Please see the Scottish Mental Health Service for Deaf People which provides specialist support throughout Scotland, but is hosted by NHS Lothian. The service provides:
- Advice on local management of deaf people with moderate or severe mental health problems which present challenges in assessment and/or treatment across Scotland
- Assessment and/or treatment of patients at request of or in liaison with local clinicians on an outreach basis
- Advice/assessment of the possible requirement for specialist inpatient treatment
- Provision of training in deaf awareness and deaf mental health issues for mental health professionals.
Please see NHS Lothian Services for further detail on referral processes.
Lothian Services
The Lothian Deaf Community Mental Health Services provides information on what is available for people living in Lothian who are deaf and who have mental health or emotional problems. The NHS Lothian website gives further details and:
- Outlines in a sign language video, with subtitles, what is available
- Provides a leaflet for professionals
- Provides a leaflet for patients.
Who to refer:
Deaf, deafened, hard of hearing and deafblind adults who live in Lothian and registered with a Lothian GP. The service offers help to those who are:
- 18+ years of age
- Have moderate to severe mental health needs and are likely to respond to time-limited psychological or social interventions
- Are experiencing mental, psychological or emotional problems which compromise health and wellbeing.
Who not to refer:
Children; adults without a significant hearing loss.
How to refer:
Please contact the service first to discuss suitability of referral. Full details of how to refer are in the leaflet for professionals.
Contact details
- Tel: 0131 556 3128 or 07815 637 024
- Email: ldcmhs@deafaction.org.
Referrals can be made in writing to:
LDCMHS Deaf Action Head Office 49 Albany Street, Edinburgh EH1 3QY.
The Lothian Deaf Counselling Service is free to those aged 18 or over with mental health or emotional difficulties.
- British Society of Mental Health and Deafness www.bsmhd.org.uk Tel: 07880 715 427
- Deaf Action www.deafaction.org. Tel: 01315563128 SMS: 07775620757
- North East Sensory Service www.nesensoryservices.org. Tel: 03452712345
- Deaf Scotland (Previously SCoD) www.deafscotland.org
- Hearing Link www.hearinglink.org
- Contact Scotland BSL Contact Scotland (contactscotland-bsl.org)
- Royal National Institute for Deaf People RNID www.rnid.org.uk
- Mental Health Self Help Leaflets in BSL available at https://web.ntw.nhs.uk/selfhelp/
- Breathing Space https://breathingspace.scot/other-languages-and-formats/british-sign-language-bsl/
- Sign Health https://www.signhealth.org.uk/
- British Deaf Association https://bda.org.uk
- Crisis text support Text: DEAF to 8525 https://www.giveusashout.org/get-help/
