MBU Outreach Service

The Mother and Baby Unit (MBU) Outreach Service provides assessment and intensive support/treatment of women who would otherwise be admitted to our MBU - Jasmine Lodge, and facilitates early discharge from the MBU in order to prevent relapse and readmission.

The service predominantly supports mothers from across Cornwall, Devon and Somerset, although will accept admissions from other areas of the country if bed availability is limited.

Our MBU Outreach Service offers assessment and treatment of the mother’s mental illness whilst ensuring the developing relationship with their baby.

The service works with mums who are experiencing a severe episode of mental illness. This includes mums who might benefit from an admission to our Mother and Baby Unit (MBU) - Jasmine Lodge - and require additional support.

Jasmine Lodge is located in Exeter and the practitioners from our Outreach Service are based across Devon, Cornwall and Somerset. They work collaboratively with other local health services to ensure mums and their families receive joined-up care, when and where they need it. Our service also includes access to a perinatal consultant psychiatrist, specialist doctor and clinical pharmacist.

We aim to offer:

• High quality, consistent and patient-centred care.
• Parity of services across Cornwall, Devon and Somerset.
• A cohesive, team working approach with the mother, baby and family at the centre of the service delivered.

Inclusion criteria:

The Outreach Service accepts referrals for mothers who would benefit from an admission to an MBU: 

• From 32 weeks pregnant up to 12 months postnatal (referrals received beyond 9 months will require special consideration as to the benefit of an MBU admission).
• Experiencing (or at risk from experiencing) acute and/or severe mental illness in the perinatal period and cannot be safely supported by existing local services.
• Severe bonding or attachment difficulties with the baby, secondary to maternal perinatal mental illness.
• Young women aged under the age of 18, if there is significant perinatal mental illness and they are likely to be the principal carer of the baby.

Exclusion Criteria:

Mothers will not be under the care of the Outreach Service if:

• They are not admission vulnerable.
• They have a condition of mild to moderate severity that does not require the Specialised Perinatal Mental Health services and/or can be managed effectively in Primary Care.
• They have a severe personality disorder, learning disability or substance misuse unless they are also suffering from serious or complex mental illness.

Accessing the service:

A health care professional who is currently working with you can make a referral to us. This may be your doctor, midwife, health visitor or a mental health practitioner. They will discuss this with you before completing our referral form. We are not able to accept self-referrals.

Referral criteria:

Women who are experiencing significant mental health difficulties during the last trimester of their pregnancy (32 weeks +) or if they have a baby less than 12 months of age
Women who present with an immediate physical risk to their baby, or others, cannot be accepted and may need to initially be admitted to an adult acute ward until the risk reduces.

Referral process:

• Emergency admissions are accepted 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
• Jasmine Lodge MBU is on WebBeds a website for NHS professionals to find a Mother and Baby Unit bed anywhere in England
• Referrals will be supported by the completion of the national perinatal mental health service inpatient referral form.
• Out of hours referrals for inpatient admission direct to MBU Nurse In Charge.
• To support clinical decision-making, contact can be made with the MBU/Outreach Duty Worker in order to discuss any potential referral.

Operating Hours

We operate Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm (excluding bank holidays). You can contact us on 01392 539100.
Duty Worker available Monday to Friday 10am-4pm, outside of these hours please contact Jasmine Lodge and ask for the Nurse in Charge.