Traumatic Stress Service

This service is for people over the age of 18 year (there is no upper age limit) who have a GP in either Sutton, Merton, Wandsworth, Kingston or Richmond boroughs. 

Our opening hours

Monday - Friday: 09.00 - 17.00

Our core team is made up of clinical and counselling psychologists and a team administrator. We also have an assistant psychologist who works part-time on our research and training projects. 

Our core team is:

Team Administrator: Bartholomew Tenerowicz

Consultant Clinical Psychologist: Dr Sharif El-Leithy

Principal Clinical Psychologist: Dr Eleanor Cross

Principal Clinical Psychologist: Dr Abigail Pain

Highly Specialist Clinical Psychologist: Dr Alicia Griffiths

Highly Specialist Clinical Psychologist: Dr Lauren Williams

Highly Specialist Clinical Psychologist: Dr Maria Mateen

Highly Specialist Counselling Psychologist: Dr Jenny Rahemtulla

Highly Specialist Counselling Psychologist: Dr Alex Kasozi

Highly Specialist Clinical Psychologist: Dr Belinda Graham

Assistant Psychologist: Andrea Phillips

Once your referral is accepted, we will write to you to offer you an assessment appointment.   We ask you to confirm by phone or in writing that you can attend.

Assessments take place at the clinic at Springfield Hospital, Tooting, with a psychologist. This will usually take 2-3 sessions of 1-1.5 hours.  The assessment involves finding out about you and your experiences and asking you some questions about the problems you are having. They might ask you a little bit about your current living situation and any treatment you have had in the past.

It is not usually important in the assessment to go into a lot of detail about the traumatic events, but they might ask you to briefly tell them as much as you feel comfortable to say.

At the end of the assessment, the psychologist will discuss your case with the team, and then arrange to meet again and give you feedback about your diagnosis and treatment options.  This is a chance for you to ask any questions and for the psychologist to explain to you about what treatment may involve, so you can decide if it is something you would like to try.

After the assessment we write a letter back to your GP and your referrer, telling them about the assessment and about what our plan for treatment was. If it was agreed that treatment in our service would be suitable for you, your name will then be placed on our waiting list for treatment.

If, when you come for an assessment, you need any special arrangements made, e.g., an interpreter, or you would prefer to see either a male or female therapist, please let us know prior to the assessment and we can organise it. 

Tel: 0203 513 4304 or 020 3513 5000

traumaticstress@swlstg.nhs.uk

Access to the TSS is via written referral, and should include detailed information on the patient’s background and personal history, treatment history, trauma history and current mental state including symptoms of PTSD.

The service accepts referrals from local Talking Therapies teams (IAPT), secondary care (RST) and specialist mental health services. 

Please see our referral form.

Please see our referral guidelines.

Referrals from outside our Trust catchment area are also sometimes accepted where funding is agreed. More information on our referrals process can be found here.

Useful links

Living with a parent or guardian with PTSD leaflet

NICE Guidelines for PTSD

https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/cg26

Mind: Understanding PTSD

http://www.mind.org.uk/information-support/types-of-mental-health-problems/post-traumatic-stress-disorder-ptsd/

Royal College of Psychiatrists: PTSD Leaflet

http://www.rcpsych.ac.uk/healthadvice/problemsdisorders/posttraumaticstressdisorder.aspx

Help Guide

http://www.helpguide.org/articles/ptsd-trauma/post-traumatic-stress-disorder.htm

Combat Stress

http://www.combatstress.org.uk/

Rape Crisis

http://rapecrisis.org.uk/

Women’s Aid – Domestic Abuse

http://www.womensaid.org.uk/

Refuge – Domestic Violence

http://www.refuge.org.uk/