More patients with severe depression and suicidal ideation will be invited to try pioneering treatment using brain stimulation headsets as part of a Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust (LPT) pilot, thanks to funding secured by the Trust’s charity, Raising Health.

This World Suicide Prevention Day, the Trust is announcing that, due to the generosity of supporters and the tireless fundraising efforts of Raising Health, a total of £40,000 has been raised to purchase nearly 150 additional Flow headsets and headset pad refills.

Last year, LPT, which provides community and mental health services for all ages across Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland (LLR), became the first NHS mental health crisis service in the UK to pilot the use of Flow Neuroscience headsets.

The non-invasive devices use transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) to gently stimulate parts of the brain that help to regulate mood, sleep, and motivation. The pilot, led by the crisis mental health team at Bradgate Mental Health Unit, aimed to offer new hope to patients for whom traditional treatments or medication had failed or were not accessible.

The results of the pilot, which has so far treated over 160 patients, have been striking. Many patients said the treatment helped to change their lives. The pilot saw:

  • 71% of patients report a reliable reduction in their depressive symptoms within six weeks of use
  • The number of people having thoughts of suicide reduced by a third within three weeks of use and two thirds by 10 weeks of use.

The latest funding has not only sustained the pilot for patients of the crisis mental health team, but has also enabled its expansion into other LPT services. These include the Trust’s adult eating disorders inpatient service and specialist community mental health teams (CMHTs), which support people living with moderate to severe depression who have not responded to traditional treatments.

Dr Mark McConnochie, consultant psychiatrist at LPT, said: “There is real potential to support these patients in treating their depression and getting their lives back. Longer term, the Flow headsets could help us to provide an additional, effective treatment option, particularly if medication isn’t suitable.”

Anonymised patient case study

A 57-year-old woman who took part in the pilot saw improvements in her depression after less than two months.

The woman, who had brought up her two children on her own, had worked in hospitality for many years. However, after experiencing a number of emotionally abusive relationships she became unemployed and lived with periods of low mood and anxiety. She had also experienced a severe depressive episode which required hospitalisation.

When beginning treatment using a Flow headset her symptoms were severe. Within six weeks, her depression scores dropped significantly and she eventually went into remission, reporting that she had stopped having panic attacks or suicidal thoughts within the treatment period.

As tDCS therapy is not currently funded through core NHS budgets, access to this life-changing technology has relied entirely on charitable funding through the Raising Health charity and generous donations from:

  • Blaby District Council
  • Carlton Hayes Mental Health Charity
  • Duncan and Toplis Foundation
  • E H Smith Charitable Trust
  • Forterra Community Fund
  • Hobson Charity
  • Hospital Saturday Fund
  • Morrison’s Foundation
  • Westfield Health.

Dr Hannah Nearney, UK medical director for Flow Neuroscience, said: “It has been inspirational to work with Raising Health. Their dedication has enabled LPT to make faster progress than other NHS pilot sites, with fantastic results for patient care.”

 

Find out more about Raising Health, which funds projects to enhance patient care and wellbeing across Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust services.

 Mental health support 

  • We strongly encourage anyone who is experiencing troubling symptoms of depression or suicidal thoughts to seek support. More information about the full range of mental health support available locally is on the LPT website. This includes neighbourhood mental health cafes, a new social prescribing website (Joy) that has details of activities and support available locally, or by speaking with your GP surgery.
  • People looking for support for themselves or others struggling with their mental health or thoughts of suicide can also visit https://www.startaconversation.co.uk/ – which is the website for the Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Start a Conversation campaign. The site includes links to help, resources, news and training, and an area on suicide prevention and support.
  • For urgent mental health support please call NHS 111 option 2. You can also text 0748 063 5199 and a mental health professional will aim to get back to you within four hours.

Access to Flow headset treatment

NHS Flow headsets are currently only being offered in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland within LPT’s crisis mental health, specialist community mental health and adult eating disorder services, as part of quality improvement pilot project. This is limited to the treatment of a specific group of patients to understand more about this new treatment method. Unfortunately, we are not currently able to offer these headsets or treatment to patients open to other services, or who are receiving treatment for depression in primary care (through their GP).