Student Guide to the Health and Wellbeing Service

MENTAL HEALTH & WELLBEING SERVICE NURSE AND MEDICAL SERVICES The Nursing Service, located in Summer Row, provides holistic, practical advice regarding a range of medical needs. All services via the Nurse are ‘drop-in’ and are completely confidential. This means that there is no need to make an appointment, our nurse is available during the following hours: Monday – Thursday: 8am – 4pm Friday: 8am – 3pm The Nurse is able to assist with a number of practical steps to support your medical needs. THESE INCLUDE: General health advice, such as Smoking, Diet, Alcohol consumption, on-going illness or health concerns Practical health checks, such as Blood Pressure monitoring, Blood Glucose checks and Sexual Health screens Contraception advice, free condoms, pregnancy testing and emergency sanitary products Advice on how to register with a GP or Dentist and how to claim costs Provide one-off, non-prescription analgesics Treat cuts, burns, scalds and other minor injuries Sign out FE students if they are unwell and need to leave the premises Our Mental Health & Wellbeing Service is committed to helping you access the most appropriate support and information. As such, all first appointments relating to mental health and wellbeing take the form of an initial assessment with a member of the team (either a Counsellor or Mental Health and Wellbeing Adviser). INITIAL ASSESSMENT The purpose of this appointment is to provide you with an opportunity to discuss your main concerns and to explore your needs in a confidential and supportive environment. It will give you the opportunity to discuss what service and/or support is appropriate following the assessment. It may be agreed that one-to-one support through UCB is most appropriate, such as counselling and/or mental health advice. You may be offered a place on one of UCB’s Wellbeing Courses, which cover a range of areas including relaxation, overcoming anxiety, and managing sleep problems. These courses can provide the opportunity to meet like-minded people in similar situations, and can relieve the feeling of isolation that often comes with these types of difficulties. Alternatively, it may be that the service supports you in referral to other agencies or organisations, such as your registered GP or an external mental health service. The assessment lasts approximately 30 minutes, but this can vary. After the initial session, you may experience a wait to begin therapy at UCB or with other providers. At peak times of the year, this may be up to three weeks. However, external service providers may be significantly longer. The Nurse also works very closely with both internal and external partners such as Umbrella Sexual Health, The National Unplanned Pregnancy Advisory Service (NUPAS), Rape and Sexual Violence Project (RSVP) and Birmingham LGBT to promote physical and emotional wellbeing at UCB. The Nurse can also provide advice on relevant services that may be required, but not directly available at UCB. 4 5