPs – meaningful and measurable health and wellbeing outcomes from the MINDED consultations.
“The study represents the first rigorous evaluation of the feasibility and acceptability of embedding a clinical psychologist in primary care practices in areas of severe socioeconomic deprivation.”
A GP’s view
Dr Sameena Hassan is a local GP and the Joint Clinical Lead for the Deep End Network in the North East and North Cumbria. Dr Hassan is also practice co-lead for the evaluation.
She said: “We hope that this pilot will provide valuable learning for GPs interested in expanding their core practice team to include an in-house clinical psychologist and enhance the finite resource we have.
“The evaluation will be key in helping us to establish whether embedding a clinical psychologist is feasible, acceptable and of value to primary care patients and practitioners in areas of socioeconomic deprivation.”
The evaluation will explore:
- GPs’ willingness to engage, and patients’ willingness to take part in MINDED consultations
- Patient and GP experiences and opinions of the intervention.
- Potential quantitative outcomes to inform a larger-scale evaluation of the impact of the provision of clinical psychologists in primary care on patients’ mental health and wellbeing.
Findings will:
- Act as a model for other areas of the country facing similar challenges.
- Identify outcomes for a full evaluation of primary care embedded clinical psychology appointments.
- Help general practices make informed decisions on using funding available.
The study will also identify relevant quantitative outcomes that can be investigated in a future evaluation of effectiveness.
We hope to share the findings about the impact of this intervention, in 2024.
You can find out more in this project summary.
The impact of working with the Deep End GP Network as embedded partners
ARC NENC researchers work with the Deep End GP network as embedded partners – which means they work hand in hand with primary care professionals working in the practices, to help to co-design and shape the Network itself, as well as ensure that projects address the needs of Deep End GPs and their communities.
This includes the MINDED pilot, and a project to reduce opiate and gabapentinoid prescribing in primary care. It also includes work to optimise lipid management in Deep End communities.
The MINDED pilot is being evaluated by a team including:
Dr Angela Wearn, ARC NENC Research Fellow, Newcastle University
Dr Sarah Sowden, Newcastle University
Dr Jayne Jeffries, Research Associate, Newcastle University.
Prof Carolyn Chew-Graham, Keele University.