Richmond's Crisis Care Services

The following list portrays some of Richmond's main crisis care services:

• NHS 111. Staffed by advisers who offer medical advice and information; you can call ‘111’ if you or someone you know needs urgent care, but it is not life threatening
• A&E. Emergency care can be accessed by calling 999 or you can visit A&E in person, if you are experiencing a mental health emergency. For most of Richmond the closest A&E departments will include:
  • West Middlesex University Hospital- Twickenham Road, Isleworth, TW7 6AF
  • Kingston Hospital- Galsworthy Road, Kingston-Upon-Thames, KT2 7QB
• General Practice. You can contact your GP surgery and ask for an emergency appointment. In a crisis, you should be offered an appointment with the first doctor available.
• Mental Health Support Line (Crisis Line) is available to existing patients of South West London and St George’s Mental Health Trust Monday to Friday 5pm-9am; 24 hours on Saturday, Sunday and bank holidays. Contact by calling 0800 028 8000.
• Crisis Cafes. Two new Crisis Café called the Journey Recovery Hub in Richmond and Kingston offer a free, safe, inclusive and welcoming space for adults who are struggling to cope with their mental health. Contact recoveryhub@rbmind.org / 020 3137 9755 or access them at:
  • 32 Hampton Road, Twickenham, TW2 5QB, Tuesday, Thursday & Friday: 6 – 10 pm, Sunday: 2 – 8 pm
  • Alfriston Centre, 3 Berrylands Road, KT5 8RB, Monday and Wednesday: 6 – 10 pm, Saturday: 2 – 8 pm (from 1st February 2020).
• The Samaritans provide 24/7 confidential and emotional support. You can call them at 116123 or email jo@samaritans.org.
• SANEline is an out-of-hours mental health helpline offering specialist emotional support to anyone affected by mental illness, including friends, family and carers. Open every day 4.30 pm - 10.30 pm on 0300 304 7000.
• PAPYRUS supports you or a young person you know when not coping with life. For confidential suicide prevention advice contact 0800 068 4141, text 07860 039 967 or email pat@papyrus.org. Available Mon-Fri 9am - 10pm, weekends and Bank Holidays 2pm-10pm.

The following services do not represent a first point of contact for patients in crisis however, they may be part of a mental health patient’s pathway to recovery:

• Richmond Wellbeing Service. This is an NHS Service that offers adults (aged 18+)  free psychological therapy for conditions including: depression, trauma, panic, social anxiety, OCD, preoccupation with health or body appearance and stress. Ask information or self-refer by calling 020 8548 5550.
• Primary Care Liaison Team. Is an integrated part of the Richmond Wellbeing Service that provides outpatient mental health triage and assessment of common mental health problems. It also has a role in liaising between primary and secondary care mental health services. The team accepts referrals from GPs and other statutory/non-statutory services.
• The Recovery & Support Team offers a specialist and multidisciplinary service for patients suffering from serious and/or complex mental health problems. Referrals come via GPs, local health professionals, the Liaison Psychiatry department, A&E and the local Home Treatment Team. They are open Monday to Friday and are based at Barnes Hospital, SW14 8SU. Contact: 020 3513 5000.
• The Home Treatment Team (HTT) aims to treat and support people aged 18-75, experiencing severe mental health problems or crisis. Patients are usually referred from A&E, the RST, GPs, Police, social services and the mental health support line. They are based at Queen Mary’s University Hospital and can be contacted on 0203 513 5000 or ssg-tr.RichmondHTT@nhs.net.
• Lavender Ward is an acute admissions inpatient service for adults 18-65 who live in Richmond-Upon-Thames. It treats people with psychosis, schizophrenia, depression, anxiety, bi-polar disorder, substance misuse, psychosis, personality disorder, self-harm and organic disorders. Admissions require assessments by a HTT care coordinator or by A&E. They operate 24/7 at Queen Mary’s Hospital and can be contacted at 0203 513 5000.

Please note that this is not an exhaustive list of crisis care services available in Richmond-Upon-Thames.

Further information on how to get help for yourself or someone you are helping is available on swlstg.nhs.uk under the ‘Support in a crisis’ heading.

RUILS has also created ‘Bridging the Gap’, a thorough guide to Richmond’s mental health services. You can download it for free at ruils.co.uk or request a printed copy by contacting them at 0208 831 6083 or emailing info@ruils.co.uk.