Expansion in psychological support at London’s major trauma centres
The NHS in London is improving mental health support for patients with major trauma injuries, their families, local communities and the staff who care for them, including The Royal London Hospital.
The £4m investment in the capital’s four major trauma centres will improve the NHS’ day-to-day resilience and its ability to step-up support in the event of a major incident in the capital – and has already benefited over 5,000 patients.
The two-year pilot, which is now in its second year, is funded the NHS England London Violence Reduction Programme, and led in partnership with NHS England’s specialised commissioning and emergency planning and resilience teams. It involves introducing psychology teams at each of London’s four major trauma centres: King's College Hospital, Royal London Hospital, St George's Hospital, and St Mary’s Hospital. The pilot is a collaboration between NHS organisations across London, coordinated by Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust and West London NHS Trust.
Each centre now has a full team of psychologists in place, covering both child and adults, who are providing direct mental health care to patients, alongside training and support for the wider staff team. This is helping to ensure NHS staff can identify major trauma patients who have psychological support needs early - and provide ongoing specialist support both inside and outside hospital, alongside existing community services.
Prior to launching the pilot, the NHS estimated that it would help around 2,000 patients every year and support the wellbeing of staff working in major trauma. In its first full-year of operation, the pilot supported over 5,000 patients.
Between 30-40% of people who undergo major traumatic injury report serious, long-term psychological disorders. This can have a devastating, sometimes lifelong, impact on patients’ lives who may need significant ongoing support from the NHS and local authorities. Studies have shown that up to 35% of trauma patients are not returning or making an incomplete return to work. The pilot aims to change this through early identification and prevention, ensuring major trauma patients get the psychological support they need at the right time.
Paul was brought to The Royal London Hospital in July 2023 after he fell from a height whilst climbing in Scotland. As well as treatment for his physical injuries, he was cared for by the mental health support service.
“I benefited hugely from the psychological support service whilst in hospital," the 37-year-old said.
"Having undergone a life changing traumatic injury, leaving me paralysed, I often felt hopeless and overwhelmed by despair. Being able to speak to a trained psychologist, on a regular basis, made a huge difference to my ability to cope. Whilst nothing about my time in hospital was easy, it would have been a great deal worse if I hadn’t received such excellent support.”
The teams will also allow psychological support to be quickly stepped up in the event of a major incident, such as a natural disaster, significant accident or terrorist attack – and will support patients, their families and staff in major trauma teams, as well as start the coordination of psychological support for the wider community.
The new model of care is based on evidence, including learning from previous major incidents, particularly around the need to proactively screen and treat for symptoms of psychological trauma.
The four major trauma centres are part of a unique network of hospitals, air ambulances and paramedics that provides a safety net for 10 million people in London. It’s known as London's major trauma system and treats over 12,000 people with the most serious injuries each year.
Professor Karim Brohi, Clinical Director of the London major trauma system and Trauma and Vascular surgeon at Barts Health NHS Trust, said: “The introduction of the major trauma psychology teams across London has been transformative for our patients and for our staff. Major trauma staff have to deal with some of the most harrowing scenes imaginable, day after day. London delivers world class injury care, and we have the best survival rates anywhere.
"The psychology service allows trauma survivors to understand what has happened to them and to rebuild their lives. For our staff, psychological support and training allows them to look after themselves and thereby continue to provide the best care for their patients. I am excited to see how the service develops in the future."
Martin Griffiths, the London clinical director for violence reduction at NHS England and consultant trauma and vascular surgeon at Barts Health NHS Trust added: "This is a significant investment in the capital's major trauma centres, which improves the NHS's ability to support major trauma patients and staff through some of the most difficult moments in their lives.
"A major traumatic injury can have a huge impact on many different parts of a patient's life, both physically and emotionally. By working in partnership with the NHS and charity partners like Redthread and St Giles Trust, we want to ensure that teams can intervene at critical moments to help patients rebuild their lives.
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