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The purpose of this study is to assess if the new community-enhanced rehabilitation team reduced anxiety and readmissions in service users discharged from an inpatient rehabilitation setting.

The study used both qualitative and quantitative methodology. Service user’s anxiety level was measured before being discharged and at the end of the Community Enhanced Rehabilitation Team (CERT) transition intervention. Six service users were interviewed to gain further understanding of their experiences of anxiety.

Findings showed the anxiety score was significantly lower (M = 1.5, 95% CI [0.051,2.99], t(20) = 2.159, p = 0.043) following the CERT intervention (M = 8.6, SD = 6.4) compared to before (M = 10.1, SD = 7.0). No service user receiving the CERT intervention was readmitted to hospital within 12 weeks of discharge from the inpatient setting, compared to three service users (15% of those discharged) who were discharged to other community services.

Community rehabilitation pathways would benefit from having interventions to aid patient transitions from inpatient to the community. The National Health Service (NHS) trusts develop community rehabilitation teams as recommended by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), and they should consider including transitional support as part of their model.

It is recommended that as NHS trusts design and implement community mental health teams, they should consider including transition support as part of their model.

People with severe and enduring mental health difficulties who have been in an inpatient rehabilitation setting would benefit from community transitional support. This study suggests that such support helps reduce anxiety and readmission.

Community rehabilitation teams are currently being developed across the NHS as part of the NHS long-term plan. These teams are new, and as such, there is a dearth of information regarding their effectiveness. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is one of the first studies to evaluate outcomes in these new teams.

The UK Mental Health Act (MHA) Reform (2021) on race and ethnicity promotes new governmental strategies to tackle inequalities faced by ethnically racialised communities detained under the MHA. However, there is a scarcity in personality disorder and ethnicity research. This study aims to investigate what is available in the UK in relation to prevalence, aetiology and treatment provisions of personality disorder for ethnically diverse patients, and to understand their interconnectedness with mental health and criminal justice service provisions. Three key areas of investigations were reviewed, (1) UK prevalence of personality disorder amongst ethnically diverse individuals; (2) aetiology of personality disorder and ethnicity; (3) treatment provisions for ethnically diverse individuals diagnosed with personality disorder.

A scoping study review involved a comprehensive scanning of literature published between 2003 and 2022. Screening and data extraction tools were co-produced by an ethnically diverse research team, including people with lived experience of mental health and occupational expertise. Collaborative work was complete throughout the review, ensuring the research remained valid and reliable.

Ten papers were included. Results demonstrated an evident gap in the literature. Of these, nine papers discussed their prevalence, three papers informed on treatment provisions and only one made reference to aetiology. This review further supports the notion that personality disorder is under-represented within ethnic minority populations, particularly of African, Caribbean and British heritage, however, the reasons for this are multi-facetted and complex, hence, requiring further investigation. The evidence collected relating to treatment provisions of personality disorder was limited and of low quality to reach a clear conclusion on effective treatments for ethnically diverse patients.

The shortage of findings on prevalence, aetiology and treatment provisions, emphasises the need to prioritise further research in this area. Results provide valuable insights into this limited body of knowledge from a UK perspective.

Individual Placement and Support (IPS) is an evidence-based employment model, effective in supporting individuals with severe mental health difficulties to gain competitive employment. Irish mental health policy recognises its value and IPS is being rolled out in a national programme. Employment is recognised an important contributor to mental health recovery and social inclusion. However, research on IPS has tended to focus on competitive job outcomes. The purpose of this study was to explore the non-vocational outcomes of IPS in an Irish context.

A qualitative research approach was used to interview participants taking part in IPS within community mental health teams. Twelve interviews were included in the data analysis process which was informed by a thematic analysis approach.

Participants experienced increased confidence and positivity, both within a work context and whilst job seeking. More purposeful time use, participation in activities and engagement with society were also experienced by those employed and those at the job search stage of IPS.

This study contributes to the literature about the non-vocational benefits of IPS within an Irish context, highlights the mental health recovery benefits of taking part in IPS and supports the need for ongoing development of IPS throughout mental health services in Ireland.

Mental health recovery across cultures lacks understanding and suitable measures. The Questionnaire about the Process of Recovery (QPR) is a self-report instrument measuring personal recovery outcomes for consumers of mental health services. However, the extent of its relevance among culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities is unclear. This pilot study aimed to examine the relevance and utility of the QPR among CALD consumers of primary mental health services in Australia.

Eleven individual, semi-structured interviews were conducted with two general practitioners (GPs) and nine consumers from two clinics, at locations with high Iranian and Burmese refugee or asylum seeker populations. Interviews were transcribed and analysed using a thematic framework approach.

Although almost all consumers had little or no understanding of the concept of personal recovery, they found the QPR culturally acceptable and understandable. Using the QPR during mental health consultations can help with needs identification and goal setting. Challenges in using the QPR included completion time, cross-cultural differences in concepts and norms for some items, and need for careful translation. Consumers suggested additional items regarding family reputation, sexuality, and spirituality.

The QPR is potentially a valuable tool to support mental health consultations with CALD consumers, from the perspectives of both GPs and consumers.

The purpose of this paper is to provide an example of patient-led co-production.

The New Economics Foundation’s six principles of co-production (nef, 2013) have been used to frame the activities undertaken during the author’s relationship with a community mental health nurse.

This paper describes a co-produced project between a patient and a community mental health nurse to create a range of resources and to deliver training, resulting in mutual benefit for both parties.

This paper invites policy makers to consider the unique role that community mental health nurses can play in supporting patients with long-term challenges that have developed because of an imbalance and an abuse of power within earlier relationships; by adopting a co-production approach, centred on the patient’s interests and skills, a working partnership can be achieved wherein both parties feel that they matter.

Co-production is usually used with groups of stakeholders working together in an equitable way to design or deliver a new service; this paper, however, seeks to demonstrate how the process can be effectively used when the project is patient-led within the context of a therapeutic relationship.

Clinical staff working in mental health services experience high levels of work-related stress, burnout and poor well-being. Increased levels of stress, burnout, depression and anxiety and poorer mental well-being among health-care workers are associated with more sick days, absenteeism, lower work satisfaction, increased staff turnover and reduced quality of patient care. Virtual reality (VR) relaxation is a technique whereby experiences of pleasant and calming environments are accessed through a head-mounted display to promote relaxation. The purpose of this paper is to describe the design of a study that assesses the feasibility and acceptability of implementing a multi-session VR relaxation intervention amongst mental health professionals, to improve their relaxation levels and mental well-being.

The study follows a pre–post-test design. Mental health staff will be recruited for five weeks of VR relaxation. The authors will measure the feasibility and acceptability of the VR relaxation intervention as primary outcomes, alongside secondary outcomes evaluating the benefits of VR relaxation for mental well-being.

The study aims to recruit 20–25 health-care professionals working in both inpatient and specialist community mental health settings.

Research indicates the potential of VR relaxation as a low-intensity intervention to promote relaxation and reduce stress in the workplace. If VR relaxation is shown to be feasible and acceptable, when delivered across multiple sessions, there would be scope for large-scale work to investigate its effectiveness as an approach to enable health-care professionals to de-stress, relax and optimise their mental well-being. In turn, this may consequently reduce turnover and improve stress-related sick leave across health-care services.

People living with severe mental illness (PLWSMI) experience disproportionately high rates of morbidity and mortality compared with the general population. Sydney Local Health District (SLHD) introduced the Living Well, Living Longer integrated care program in 2013 to address this inequity. This paper reports on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the provision of physical health interventions to community mental health consumers in SLHD.

Rates of COVID-19 vaccinations were collated. Routinely collected service data were reviewed for changes in rates of metabolic monitoring, mental health shared care, physical health checks, cardiometabolic health clinic assessments and diet and exercise interventions.

91.9% of consumers received at least two COVID-19 vaccinations and 61.3% received a booster. However, there was a 37.3% reduction in rates of metabolic monitoring, 20.1% reduction in Mental Health Shared Care agreements, 60.6% reduction in physical health checks with general practitioners, 65.4% reduction in cardiometabolic clinic assessments and 19.8% reduction of diet and exercise interventions.

The impact of the pandemic may lead to an exacerbation of poorly managed comorbid disease and increased premature mortality in people living with severe mental illness. Service providers should consider the local impact of the pandemic on the provision of physical health interventions and ensure steps are taken to address any deficits.

There is a paucity of published analysis regarding the impact of the pandemic on the provision of physical health interventions to people living with severe mental illness.

The purpose of this paper is to consider the role of the Mental Health Act (MHA) 1983 in safeguarding adults at risk of abuse and neglect. The author has undertaken a thematic review of Safeguarding Adults Reviews (SARs) commissioned in England and Adult Practice Reviews (APRs) commissioned in Wales where the MHA 1983 was a central aspect to the review.

Reviews were included based on specific determinants, following analysis of SARs, APRs and executive summaries. This should not affect the credibility of the research, as themes were identified in conjunction with analysis of literature regarding use of the MHA in the context of adult safeguarding. Consequently, this review has been underpinned by evidence-based research in the area of study.

The interaction between statutes, such as the MHA 1983 and Care Act 2014, signify challenges to professionals, with variable application of mental health legislation in practice.

Lack of a complete national repository for review reports means that it is likely that the data set analysis is incomplete. It was noted that limitations to this research include the fact that Safeguarding Adults Boards in England may not publish SAR reports or may choose to publish an executive summary or practice brief instead of the full SAR report, therefore limiting the scope of disseminating learning from SARs, as this is difficult to achieve where the full report has not been published. The author aimed to mitigate this by undertaking comprehensive searches of Local Authority and SAB websites, in addition to submitting Information requests to ensure that this research encompassed as many relevant review reports as possible.

This is an important and timely topic for debate, given that the UK Government is proposing reform of the MHA 1983. In addition, existing thematic reviews of SARS tend to be generalised, rather than specifically focused on the MHA.

This article aims to present a systematic review and synthesis of evidence on the experiences, role and use of IPE in IH fields by using a meta-ethnographic approach including key concepts, reciprocal and refutational translation and lines of argument. Inclusion health (IH) practice suggests that the needs of excluded groups are more effectively addressed through collaborative working. Interprofessional education (IPE) occurs when two or more professions engage in shared practice and learning, resulting in improved collaboration and quality of care. Studies on IPE to train staff in fields relating to IH exist, but without a settled consensus on the best approaches/activities to foster inclusive practice.

This synthesis is underpinned by a meta-ethnographic approach. It provides explicit stages of data collection and interpretation, while providing space to engage with emerging themes and concepts iteratively (reflecting on author experiences) and inductively (reasoning and interpretation). This study made use of electronic databases and journals for English language peer reviewed articles between 2000 and 2020. Of the 2217 articles, 19 papers were included. The lead author and reviewer completed the review process and a second reviewer reviewed 10% at each stage. The quality was assessed using a modified CASP checklist. Iterative analysis involved PPI and staff stakeholders.

A total of 16 concepts embedded in 19 papers provide insight into the nature of IPE in IH (IH) for staff. It was found that IPE in IH covers a broad group of practitioners and is a complex activity involving individual and organisation readiness, practical and pedagogical factors, influenced by setting, method, curriculum, lived experience, reflection and a learner-driven approach. Barriers to design, implementation and translation into practice were also found to exist.

Most studies used a combination of core learning and group work. Educational modes include mentoring or coaching, reflective practice, immersive learning and people lived experience of exclusion involved in or facilitation thematically centred in trauma-informed informed care, cultural competence, communities of practice and service learning. The aim of these methods was to promote collaboration through identifying shared experiences, problems and tensions and critical reflection of services and organisations. Such transformative learning is reported to challenge stigma, discrimination and misinformation and promote collective empowerment to address social injustice through human connection. Effective models of IPE re-instated the therapeutic relationship and alliances between patients and staff.

This review also calls for the development of health and care workers’ professionalism in relation to their own reflexivity, establishing anti-racist curricula, challenge stigma and ensuring clinicians are aware of and able to negotiate tension and difference identified within the consultation and between themselves. Apart from developing generalist skills, this analysis suggests that IPE in IH may be able to challenge stigma and discrimination towards IH groups by destabilising existing norms and siloed working with the aim of achieving robust interprofessional practice.

IPE in IH is a complex activity affected by individual and organisation readiness, setting, experiential, practical and pedagogical factors. Models of teaching are focused on re-instating the therapeutic relationship. There are no systematic reviews in this field and previously there was no settled consensus on the best approaches and learning activities to foster inclusive and collaborative practice.

This study aims to evaluate the use of videoconferencing when conducting multi-disciplinary team (MDT) and handover meetings within an NHS Adult Learning Disabilities Intensive Support Team (IST). The IST have been conducting MDT and handover meetings “virtually” since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020, in line with government guidance. It is pertinent to evaluate the effectiveness of using videoconferencing, as the move to flexible, remote working is detailed within the NHS Long Term Plan.

Participants were members of the IST. A mixed methods approach using an online questionnaire collected participant’s views relating to the use of videoconferencing when conducting MDT and handover meetings, in comparison to previous face-to-face meetings. The questionnaire considered five key areas: accessibility, environment and communication, organisation, continuation of care and data protection and confidentiality. Results were collated and analysed.

Improvements were reported relating to accessibility, as the virtual format allowed for easier attendance, provided greater flexibility in attending and inviting key stakeholders. A reduced sense of team connectedness was reported, related to the virtual environment. The majority of participants reported that they wish to continue to have the option to attend meetings virtually in future.

There are no previous papers evaluating the use of videoconferencing within ISTs during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study suggests that the use of videoconferencing to conduct MDT and handover meetings is effective within the IST and highlights points for consideration moving forward.