National Specification for psychological therapies and interventions: self assessment tool

Annex B

National Specification for Psychological Therapies and Interventions - Service Delivery

Recognising that access is not simply a function of availability, a well-functioning service or team should support innovative approaches. The system should be strategically managed at national and local level in a manner that creates confidence around effective, equitable, efficient, and high-quality governed practice. Consideration of high-quality practice should consider:

Quality Drivers: describes how evidence, implementation, outcomes, and quality improvement, with those with lived experience at the heart of planning, supports innovation and improved outcomes.

Psychological Practice Framework: describes governance structures and clear practice frameworks to support safe, high-quality care.

Management, Governance and Leadership: describes clear, accountable whole system leadership structures for oversight and strategic planning to support a culture of accountability and continuous improvement and supported by those with lived experience.

Wider systems issues: describes the whole system working to make sure stepped care principles are met as part of a whole-system, integrated approach.

Local Service Delivery: which describes a sufficiently funded clinical, management, and administrative workforce to create a safe critical floor of staff with the necessary competencies to provide safe high-quality practice. This also includes good IT systems and infrastructure.

Data Reporting including Outcome Measurement: describes how services report on a nationally agreed reporting systems to measure trends, outcomes, and needs. The data will be meaningful to those accessing services.

Training and Supervision: to support safe and effective practice as well as having an important role in maintaining staff wellbeing and workforce modelling.

Workforce models: to describe job planning so there is sufficient capacity in services to meet demand while also protecting time for service innovation and growth.

Research and Audit: describes how research and audit should be core integral parts of service delivery and teams to ensure high-quality psychological practice.