After You’d Gone: How mental health service users are affected when their consultant leaves

As a result of organisational change, mental health professionals often move across services within the NHS. However, little is known about the impact this has on service users who are in receipt of psychiatric services. This article presents findings from a small exploratory qualitative study into the experiences of service users under a community mental health team following a service restructure. Nine service users, who had been on the caseload of their consultant psychiatrist and psychologist for at least one year, took part in face-to-face interviews, which were subsequently analysed following the principles of Grounded Theory. Findings suggested that service users were affected by their consultant leaving in a variety of ways, ranging from grief reactions to improved self-efficacy. The authors concluded that service users can be significantly affected by their consultant leaving, and this should be taken into account when planning restructures of mental health services. Implications for practice are discussed.