The length of time between psychosis starting and treatment beginning is one of the strongest predictors of how someone does over the following years. That is the entire rationale for early intervention.
What EPIP is
The Early Psychosis Intervention Programme at the Institute of Mental Health provides early detection and management for people aged 12 to 40 experiencing early psychosis, and for people aged 16 to 30 at elevated risk of developing it.
Care is delivered across inpatient, outpatient and community settings by a multidisciplinary team: psychiatrists, nurses, case managers, psychologists, medical social workers, occupational therapists and peer support specialists. Peer support specialists include people in recovery and caregivers, which means families encounter someone who has been where they are. The programme typically supports a person for two to three years.
The service includes individualised case management, counselling, psychoeducation, psychological and vocational assessment, psychotherapy, crisis intervention, and recreational activities through Club EPIP. Its inpatient centre has 24 beds.
For young people not yet in the system
CHAT, the Community Health Assessment Team, provides youth mental health assessment and is designed to be approachable for people who have never used a mental health service.
What families can do while arranging assessment
- Write down what you have observed and when. Clinicians need a timeline, and the person may not be able to give one.
- Reduce pressure and stimulation at home. Fewer demands, less noise, predictable routine.
- Do not argue with the content of a belief. Respond to the distress underneath it.
- Keep substances out of the picture where you can; cannabis in particular complicates early psychosis.
- Protect sleep, which deteriorates early and makes everything else worse.
If there is immediate danger
Call 995. For urgent advice at any hour, national mindline is on 1771.
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