IMPARTS is an initiative by King’s Health Partners that aims to bring together physical and mental healthcare. Living with a long-term health problem can carry a significant emotional burden, and too often this is not addressed by healthcare services. We believe in treating the whole person as one, not just a collection of symptoms.

IMPARTS is a tool used in healthcare settings. Using an iPad, patients are asked a few questions about how they have been thinking and feeling recently. These questions are used to identify those in need of psychological support, and IMPARTS then recommends appropriate assistance where it is needed.

Watch below to hear Fiona’s story of how IMPARTS helped her after she broke her leg.

Why is Integrating Care Important?

Did you know that 30% of people with long-term physical health conditions, such as diabetes, arthritis or heart problems, also have a mental health condition, such as depression or anxiety?

Evidence shows that by joining up physical and mental healthcare, we can help someone to manage their different conditions, improve their health outcomes, and even prevent unnecessary health problems for some people by identifying risk early.

This short video by the King’s Health Partners Mind and Body Programme explains why joining up care can benefit us all.

IMPARTS Free Online Course

We have recently launched a free online course which focuses on understanding and managing depression and anxiety in the context of long-term physical health conditions. To find out more or to sign up for updates, please visit the Future Learn website.

Self-Help Materials

IMPARTS has also developed a range bespoke self-help materials that are freely available here. These focus on psychological support tailored to specific physical health conditions, or to living with a physical health condition more generally. They include downloadable leaflets as well as mindfulness podcasts, and cover topics such as depression in rheumatology, anxiety, stress, sleep hygiene, needle phobia, pain management, breathlessness, activity scheduling, alcoholism and problem drinking, understanding mind-body interaction, living with Irritable Bowel Disease, living with health problems, and problem-solving.

IMPARTS and Research

IMPARTS is primarily a clinical tool used to improve patient care. On occasion IMPARTS data may be used for research purposes, in accordance with our ethical approval from the NHS Research Ethics Committee. Screening data will only ever be shared with carefully selected NHS or university staff. All personally identifiable patient details will be removed before this happens. Our Research Privacy Policy can be read here. Please see our IMPARTS Research Governance Summary to find out more. If you do not wish for your data to be used for research purposes please contact us by email at imparts@kcl.ac.uk with your name and hospital number (if you know it).