Severe mental illness registers

The process of setting up severe mental illness registers, which were implemented by Heartlands primary care trust and disseminated to other PCTs in Northamptonshire are described.

Abstract

The concept of creating severe mental illness registers is not entirely new to mental health services, although it has not been applied to any great extent in primary care. This article describes the process of setting up severe mental illness registers, which were implemented by Heartlands primary care trust (PCT) and disseminated to other PCTs in Northamptonshire. Diagnostic criteria, the target population, maintaining the register and the physical health review are discussed.