Health in Mind

Health in Mind is a large, dynamic team of experienced professionals working within the Children's Hospital to help families manage their healthcare journey and achieve the best possible quality of life.

We have a team of experienced clinical psychologists, assistant psychologists, health psychologists and a liaison psychiatrist, who work with the teams within the hospital to promote good mental health and wellbeing, in the context of physical health conditions. We also have two learning disability liaison nurses dedicated to supporting children and young people with learning disabilities. Together the team aims to help children, young people and their families to:

Cope with acute and chronic health conditions
Manage procedures and treatments, with reasonable adjustments
Adjust to life-changing experiences
Support difficult decisions
Improve and maximise quality of life
Access health care and engage in positive health behaviours
Build resilience
Access holistic care and psychological care planning

We are in the enviable position of having a strong neuropsychology team including paediatric neuropsychologists, who provide specialist neuropsychological assessments, contributing to complex decision-making and evaluating treatments e.g. within the epilepsy surgery pathway, neuro-oncology, clinical research trials, and helping families to access appropriate care for conditions such as an acquired brain injury.

Support and interventions

The team is highly qualified in a range of evidence-based interventions and psychological models, including Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT), Narrative Therapy, ACT, mindfulness, hypnosis and Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR). We also have our own family therapy team.

We work with teams in the hospital, sometimes as part of an integrated pathway (for example, all children having any transplant in the hospital will meet a psychologist as part of their journey), in particular clinics or when things are particularly difficult and someone has asked for help.

The liaison nurses work closely with teams within the hospital and the community to help young people with learning disabilities have appropriate reasonable adjustments, time and support to manage admissions and procedures, such as X-rays, examinations and tests, promote healthcare behaviours and maximise quality of life.

The team offers a range of group programmes for young people, parents and carers, individuals working with children, young people and families, as well as consultation, supervision and training for staff.

Location and Facilities

The team is based in The Rainforest at the Children’s Hospital, on the ground floor of Ladywood House. There is a waiting area with toys and books and individual consultation rooms, a disabled access toilet with a full-sized adjustable changing table.