Recovery and Leaving Hospital
This section outlines what happens when you recover, leave hospital or transition to other services.
What is recovery?
Recovery means different things to different people. For some people, recovery is no longer having a mental health difficulty or experiencing the challenges caused by their mental health difficulty. For others, recovery is
feeling better by learning how to live the best possible life with their mental health difficulty.
How long does it take to recover?
People do get better and do recover. But it is important to remember that there is no set time for recovery. It is different for each and every person. It is also important to know that setbacks can happen. While setbacks can be frustrating or even upsetting, they are a normal part of many people’s recovery journey.
Your care team will support you to think about what recovery might look like for you and to identify what has or has not helped you feel better in the past.
One important step on your recovery journey might be leaving hospital for a short time to visit home or see your family and friends. This could mean leaving for a few hours, overnight, or even for a few days. Sometimes your leave will gradually be increased as you prepare to be discharged from hospital. Your care team will discuss any plans for leave with you and your family, so you know what to expect. This information will also be included in your individual care plan.
If you have been detained under the Mental Health Act, your doctor may allow you to leave hospital if they feel you are well enough and that it would be good for you to spend some time away from the hospital. This is sometimes called ‘Section 26’ leave.
The doctor in charge of your care must give you permission to leave in writing. It is important to know that your doctor might put some conditions on your permission to leave the hospital. This might be that you can only go out accompanied by a member of staff or your family, or only go to certain places.
Another big step in your recovery might be leaving hospital. This usually happens when your doctor or care team decides you are ready to leave or be ‘discharged’. While it is normal to have some worries about how you will cope, it is important to know that supports are in place to help you during and after your discharge from hospital.
What to expect before being discharged:
- Your key worker will organise a meeting between you and your care team to discuss a plan for how you will be cared for in the community. This is called a pre-discharge meeting, and it can also be attended by your parent(s) or guardian.
- A community mental health team or primary care team from your local area will be responsible for your continued care and treatment as an outpatient. Your care team will explain this to you during your pre-discharge meeting.
- If possible, your hospital will arrange contact between you and a member of your new care team in the community. The hospital should also give you a date for your first appointment with that team.
- Your parent(s) or guardian should be told who to contact if they have any worries about your progress or feel you might be in crisis. As well as your community care team, it can be comforting to know that other services or helplines are available to support you after your hospital stay.
For more information on those services, please visit the Supports and Services page.
Transitioning to adult services
What is Transition?
In health care, ‘transition’ is the word used to describe transferring (moving) from child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS ) to adult mental health services. Read more in Words you might hear
What happens if I turn 18 while I’m in hospital?
Your care team should start planning your transition from CAMHS six months before you are due to leave. The plan should explain what happens when you turn 18. This might include:
- moving from a CAMHS ward to an adult mental health ward within the same hospital,
- getting treatment in a different hospital if there are no adult mental health services where you are currently being treated or if the adult hospital is closer to where you live,
- discharging you from hospital if you are well enough to leave inpatient care,
- referring you to other adult services in the community to support you with your mental health difficulty.
Even if you have already turned 18, you might sometimes be allowed to stay on the CAMHS unit until you are well enough to leave. This depends on the hospital.
Your care team will work with the adult service to make sure your move goes smoothly for you. Your doctor will work closely with the adult service to provide all the information needed for your transition to adult services
What could I expect during the transition process?
It is normal for any process involving change to have some challenges and transition is no different.
The main challenges are:
- moving from a setting that you are very familiar with to a new setting that you know little about - there could be people of different ages, often much older than you.
- getting to know your new care team - staff may also use more medical terms than you are used to in CAMHS, but do not be afraid to ask them to explain these to you.
being more independent and starting to make your own decisions about your care and treatment.
Moving to an adult hospital.
The thought of moving to a new hospital can be a little daunting but remember that once you get used to the new surroundings and get to know your care team, you should settle into a new routine. Some young people look forward to the move; they want to be seen in a more adult environment and spoken to directly.
The questions below are examples of the kinds of questions that you could ask before your transition:
- When do you think I will be moving to the adult mental health unit or hospital?
- Which unit or hospital will I be moving to?
- Where is the unit or hospital located?
- Who is responsible for organising my transition?
- Can I visit the new adult hospital before I have to leave the CAMHS unit so I know what to expect when I move?
- Are my rights as an adult different and, if so, who will tell me about them?
