Projects - Advocacy in Mind
 In
2009 we launched a much needed advocacy service across Taunton Deane and
West Somerset, thanks to a £106,311 grant from Comic Relief.
What is Advocacy?
Advocacy is about making sure your voice gets heard in any decisions
that affect your day-to-day life, helping you to speak up for yourself,
and ensuring that your views and opinions are listened to, understood
and respected. It is a process to enable you to say what you want,
obtain your rights and access services.
If you have a mental health issue or experience emotional distress,
it can be difficult to express your wishes and represent your own
interests to people who provide your care and treatment. This may be due
to feeling anxious, depressed or confused, or worried that you will not
be understood or treated with respect.
Historically people with mental health issues have been marginalised
in society and faced discrimination and exclusion from opportunities to
participate fully in life, which can result in feeling disempowered.
Advocacy aims to promote equality and make services more inclusive
and accessible. It can involve supporting you to express yourself, and
your needs, or if you wish and with your consent communicating your
opinions on your behalf.
What is an Advocate?
An Advocate is independent and impartial. They are there solely for you
and will not give a personal opinion on what they think is best for you,
but listen to you and find out what you think and feel about your
treatment and care and what you would like to happen.
An advocate will not judge you and will treat you with respect whatever
your gender, age, nationality, ethnicity, disability, sexual
orientation, cultural background or religion and will defend and promote
your rights.
They will help you talk through your concerns, identify what choices
are available to you and provide information on mental health issues and
services and how to access them. They will agree a plan to work with you
towards your goals and provide support for as long as necessary to
address your issues. The service is free of charge.
What can an Advocate do?
There are lots of specific ways an advocate can support you. Some
examples...
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Listen to you so they can understand your concerns
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Speak for you about your worries or about a particular
issue
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Go with you to meetings or appointments, as a
supportive presence
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Represent you in situations where you don't feel able
to represent yourself
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Help you write letters or emails
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Make a phone call for you
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Help you find out information and access services
If you have a mental health issue and would like the
support of an Advocate then please contact
Bethan at Mind in Taunton &
West Somerset by emailing
bethanf@mindtws.org.uk or telephoning 01823 334906.
You need to be aged 18 – 65 and living in Taunton Deane or
West Somerset to access the service.
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Download leaflet
Download our leaflet
here for more information:
It meant a lot to me that Advocacy in Mind was there, when I was on
the verge of a breakdown. My advocate was 100% professional and gave
me information on my options. I felt he was on my side. A lot of the
issues have been resolved and I am in a far better place, with some
hope and tentative plans for the future.
I liked most the understanding attitude of all the people I was
involved with. I found it helpful, and all members of staff were
polite, friendly and understanding. I felt totally at ease.
My advocate was so good and professional and always treated me as an equal.
Thank you for taking so much time and trouble to help pick up the pieces. I had been unable to communicate my difficulties and needs to the NHS and had experienced a devastating sequence of events due to this. It has been so invaluable to be listened to carefully by experienced staff. I do at last feel optimistic that I can gain control of my own life and that my thoughts and feelings have validity that need not be eradicated my medication. Through Advocacy in Mind I have accessed psychological therapy and intend to rebuild myself to become a more useful citizen – not just a passive service user
My advocate was very kind and always made me feel important and I felt at ease in her company. She gave me the strength and confidence to express myself
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Case Study: Client with welfare benefit issues
Clive (name changed for reasons of confidentiality), aged 55 years
old, initially approached Advocacy in Mind for help with several issues
including major debts and being threatened with bankruptcy, and concern
that he was not receiving the correct welfare benefits.
He was aware that the Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) provide help with
these issues, but found it hard to establish and maintain a dialogue
with the agency due to anxiety and panic attacks, and found form-filling
extremely difficult because of dyslexia and depression. Clive also had
serious physical health issues which exacerbate his mental health issues
and vice versa. He wanted to receive the correct benefits and felt that
having an advocate accompany him to the CAB to get advice would be very
helpful as they could facilitate communication and support him before,
during and after the appointments, if he was distressed.
Clive had been referred to the local Improving Access to
Psychological Therapy (IAPT) service for talking treatment to address
his mental health issues, and had been on the waiting list for Cognitive
Behavioural Therapy (CBT) for over six months. Clive’s mental health was
very fragile, so much so that he was close to a breakdown and he was
struggling to cope on his own without support, so he also wanted an
advocate to chase up the IAPT referral.
At Clive’s first meeting with his advocate, they prioritised the
various issues, and broke them down into manageable chunks. The advocate
helped arrange an appointment with CAB to set up some specialist debt
counselling sessions for Clive, and at his request was also present at
each session. The outcome of the counselling was that Clive was granted
a Debt Relief Order, which nullified all of his debts, and consequently
helped reduce his anxiety.
Some more meetings with his advocate accompanying him to CAB
followed, to check that Clive was getting the correct benefits he was
entitled to, which led to Clive making an application for Disability
Living Allowance. He was granted the medium-rate Care Component and the
higher-rate Mobility Component, which together have made a significant
improvement to his previously frugal income, and quality of life.
With persistence and perseverance Clive’s advocate also helped to get
him prioritised for CBT with IAPT, and made sure that his needs for a
female therapist and an accessible venue were met. Clive has now
completed his CBT course, and feels that his mental health has improved
a great dealt since he first approached Advocacy in Mind. He also
reports finding it easier to trust other males and recently wrote his
advocate a letter saying,
"I don’t think I would be here now if not for your help and support.
Where there was no light at the end of my deep dark tunnel, now I can
see a way through... taking the right road and talking to the right
people for help and advice and having an advocate like you...thank you".
Key outcomes:
- Client attained Debt Relief Order and no longer in debt.
- Client now receiving correct benefits, including Disability
Living Allowance.
- Client receiving appropriate psychological therapy and
experiencing less mental distress.
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Case Study: Advocacy with Community Mental Health Team
Dave (name changed for confidentiality) approached Advocacy in Mind as he wanted some support addressing issues with the local Community Mental Health Team (CMHT). He had been a mental health service user for several years, and had a long history of depression and anxiety, and had previously attempted suicide. He had decided to stop taking his Diazepam without consultation with his psychiatrist because of the way it made him feel.
Dave was recovering well but felt that his psychiatrist seemed to assume that he was managing well with the support they were providing when actually he felt let down by the system and had seen a succession of 5 different Care Co-ordinators over 3 years which had affected the continuity of his care and his trust in the services. He had concerns that one of the previous care co-ordinators had not recognised the level of his distress and suggested reducing services. He also found it very difficult to explain what he was going through, and felt that his lack of confidence could get in the way of expressing himself.
Dave wanted an advocate to attend his CMHT Care Plan Review in order to help him get his voice heard and to make the psychiatrist understand how he felt about his treatment. He spent time preparing with his advocate exactly what he wanted to say to the psychiatrist, and together they wrote down a list of specific questions, and agreed what role Dave wanted his advocate to play in the meeting.
With the support of his advocate, Dave felt more able to raise the issues he wanted discussed. He felt satisfied that the psychiatrist answered all of his questions, and that they acknowledged that he should not have had so many different care coordinators, which validated his feelings. Dave now has a named care coordinator and has agreed changes to his care plan including a change to his medication, as a result of the appointment. He felt listened to and that he had been more in control of the meeting with his opinions taking on board.
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