Depending on where you are travelling from and who has referred you, you will either be asked to attend for an assessment prior to your admission date, or you will be assessed when you arrive at Cotswold House.

The assessment will usually be with the Consultant Psychiatrist and a member of the nursing team.  You will also be seen by one of our GPs, and we will take bloods and do an electrocardiogram (ECG) on your first day.

You will be shown to your room and given some time to unpack and settle in.

Over the first couple of days, you will be introduced to your care team and meet with the dietician to discuss your meal plan.

There is a patient information booklet in each bedroom which details all the important things you need to know about Cotswold House.  Staff are also on hand to help you settle in and get used to the daily routine.

Length of stay will vary from person to person.  It depends on treatment goals, physical health, support available after admission and engagement in treatment.  Usually treatment goals will be decided at the start of treatment, and regularly reviewed throughout.

Yes, all inpatients are weighed twice a week.  This allows us to monitor your progress effectively.  Mostly, day patients are weighed once a week.

Patients are free to use their mobile phones on the ward, but they are not permitted at the dining table and in groups or individual therapy sessions. See also our mobile phone policy.

Visiting hours are 19.00-21.00 Monday to Friday, and 14.00-21.00 at the weekends (avoiding snacks and mealtimes).  If you have particular requests to visit outside of these times, this can be discussed in our weekly clinical meeting.  However, we can not accomodate regular visits outside of the specified times.

As you progress through treatment, we encourage therapeutic home leave in order to help prepare for discharge.  The length and amount of home leave will be different for different individuals, and we do also try hard to consider the distance that you need to travel.  We have guidelines for home leave in terms of BMI and physical health – these can be found in the patient information books on the ward.

Everbody is allocated a primary nurse, a secondary nurse and two support workers; your care team.  Your primary nurse is your first contact for your treatment plan.  You will also be allocated a specific member of staff for each shift, who will be able to offer you 1:1 time.  Where possible, you will be allocated to a member of your own care team.

A CPA (care plan approach) review is a meeting that includes you, staff from Cotswold House and members of your home team (the team that will support you when you are discharged from Cotswold House).  You are also free to invite family members or anybody else that you would like to attend.

The meetings aim to discuss how your current treatment is progressing and agree some actions/goals between now and your next CPA.  Your input is very important to the CPA and your primary nurse will discuss this with you before the meeting.

It is a good opportunity to review what you want to achieve from treatment.  CPA meetings usually take place every 6-8 weeks and you will have a final CPA shortly before your are discharged.