Background This project was initiated in a District General Hospital on a 44 bedded general paediatric ward. Young people who presented with complex mental health problems and were admitted to the ward with a variety of presentations which included self-harm, eating disorders, psychosis and anxiety.

The lack of Tier 4 Child and Adolescent Mental Health (CAMH) beds meant that that these young people could spend a large amount of time on the unit while waiting transfer to a specialist CAMH centre. Nursing staff had expressed concern over their knowledge, skill and competence to care for these complex young people.

Aims The aim of this project was to provide training to nursing staff to improve their confidence and knowledge in caring for children and young people with mental health problems including:

• Anxiety and depression

• Self harm and suicide

• Eating disorders

Methods A bespoke package of training was developed for the ward nurses. An evaluation survey was created to measure confidence and knowledge of the nurses who attended the training. This survey was completed by participants before the training, immediately after training, and 3 months after the training.

Results There were 8 participants included in the pilot project. At the time of completing this abstract the 3 month results were being collated.

Table to show scores for questions:

Conclusion In all areas evaluated, the training improved nurses’ confidence and knowledge in caring for children and young people with mental health problems.