What happens at appointments?
When you come to meet one of us at the CDC you will be seen in one of these rooms:
Turtle Room (Room 5 at the Child Development Centre)
Dolphin Room (Room 6 at the Child Development Centre)
Quiet Room (CYPOD Level 12 Derriford Hospital)
Video Appointments
We may be able to see you for a video appointment, we use a platform called Attend Anywhere which means you do not have to travel to CYPOD or the CDC. More information about video appointments can be found here https://www.plymouthhospitals.nhs.uk/videoconsult.
Here are some of our top tips for children and young people who are having Video appointments:
-
It’s really important to find a quiet and private place to do your session. You may not want to be overheard, and moving around can be distracting for you and for your psychologist. It’s best not to do this in your bedroom as you probably have lots of things in there to distract you!
-
Although you can use your mobile phone, an hour session is a long time to have to hold a small device so it’s much better to use a tablet, laptop or desktop computer if you have one. It’s also much easier for us to see and hear each other on a bigger screen.
-
We know some of you may already have headsets that you use for gaming; if you do it would be really helpful to use them for our sessions. Not only does it help improve the sound quality but it can also help you to focus on our work and not get distracted by things around you.
-
Even though you are at home or school for the video call, we need to make sure we can keep you safe, so before we start our sessions we will talk to you about what we need to do if we get cut off; who we should call or tell if we are worried you are upset. Your psychologist will do this with you the first time you talk.
This is what people have told us about using video therapy:
"My daughter found it easier than face to face. She engaged really well and Emily is just amazing"
"My son accessed a video meeting with his clinical psychologist. This was facilitated at a time that worked for us and helpfully a flexible approach was used to make him feel at ease"
Coming To See Us For The First Time (Assessment)
Your child’s first appointment will be an assessment with a member of our team. You do not need to prepare for this appointment. It is important to bring your child to the first appointment, however if you feel there are sensitive issues to discuss or they really don’t want to come then please come on your own.
In this appointment we will explain more about what we do and then ask lots of questions about:
- Things your child is struggling with at the moment or would like some support with
- Your family and your child’s early years
- Any illnesses or diagnoses your child may have and your child’s general health
- Your child’s relationships with friends and family
- School life
What happens after my assessment?
At the end of your first appointment we will decide what the best option for your child is. We may offer your child some support with a psychologist, ask our Children and Young People’s Wellbeing Practitioner to meet with you, or we may signpost you elsewhere if we feel that another service could provide your child with more appropriate support. We will summarise the assessment in a letter and send it to you and any other professionals involved.
Its really helpful to watch our video which covers what happens at and after the first appointment:
Future Appointments
What will the appointments be like if I am offered support with a Clinical Psychologist or CWP?
The majority of the work we offer is short term (8-10 sessions) but we may decide a longer term piece of work may be helpful. Appointments are usually between 45-60 minutes every week or every fortnight depending on the individual. Some of these sessions may be with the child only, some with only caregiver(s) and some may be with both child and caregiver(s). We might also meet with school or other health professionals. We might want you to complete some questionnaires before and after the therapy. These are used to track change over time and to make sure we are staying on track with our agreed goals.
Please be aware that there can be a long wait to see us for future appointments. If you are not able to make any planned appointments please do let us know as soon as possible so we can offer it to someone else.
Please see our video which tells you more about what a psychology intervention might involve:
