New digital tool helps nurses provide mental health support to those in urgent need
Mental health nurses at Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (EPUT) are adopting an innovative new solution that will help them provide proactive care to people who need it the most.
Community mental health teams in Castle Point, Rayleigh, Rochford, Brentwood and Thurrock have been using the digital Monitoring and Supervision Tool (MaST) developed by Holmusk.
One of the key challenges nurses face is balancing large and complex caseloads.
In just 10 minutes a day, MaST helps nurses prioritise their patients’ care and flags any issues in urgent need of attention.
MaST employs an algorithm which takes into account a number of different factors that might influence a patient’s needs – like housing, medications, disabilities and other health conditions – and highlights where a patient may need additional support.
The dashboard highlights patients who may be at increased risk of crisis. It also flags when patients have not been contacted recently, or need a follow-up appointment.
While MaST is not designed to replace nurses’ clinical expertise and judgement in managing their caseloads, it brings a range of relevant information into one place, enabling nurses to make informed, evidence-based decisions.
Peace Raji, Southend Community Mental Health Team Manager, said: “We use MaST within our team, and I have found the information dashboards very helpful. They are easy to use and give us an overview of our caseloads and any outstanding tasks. We use MaST regularly in our clinical supervisions.”
By helping nurses prioritise their caseloads, MaST helps them reach out to patients when they need them the most. Patients can feel confident that nurses will be there at key points in their care, offering consistent and effective support. This, in turn, helps reduce a person’s risk of experiencing a mental health crisis and helps them recover safely in the community.
Natalie Hammond, Executive Chief Nurse at EPUT, said: “Patient safety is our number one priority. We’re excited about the potential digital solutions such as MaST hold for improving safety and quality of care.
“MaST is easy to use and helps nurses manage one of the most challenging aspects of their job role – balancing a busy caseload.
“By rolling out MaST across our community mental health teams, we are empowering our nurses to manage their priorities and provide safe, effective care to our patients.”