QNOAMHS resources
Our standards support services to improve the quality of care for people using services and demonstrate that they meet national requirements.
We know services are under increased pressure to demonstrate that they comply with national policies and guidelines and our standards incorporate national requirements and recommendations.
Meeting national requirements
The standards are in line with:
- Department of Health Policy Implementation Guides,
- NICE guidance recommendations by NHS Estates and the Royal College of Psychiatrists about ward design,
- Royal College of Psychiatrists' Guidelines,
- Recommendations arising from the National Audit of Schizophrenia
Reflecting the views of those in the field
We know that those who have the best understanding of the issues and challenges facing older adult mental health services, are those who have experience of working or being cared for in this these services.
We involve our members in the revision of standards and have representation from front-line staff, patients and carers in their development.
The 5th edition was published in 2019 and we are currently developing our 6th edition standards which will be available in 2025.
The first QNOAMHS National Report was published in 2016.
The report contains data from the reviews taken place that year, exploring overall themes and commonly met and unmet standards. We also share the challenges faced by our members, as well as areas of good practice that have been observed during developmental and accreditation reviews.
We encourage services to share the report and discuss the recommendations with their team, senior managers and stakeholders/commissioners.
The 'Carer Awareness' webinar was hosted in October 2023 via Microsoft Teams.
The slides and presentations of the event can be made available to QNOAMHS members on request, for access please visit Knowledge Hub or email op@rcpsych.ac.uk.
The 2024 QNOAMHS Annual Forum was a full day remote event with presentations from a range of experts within older adult mental health services on the theme: 'The Patient and Carer Voice'.
The keynote was delivered by Julia Jones, Co-Founder of John's Campaign. For more information on the event, please see the full programme.
The slides and presentations of the event can be made available to QNOAMHS members on request, for access please visit Knowledge Hub.
For more information please email op@rcpsych.ac.uk.
The 2023 QNOAMHS Annual Forum was a full day in person event with presentations from a range of experts within older adult mental health services on the theme 'What does good look like for older adult inpatient wards.'
The theme of this years Annual Forum allows services to showcase their best practices of what 'Good' looks like. This is an opportunity to reflect on the challenges of the last few years and how they have been overcome and improved and share experiences with other QNOAMHS members.
The slides of the event can be made available to QNOAMHS members on request, for access please visit Knowledge Hub.
For more information on the event, please view our programme or email op@rcpsych.ac.uk.
The 2022 QNOAMHS Annual Forum was a full day remote event with presentations from a range of experts within older adult mental health services on the theme 'Older Adult Mental Health Complexities in 2022 and beyond.'
The theme of this years Annual Forum is to reflect on the complexities within older adult mental health services. This is an opportunity to reflect on the challenges of the last few years, network and share experiences with other QNOAMHS members.
For more information on the event, please view our programme.
The slides and presentations of the event can be made available to QNOAMHS members on request, for access please visit Knowledge Hub or email op@rcpsych.ac.uk
We have created a series of webinars during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Freedom Nwokedi - Supporting Black, Asian, and Minority Ethnic Staff During Covid-19
This live webinar session was hosted by Freedom Nwokedi. There is growing evidence to suggest that Covid-19 is posing a higher risk to people from minoritised ethnic backgrounds, including health and social care professionals, patients and carers.
Freedom is a Nurse Consultant for NAViGO Health and Social Care, as well as a member of the QNOAMHS advisory group. Freedom will be presenting the measures in place on her ward to support the physical and emotional well-being of staff from minoritised ethnic backgrounds.
Vishelle Kamath - Covid-19 and Inpatient Mental Healthcare: Our approach to keeping out patients and staff safe
This live webinar session was hosted by Vishelle Kamath. Vishelle is a Consultant Psychiatrist at St. Andrew's Healthcare, as well as a member of the QNOAMHS advisory group. Vishelle has been developing guidance for St Andrew's services on infection control, and how to manage the spread of Covid-19.
Please join us as Vishelle gives her experience of this, and the steps taken to reduce the impact of Covid-19 in order to keep patients and staff safe.
You can access recordings of all our webinars on the dedicated webinars page.