Search results

National mental health policies in the UK have a common theme of seeking to develop working partnerships between people who use mental health services, their families and carers and professionals. In Somerset, following a staff training programme, a Family Liaison Service has been developed whereby systemically trained staff work alongside inpatient staff to hold family meetings as part of the assessment and admission process on all wards for working age adults and older people. This article aims to focus on this initiative.

The article considers the development of the Family Liaison Service and evaluates its progress based on audit data, feedback from families using the service, and a survey of staff experience. Issues raised in developing family inclusive services are discussed.

Evaluation of the service suggests that, although there is still progress to be made, considerable success has been achieved in embedding the service on inpatient units with a substantial increase in meetings held between staff and families. Feedback from families is positive and staff report increased confidence in engaging with families and carers.

This article describes a transferable model for the implementation of national policy to develop working partnerships with families and carers in mainstream mental health services.

Families of children with disabilities experience many challenges, which Sparkle’s Family Liaison Service (FLS) aims to alleviate. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of the service.

Qualitative interviews with ten families who had accessed the FLS and 14 professionals working with children with disabilities were conducted in 2020. Interview transcripts were analysed using inductive and deductive thematic analysis.

Families valued an accessible service and a neutral individual who could empathise with them. Professionals highlighted the FLS relieving pressure they felt to provide informal support for families they work with, resulting in considerable time saving.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first evaluation of the novel FLS meeting the unmet needs of families of children with disabilities. The service equips and empowers caregivers to enhance their own lives and the lives of their children and family.

The purpose of this paper is to consider the key themes highlighted by Collins et al., in light of the wider research evidence base on informal sources of support for families of children with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

This commentary reflects on the provision of informal support services for families of children with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

The wider literature highlights the key role of family support in shifting negative narratives concerning parenting a child with intellectual and developmental disabilities, the impact of austerity and COVID-19 on support provision and the importance of services working effectively in collaboration to promote self-determination for families and individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Continued efforts to explore how services and informal social supports might work together in an effective manner are key to improving the quality of life of parents caring for children with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Allely and Dubin (2018) and Allely et al. (2019) have emphasised that there are a range of innate vulnerabilities in many individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) who are charged with the viewing of indecent images of children (IIOC). Currently, the association between ASD and the viewing of IIOC is poorly recognised and understood both by the general public and clinical and legal professionals.

This is a detailed case study exploring the contributory role of ASD symptomology in the viewing of IIOC. In this case study, the experience of the criminal justice system is also explored.

It is hoped that this case study will provide insight into and understanding of how ASD can in some cases be the context for vulnerability to the viewing of IIOC and raise awareness of the need to consider this at all stages of the criminal justice system, including while making sentencing decisions. This case study paper will also more effectively inform the development of appropriate preventative strategies and timely interventions.

To the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the first detailed case study which explores the contributory role of ASD symptomology in the viewing of IIOC in the academic peer-reviewed literature.

The purpose of this paper is to assess the impact of a mental health carers’ research reference group on mental health research in the Heart of England region.

The methodology was a co-produced participatory evaluation, and the research was co-produced by the group. The design involved a literature review of carers’ involvement in UK mental health research, and collection of secondary data (group records) and primary data from researchers, group members, and facilitators. Analysis was initially thematic, then synthesised.

The group’s work had a positive impact on researchers and group members, and to some extent on mental health research and networks more widely. No negative impact was identified.

The researchers were not able to contact or include everyone who had been involved with the group. Some of those who did not give input may have felt less positive about the group than those who did respond. Co-production does not signify equality. Evaluation inevitably involves bias.

The conclusion is that mental health carers have a unique and positive contribution to make to mental health research, and have the right to be involved in such research in a non-tokenistic way. This has practical implications for mental health and mental health research services.

This is the first mental health carer-controlled evaluation of a mental health carer research reference group. Mental health carers conducted the research and wrote this paper, giving a perspective rarely found in the literature. This has value for people working in, studying, and researching mental health, and for other mental health carers.

This chapter qualitatively explored the impact of including parent liaisons (i.e., parents with lived experience caring for a child with complex needs, who support other caregivers in navigating child and family needs) in a case conferencing model for children with complex medical/social needs. Case conferences are used to address fragmented care, shared decision-making, and set patient-centered goals. Seventeen semi-structured interviews were conducted with clinicians and parent liaisons to assess the involvement of parent liaisons in case conferencing. Two main themes included benefits of parent liaison involvement (10 subthemes) and challenges to parent liaison involvement (5 subthemes). Clinicians reported that liaison participation and support of patients reduced stress for clinicians as well as family members. Challenges to liaison involvement included clinical team/parent liaison communication delays, which were further exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Parent liaison involvement in case conferences is perceived to be beneficial to children with complex needs, their families, and the clinical team. Integration of liaisons ensures the familial perspective is included in clinical goal setting.

The purpose of this paper is to improve the health and criminal justice outcomes for people who come into contact with the criminal justice system. People with learning disabilities (LD) are particularly vulnerable to health and social inequalities within the criminal justice system.

Using examples from practice, this paper discusses some of the challenges and achievements experienced by a LD nurse employed within a liaison and diversion service within the North-West of England.

Whilst the specific functions of liaison and diversion practitioners are detailed by National Health Service (NHS) England (2014), complexities in communication, multi-disciplinary working and role recognition affect the embedment of the role in practice.

The implications for practice are identified and recommendations for further research made. These seek to evaluate the impact of liaison and diversion services from the perspectives of LD nurses within liaison and diversion services, people with LD, their families and the wider multi-disciplinary team.

NHS England (2015) are in the process of evaluating of liaison and diversion services. This paper adds to the evaluation by discussing the experiences of a LD nurse within a liaison and diversion service through the inclusion of activity data and illustrative examples.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the challenges that are experienced by staff responsible for commissioning liaison psychiatry services and to establish if these are shared by other health professionals.

Using a mixed-methods design, the findings from a mental health commissioner workshop (n = 12) were used to construct a survey that was distributed to health care professionals using an opportunistic framework (n = 98).

Four key themes emerged from the workshop, which was tested using the survey. The importance of secure funding; a better understanding of health care systems and pathways; partnership working and co-production and; access to mental health clinical information in general hospitals. There was broad convergence between commissioners, mental health clinicians and managers, except in relation to gathering and sharing of data. This suggests that poor communication between professionals is of concern.

There were a small number of survey respondents (n = 98). The sampling used an opportunistic framework that targeted commissioner and clinician forums. Using an opportunistic framework, the sample may not be representative. Additionally, multiple pairwise comparisons were conducted during the analysis of the survey responses, increasing the risk that significant results were found by chance.

A number of steps were identified that could be applied in practice. These mainly related to the importance of collecting and communicating data and co-production with commissioners in the design, development and monitoring of liaison psychiatry services.

This is the first study that has specifically considered the challenges associated with the commissioning of liaison psychiatry services.

This paper offers an introduction to understanding some of the issues that health and care practitioners might like to consider when supporting the health and well‐being of gypsy elders. The significance of nomadic life and the implications of planning laws on the reported quality of life experienced by gypsy elders is essential to understanding their health needs. The paper also offers an introduction to understanding some of the aspects of health and social care provision that currently impact on the take up of health and care services by gypsy elders. It then makes suggestions about ways of offering services and working with gypsy elders in ways that are culturally appropriate and respectful of their traditions. The authors had the privilege of working with the Derbyshire Gypsy Liaison Group as part of a larger national project on working with black and minority ethnic elders to help improve their mental health. The authors do not claim to be experts on gypsy health but are offering to share their learning as an introduction to understanding and meeting some of the cultural needs of gypsy elders when providing health and social care.