How to get help
How to make a complaint
Q. How can I see a
psychiatrist?
To see a psychiatrist, you will need to visit a GP (general
practitioner) in order to get a referral, in the same way you would
with any other specialist.
Q. How can I see a psychiatrist
privately?
Your GP may hold a list of psychiatrists who practice privately.
Alternatively, you can contact private healthcare providers or
psychiatric clinics directly to make an appointment. Some
psychiatrists may advertise themselves in your local yellow pages.
If they have the title 'MRCPsych' (Member of the Royal College of
Psychiatrists) or FRCPsych (Fellow of the Royal College of
Psychiatrists), this means that they are current members of the
College.
Q. What kind of psychiatrist can I be
referred to?
You will most likely be referred to a psychiatrist who
specialises in the area of psychiatry that your problem falls in.
The areas of specialties include:
- childhood and adolescent psychiatry
- general adult psychiatry
- the psychiatry of old age
- forensic psychiatry
- learning disabilities
- psychotherapy
Q. How can I find out what speciality a
psychiatrist is trained in?
You can search for their details on the Medical Register (a
directory of all doctors practicing in the UK), by visiting the
General Medical Council
website.
Q. Can you give me a list of
psychiatrists?
The College is unable to supply names of members, or to
recommend individuals. In order to find a psychiatrist, you should
ask your GP or local healthcare trust. You can obtain lists of
nearby doctors' surgeries and your local healthcare trusts by
contacting the NHS.
Q. Can I speak to a psychiatrist at the
College?
This is not possible as the College does not have any
psychiatrists working on site.
Q: What do I do if I am unhappy with
my psychiatrist?
Everyone is entitled to a second opinion, so you need to ask
your GP, or your psychiatrist, to refer you to another psychiatrist
for a second opinion.
Q: How do I make a complaint about my
care and treatment?
The Royal College of Psychiatrists is not a disciplinary body
and, as such, does not deal with complaints about psychiatrists.
You should think about writing to or speaking with your
psychiatrist to tell them how you feel. Your hospital or
healthcare trust will have a local complaint procedure in place. In
order to make a complaint you will need to contact either the
Complaints Officer or the relevant Hospital Manager.
Q : If I'm sectioned under the
mental health act, how do I make a complaint?
If your complaint is about the way powers and duties have been
exercised under the Act, you can contact the Mental Health Act Commission
(Telephone number: 0115 943 7100). You can also write or speak to
the Complaints Officer at the hospital or ask somebody to do this
on your behalf.
Q: How do I make a complaint about
the conduct of a psychiatrist?
It may be best to first complain directly to the psychiatrist.
If you are unhappy with their response, then you
could complain to their employer or hospital trust. If
the complaint is to report serious
misconduct by a psychiatrist, you can complain to the General
Medical Council (Telephone number: 0845 357 0022). Please see the
GMC website for further
information about how to go about this. The last step for dealing
with unresolved complaints would be the Health Service Ombudsman who
acts as a final arbitrator.
Q: What should I do if I wish to make a
complaint about a psychiatrist working in the private/independent
sector?
Firstly, you should complain to the clinic that the psychiatrist
works for. In cases of professional misconduct, you can also
contact the General Medical
Council (Telephone number: 0845 357 0022), and you may also
wish to consider taking legal advice.
Q: What should I do if I am worried about
a relative or friend?
You should encourage them to go and see their GP. You could also
find out about mental health problems by visiting the information
pages on our website: www.rcpsych.ac.uk/info. If you
are worried about someone who is very unwell, and if they appear to
be a risk to themselves or others, you should call the police or
NHS Direct: 0845 46
47.
Q: Whom else can I talk to if I am worried
about a mental health issue?
There are many good organisations that run helplines to offer
advice, information and support. Details of key helpline numbers
and website addresses can be found on the college website. Please
follow this link: Organisation
Links.
Q : How can I find out more about a mental
health topic, or problem?
The College publishes a series of leaflets which give
information about different mental health problems and treatments.
These are available to view and download for free from our website;
follow this link to take a look at all the mental health problems
that we feature: Mental
Health Information.
Q: How do I get further information about
the drugs I am taking?
There are many different ways to find out this information. You
can ask
- the Community Psychiatric Nurse (CPN)
- your psychiatrist
- your GP
- your pharmacist.
You could look up the drug in the British National Formulary (BNF).
This is a directory of drugs that works like a dictionary; drugs
are listed alphabetically and there is an entry for every drug that
outlines its details, such as action, dosage and side-effects.
Many drug companies run helplines that you can telephone; see
your drug information leaflet or pack label for contact details.
(The electronic Medicinces Compendium
website stores a copy of all approved drug information
leaflets).
In addition, the College has published information on some drugs
and therapies that are used to treat specific mental health
problems, such as Alzheimer's disease. Please follow this link:
Therapies.
Q: How do I get hold of a psychiatrist
who will act as an 'expert witness'?
Solicitors can get this information from the Law Society. Or,
you can search through the lists of psychiatrists that are
registered with any of the following websites:
Q: What is the 1983 Mental Health
Act?
The Mental Health Act is an act of parliament that allows for
people who are very mentally unwell to be admitted to hospital for
assessment and treatment against their wishes. Many people will be
admitted to hospital as informal patients; this means that they
have voluntarily agreed to go. However, compulsory admission
may sometimes be necessary when someone who has such severe
problems that they are a risk to their own health or the health or
safety of other people and refuses to go into hospital. In these
cases, compulsory admission can be arranged under one of the
sections of the 1983 Mental Health Act and the person is detained
'on section' (or 'sectioned').
Q: How can I access my health
records?
To request access to your health records, you must make a
request in writing, or by email, to the 'data controller':
- For GP records, this would be your doctor.
- For hospital records, this would be the hospital's Records
Manager.
The maximum fee that can be charged is £10 for computer records,
or £50 for copies of manual records, or a mixture of computer and
paper records.
Your records are protected by the Data Protection
Act (visit this link for more information about what this
means).
Q: I need urgent support:
You can contact any of the following organisations on the
helpline numbers given below:
Q: I need urgent medical
help:
Please contact one of the following:
Q: I am in a public place and I am
concerned that someone is very ill, and may be a risk to themselves
or others: