Ethos and approach
Effective implementation of local interface guidance and attendance to the wider system of care will enable key principles to be embedded within service delivery:
1.
Co-occurring conditions are supported concurrently.
2.
Services and pathways are responsive to changing needs across the spectrum of co-occurring mental health and substance use.
3.
Services can provide 'in-house' support for co-occurring conditions.
4.
There are planning pathways for sustainable transitions into communities and recovery-oriented systems of care.
To create the conditions for effective implementation and improve services and outcomes for individuals with co-occurring conditions, the following should be focused on:
1.
Culture change is required to enable integrated care, reduce stigma and discrimination, deliver holistic models of care, and increase the visibility and value of services across the recovery-oriented system of care.
2.
Relationships between staff in different services should be actively fostered to build understanding and awareness of other services, and ensure staff are able to get specialist input as required.
3.
Strong leadership is required to bring together different services and workstreams, to create a shared vision for services and to support and enable the workforce.
4.
Workforce development and support for staff wellbeing needs to ensure staff feel confident and enabled to respond to and make decisions regarding overlapping needs. Staff should have an understanding of needs and presentations outside of their own specialism. This can be supported by access to protected time, supervision, mentoring, training continuous professional development and co-occurring conditions networks.