Staff wear colourful new uniforms as service to treat depression re-opens

Nurses running an innovative service for people suffering with depression have colourful new uniforms to wear as the service re-opens after a period of closure due to the Coronavirus Pandemic.

Staff from Essex Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (EPUT) are greeting patients at Brentwood Resource Centre wearing scrubs made from beautiful floral fabric donated by iconic store Liberty London.

The team provides Repetitive, Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS), a non-invasive and effective treatment for patients experiencing depression who have not responded to standard pharmacological treatments.

Magnetic stimulation is used to target the part of the brain that regulates mood.

The service closed as a result of restrictions in place during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic but is now able to re-open safely.

To mark the re-opening, a volunteer seamstress from Bishop’s Stortford kindly offered to sew the scrubs.

Lynn McGhee, Associate Director of Inpatient and Emergency Care, said: “I am really pleased that we are able to offer this service once again. A number of measures have been put in place to allow us to re-open safely and help people suffering with depression during what is a challenging time for many.

“I would like to thank Liberty London for their generous donation and seamstress Julia O’Sullivan for giving up her time to turn the fabric into such beautiful workwear for the team.

“One in four of us will be affected by mental illness at some point in our lives and it is so important we talk openly and honestly about it. I hope the colourful new uniforms go some way to reassuring patients that we are here to help when they need us most.”

The rTMS service opened in January 2018 and the treatment has been approved by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE).

Patients can be referred for treatment via their GP or self-refer privately. Potential patients not under the case of a psychiatrist can be seen by a consultant psychiatrist who delivers the service. The psychiatrist will be able to assess their suitability for treatment.

For more information please contact the rTMS Team on 0800 0113024 or epunft.essexrtms@nhs.net