Child and Adolescent Mental Health Service (CAMHS)

As with adults, children and young people also suffer from stress, anxiety or depression and it’s important to seek help early if you notice any difficulties that may include:

• Sadness, or a low mood that does not go away
• Being irritable or grumpy all the time
• Not being interested in things they used to enjoy
• Feeling tired and exhausted a lot of the time
• Feeling that life is not worth living any more.
   

Further information about mental health and wellbeing can be found at https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/stress-anxiety-depression/

There are 5 specialist CAMHS teams across Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board:

Phones are operated: Monday to Friday 09: 00-17: 00

• A request can be made by a GP or any professional working with children, young people and families e.g. schools, social services, health visitors, children’s centres. The child or young person must be between 0 and 18 years and whose permanent address is normally in North Wales.  

• A request is recorded on a “Specialist CAMHS Access Request Form” which is completed by the referrer or administration team receiving the request. 

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• CAMHS are unable to accept direct referrals from parents/carers or young people. 

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• If you are aged 0-18 years and are concerned about your mental health, try to talk to a family member or carer, or someone you trust in school, college or somewhere else that you go, If you don’t feel able to talk to anyone you know, but could make an appointment to see your GP, tell them how you are feeling.

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• If you are a parent or carer and have concerns about a child or young person’s mental health, contact their GP, School, Social Services, Health Visitor, School Nurse, Community Paediatrician or Children’s Centre to discuss your concerns, and what help is on offer, Any of these people can make a referral to CAMHS if needed.
   

The Specialist CAMHS Single Point of Access (CAMHS SPoA) reviews all referral requests and provides telephone consultation and advice for professionals where there is a concern about the emotional wellbeing or mental health of a child or young person. The delivery of the CAMHS SPoA is underpinned by the same principles in all teams across North Wales, however the protocol followed by individual SPoAs may differ in local teams where service improvement methods are being tested or local variations require an alternative approach.

The information received on the referral form given will determine whether an urgent response is required.

A new referral will need to be made.  Requests are checked by a specialist CAMHS professional to determine urgency.  Known information from any previous involvement with specialist CAMHS will be taken into account.

If you/your family member are already open to CAMHS, you will have been contacted to review your appointments in light of Covid-19, and together you will agree whether appointments will continue by telephone, using virtual meetings like Skype, using email to keep in touch, carry on face to face, or whether you and your family prefer to see how things go and pick up if needed at a later date. If face-to-face appointments are arranged they will be different than usual, in line with government advice on social distancing and the use of personal protective equipment.