We are driving forward new initiatives in workforce development to enable the regional provider services to best meet the needs of people with mental health problems.  Current streams of work include:

• The production of an e-Learning resource aimed at all staff working in the NHS to improve awareness of needs and communication with people experiencing mental health problems that use services.

• The productivity and pathways programme, which includes a project to identify the skills & competencies required to deliver the psychosis element of the Yorkshire Care Pathways model, to develop and pilot a tool to collate information on the skills and competencies within the current mental health workforce. The findings will inform the development of future education commissions and potentially enable organisations to collate real time information on workforce activity, competencies & skills.

• Supporting the workforce element of the Mental Health Clinical Care pathway work. Current work is focusing on a review of the skill mix in Home Treatment/Crisis Resolution teams and inpatient teams to identify and share good practice across the region.

• Initiatives to support the introduction of new roles introduced by the Mental Health Act  Amendments (2007)

• The commissioning of education and training programmes to develop a workforce to support the Improving Access to Psychological Therapies programme.

• The development of a maternal mental health education programme to improve the knowledge, skills and competencies of mental health staff to enable them to manage the needs of women in the perinatal and postnatal period more effectively.

• Facilitation of a bi monthly regional mental health workforce group whose links provide a forum in which provider organisations can come together to discuss emerging workforce priorities and keep abreast of regional developments.