Why the work of Yorkshire’s mental health providers has never been more vital

I joined Schoen Clinic earlier last year to manage the York site which has operated an eating disorder service and a dissociative identity disorder service at the historic Retreat since last January.

I began my career as a nurse in the 1980s and have managed independent mental health hospitals in Yorkshire for more than 12 years, ensuring some of the most vulnerable people in our region receive first class care to help them manage and overcome mental health conditions.

I moved to Schoen Clinic because of their medical specialisation and ethos of bringing the greatest minds together to deliver outstanding medical care and innovation.

Schoen Clinic may be a relatively new name in the UK, but as the largest family-owned hospital group in Germany, they are renowned for providing world-class medical excellence through specialisation, multi-disciplinary care and a data-driven approach to quality and patient outcomes.

Schoen Clinic now has a strong and growing presence in the UK. In addition to York, they have a hospital and day clinic in London and an inpatient unit in the Midlands. Schoen Clinic aims to become an established specialist mental health provider in the North and UK, synonymous for quality and patient centred care.

I live in Harrogate with my husband Nigel who is known to most as the organiser of The Great Yorkshire Show. Aside from getting to know the very best of our Yorkshire agricultural sector at this iconic annual event, we love nothing better than relaxing at the weekend with long walks in the beautiful Yorkshire countryside.

My day-to-day activities at The Retreat are filled managing our 24-hour service with our 53-strong mental health nursing team. Our service specialises in the most acute mental health patients who are living with dissociative identity and eating disorders. For many it is a long process of treatment and therapy, which allows us to get to know each and every person and the difference our specialised team can make to improve their quality of life.

I also attend regular meetings to discuss operations and the quality of patient service; this includes clinical governance, quality and health and safety amongst others. Operations are a particular challenge here at The Retreat. The grounds provide excellent therapeutic value, but the main Retreat building is showing its age.

There are significant challenges in delivering a high-quality service at a venue which is not designed for modern mental healthcare and much of my time is spent working with staff and patients to keep the operation running effectively.

My staff and partners have risen to this challenge, and Schoen Clinic have demonstrated their long-term commitment to York by progressing plans to deliver a new state-of-the-art 46-bed mental health facility on the grounds of The Retreat.

This project would vastly improve the quality of the care we can offer patients and cement Schoen Clinic in Yorkshire’s mental health community, something we have sought to do since we took over the two services last January. It would also allow for Schoen Clinic to deliver a new specialised third service, and I regularly attend meetings with partners to identify the area with the greatest need.

York has a wonderful and inclusive mental health community and Schoen Clinic colleagues and I were delighted to support The Great York Walk in September, organised by University of York, to raise the profile of mental health in our communities. Much more needs to be done to support young people and students, so it is great to support a cause which raises the profile of this issue.

These initiatives are vital in this current climate where access and funding for mental health remains a key issue of debate. York in particular has had significant challenges in mental health delivery, with the closure of Bootham Park Hospital in 2015.

I know from my current and previous roles waiting times can be excessive to receive mental healthcare for acute and serious cases.

Our work as mental health providers has never been more needed and this is what gets me up in the morning, knowing that my excellent team provides such a vital and specialised service.

My working day will regularly end by meeting with members of the senior Schoen Clinic team to report back on the week’s successes and challenges. This provides an ideal opportunity to share knowledge and learning between sites.