User:Philipch/brookside

Brookside Adolescent Psychiatric Unit, also known as Brookside Unit, is an adolescent psychiatric hospital in Ilford in north east London, and is part of North East London Mental Health Trust [NELMHT], within the NHS. In recent years the description has been changed to simply 'Brookside' in deference to a perceived stigma associated with the term 'unit'.

The building on the site dates from 1971 and was orignally designated a 'Unit for Disturbed Adolescents', according to original design plans retained on site. It was commissioned by what was then the North East Metropolitan Regional Hospital Board and was to be part of Goodmayes psychiatric hospital which is immediately adjacent on Barley Lane. In turn Goodmayes is next to King Georges Hospital - a District General Hospital. At some stage it was referred to as 'Brookside School' and it is this that probably explains its appearance on Ordinance Survey maps as a Primary School. Sometime during the 1980s the building fell into serious disrepair, with the roof collapsing. In the refurbishment the flat roof was replaced with a sloping tiled roof.

Currently most referrals to Brookside come from the London boroughs of Redbridge, Waltham Forest, Barking, and Havering. It is a 'Tier 4' Mental Health service and takes both day and in-patients, for whom there are 18 beds. The different 'tiers' of service 1 - 4 are provided by local Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS). A typical referral lasts about 3 months though they can vary from 2 weeks to 2 years, and are conducted according to the CPA [care programme approach] procedures specified in the National Service Framework for Mental Health.

There is a staff of about 60, covering the disciplines of psychiatric nursing, occupational therapy, clinical psychology, clinical psychiatry, systemic therapy, and education. The lead clinician is Dr. Trudie Rossouw

External Links --Philipch 23:11, 7 June 2007 (UTC)