Sickle cell and thalassaemia psychology

We offer psychological services to everyone who uses our sickle cell and thalassaemia service.

Telephone number: 020 8453 2050, call us from 9am to 5pm
Location: Brent Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia Centre, Central Middlesex Hospital

Sickle cell disease and thalassaemia can have a profound impact on your life, and on your family. We provide a psychology service which is designed to support you and run seamlessly alongside your medical and nursing care.

We offer psychological services to everyone who uses our sickle cell and thalassaemia service. You will be fully assessed before you are offered any intervention, and we always follow up with you in the community.

Our aims are to:

• reduce the suffering you experience as a result of your symptoms (including pain)
• reduce your psychological distress by addressing any emotional problems
• increase your ability to cope, by supporting you to learn appropriate and effective strategies
• support you in following your medical treatment
• improve your overall quality of life.

We provide:

• psychological assessments for everyone who uses our sickle cell and thalassaemia service
• psychological educational group work for children and young people
• transition sessions for young people as they become adults
• individual cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) sessions for everyone who uses our service
• problem-solving therapy for you and your carers, if you have them
• neuropsychological assessments for everyone who uses your service
• self-referral and drop in service 
• consultation and school liaison for any educational concerns 
• referrals to other psychology services, agencies, and voluntary organisations 
• training for health and allied professionals 
• research and development.

At our clinics, we:

• run psychology outpatient clinics for children and adults once a week as part of the sickle cell and thalassaemia clinics at Central Middlesex Hospital.
• offer additional psychology sessions by scheduled appointments
• provide support for people who need day care and inpatient care at Central Middlesex and Northwick Park Hospitals.

If you are living with sickle cell disease or thalassaemia, you may find the following organisations helpful:

• Brent Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia Centre
• Sickle Cell Society
• United Kingdom Thalassaemia Society
• NHS Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia Newborn Screening Programme
• British Association for Behavioural & Cognitive Psychotherapies (BABCP)