University of Leicester. Nuffield Community Care Studies Unit
Publication year:
1995
Pagination:
57p
Place of publication:
Leicester
The Health of the Nation document (1992) identified services for mentally disordered offenders (MDOs) as a priority problem. It is against this background that Leicestershire Health has asked for a literature review of services for this client category in order to inform the commissioning process. This review is chiefly concerned with the overall pattern of services which should be available for MDOs and does not include material specific to the technical skills of the various professionals who provide help for MDOs. For example, there is no discussion of the sorts of therapies which can be used for different sorts of offenders. It is assumed that such information will form part of individual professionals' own skills. Information is not given on specific client categories, such as women, ethnic minorities and people with learning disabilities, or on consumer views.
The Health of the Nation document (1992) identified services for mentally disordered offenders (MDOs) as a priority problem. It is against this background that Leicestershire Health has asked for a literature review of services for this client category in order to inform the commissioning process. This review is chiefly concerned with the overall pattern of services which should be available for MDOs and does not include material specific to the technical skills of the various professionals who provide help for MDOs. For example, there is no discussion of the sorts of therapies which can be used for different sorts of offenders. It is assumed that such information will form part of individual professionals' own skills. Information is not given on specific client categories, such as women, ethnic minorities and people with learning disabilities, or on consumer views.
Extended abstract:
Author:DREWETT Alison Title: A literature review of services for mentally disordered offenders Publisher: University of Leicester. Nuffield Community Care Studies Unit, 1995
Summary
This review is chiefly concerned with the overall pattern of services which should be available for mentally disordered offenders (MDOs), and does not include material specific to the technical skills of the various professionals who provide help for MDOs. For example, there is no discussion of the sorts of therapies which can be used for different sorts of offenders. It is assumed that such information will form part of individual professionals' own skills. Information is not given on specific client categories, such as women, ethnic minorities and people with learning disabilities, or on consumer views.
Context
The Health of the Nation document (1992) identified services for mentally disordered offenders (MDOs) as a priority problem. It is against this background that Leicestershire Health asked for a literature review of services for this client category in order to inform the commissioning process.
Contents
The introduction gives the background and explains how the review was carried out, concentrating chiefly on collecting unpublished and less readily available information (‘grey literature') from the varied agencies which purchase and provide services for this client category. Section 2 discusses numbers of mentally disordered offenders and the psychiatric needs of prisoners, those in contact with the probation service, those taken to police stations, and all offenders. Section 3 is about multi-agency working, discussing the problems and concluding that many agencies are now engaging in a multi-disciplinary approach and authorities are beginning to try to identify what works. The following chapters examine some of the services being put in place. Section 4 is on diverting MDOs, asking why this is done, describing where diversion takes place and the numbers identified and diversion schemes, and discussing effectiveness. Secure accommodation for mentally disordered offenders is discussed in Section 5: prisons, special hospitals, regional secure units, and psychiatric wards, ending with service developments in providing a coherent secure service and assessing risk. Section 6 covers community care for MDOs, with sections on training and service problems. The publication concludes that although the principle of providing health care instead of punishment for MDOs is not new, coherent health and social care is not available for all in the UK , and the level depends very much on where they live. Agencies must work together. The comparatively few offenders presenting serious danger tend to distort responses, with the risk of resources being concentrated on them at the expense of the far more numerous others. Some psychopaths may not receive any health care because they are considered untreatable. All parts are interdependent and repercussions of neglect will be felt elsewhere. While, in theory, there is a push towards helping all types of clients have access to generic services, there is nevertheless some call for specific services staffed by for generic professionals.those trained to help MDOs – as if, in practice, generic services were not answering. Given the scale of need, services are unlikely to be able to given all the help all MDOs need, so there must be a balance between providing highly specialised services on the one hand and, on the other, educating staff in generic services so that they are able to respond to the needs of MDOs. Specialist staff should be available in an advisory capacity
64 references
Subject terms:
learning disabilities, literature reviews, mental health services, mentally disordered offenders;
Journal of Mental Health Training Education and Practice, 12(4), 2017, pp.215-223.
Publisher:
Emerald
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to provide information for non-specialists on identifying the characteristics, assessment and support needs of people with intellectual disabilities (ID) accessing mainstream services.
Design/methodology/approach: A review of relevant policy and research literature is supplemented with observations from the authors’ own experience of working in mental health services for people with ID.
Findings: With change in provision of services the likelihood of mainstream staff encountering someone with ID will increase. However, information on whether a person has ID or their level of ID is not always available to professionals in acute mental health services meeting an individual for the first time. Reliance on observational and interview-based assessments can leave people with ID vulnerable to a range of over- and under-diagnosis issues. This is as a result of difficulties with communication and emotional introspection, psychosocial masking, suggestibility, confabulation and acquiescence. For people with poor communication, carers will be the primary source of information and their contribution has to be taken into account.
Practical implications: Knowing or suspecting an individual has ID allows staff to take into account the various assessment, diagnosis and formulation issues that complicate a valid and reliable understanding of their mental health needs. Awareness about an individual’s ID also allows professionals to be vigilant to their own biases, where issues of diagnostic overshadowing or cognitive disintegration may be important considerations. However, understanding some of the practical and conceptual issues should ensure a cautious and critical approach to diagnosing, formulating and addressing this population’s mental health needs.
Originality/value: This synthesis of a review of the literature and observations from the authors’ experience of working in mental health services for people with ID provides an informed and practical briefing for those encountering people with ID accessing mainstream services.
(Publisher abstract)
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to provide information for non-specialists on identifying the characteristics, assessment and support needs of people with intellectual disabilities (ID) accessing mainstream services.
Design/methodology/approach: A review of relevant policy and research literature is supplemented with observations from the authors’ own experience of working in mental health services for people with ID.
Findings: With change in provision of services the likelihood of mainstream staff encountering someone with ID will increase. However, information on whether a person has ID or their level of ID is not always available to professionals in acute mental health services meeting an individual for the first time. Reliance on observational and interview-based assessments can leave people with ID vulnerable to a range of over- and under-diagnosis issues. This is as a result of difficulties with communication and emotional introspection, psychosocial masking, suggestibility, confabulation and acquiescence. For people with poor communication, carers will be the primary source of information and their contribution has to be taken into account.
Practical implications: Knowing or suspecting an individual has ID allows staff to take into account the various assessment, diagnosis and formulation issues that complicate a valid and reliable understanding of their mental health needs. Awareness about an individual’s ID also allows professionals to be vigilant to their own biases, where issues of diagnostic overshadowing or cognitive disintegration may be important considerations. However, understanding some of the practical and conceptual issues should ensure a cautious and critical approach to diagnosing, formulating and addressing this population’s mental health needs.
Originality/value: This synthesis of a review of the literature and observations from the authors’ experience of working in mental health services for people with ID provides an informed and practical briefing for those encountering people with ID accessing mainstream services.
(Publisher abstract)
Subject terms:
adults, assessment, learning disabilities, literature reviews, mental health problems, mental health services, mental health professionals, professional role, service provision;
Advances in Mental Health and Intellectual Disabilities, 9(1), 2015, pp.9-18.
Publisher:
Emerald
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to identify approaches that mental health clinicians, working in intellectual disability services, can adopt to ensure the spiritual needs of their service users are met.
Design/methodology/approach: A narrative literature review examining original research, expert opinion pieces and book chapters was undertaken. To broaden the perspective of the paper, publications from different academic areas were reviewed including intellectual disabilities, mental health, neurodevelopmental disorders, general health and spirituality literature.
Findings: The main principles of spiritual assessment tools from the general health literature can be applied to this group. However, the literature would suggest that certain approaches are of particular importance in intellectual disabilities mental health including advocating for service users to attend the religious services they wish to and working collaboratively with families and carers when addressing spiritual issues.
Research limitations/implications: The question of how to meet the spiritual needs of people with autism and severe intellectual disability is a neglected research area. Research examining the spiritual needs of service users with intellectual disabilities, on mental health inpatient units, is also needed as well as a review of whether spiritual needs are being met in current person-centred care plans.
Originality/value: No published literature review was identified that specifically addressed the question of how mental health clinicians should approach the spiritual needs of their service users.
(Publisher abstract)
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to identify approaches that mental health clinicians, working in intellectual disability services, can adopt to ensure the spiritual needs of their service users are met.
Design/methodology/approach: A narrative literature review examining original research, expert opinion pieces and book chapters was undertaken. To broaden the perspective of the paper, publications from different academic areas were reviewed including intellectual disabilities, mental health, neurodevelopmental disorders, general health and spirituality literature.
Findings: The main principles of spiritual assessment tools from the general health literature can be applied to this group. However, the literature would suggest that certain approaches are of particular importance in intellectual disabilities mental health including advocating for service users to attend the religious services they wish to and working collaboratively with families and carers when addressing spiritual issues.
Research limitations/implications: The question of how to meet the spiritual needs of people with autism and severe intellectual disability is a neglected research area. Research examining the spiritual needs of service users with intellectual disabilities, on mental health inpatient units, is also needed as well as a review of whether spiritual needs are being met in current person-centred care plans.
Originality/value: No published literature review was identified that specifically addressed the question of how mental health clinicians should approach the spiritual needs of their service users.
(Publisher abstract)
Subject terms:
mental health services, learning disabilities, spirituality, needs, service users, literature reviews, assessment, autism, religions, care planning;
This toolkit aims to help social workers, mental health and housing professionals to make their services more accessible and relevant for disabled/Deaf women and girls who have experienced violence or abuse. It is based on the findings of use-led research led by Vision Sense and co-produced with Against Violence and Abuse (AVA) and the Centre for Disability Research (CeDR) at Lancaster University. The report provides the results of a literature review on longer term interventions; a review of learning from Safeguarding Adults Reviews (SARs), Domestic Homicide Reviews and Preventable Death Reports to identify learning from service providers; and the results of interviews with disabled/Deaf women and girls who has experienced violence on what they want from services to help them stay safe in the medium and longer term. The research identified severe barriers to equality of outcome for disabled or Deaf women who are survivors of violence, particularly at the intersection of gender, disability, ethnicity, poverty and multiple disadvantage. It concludes that the co-production of solutions with disabled survivors who have a lived experience of violence can help to achieve quality of outcome and improve life chances. The research also found that much regulation in safeguarding, inspection, commissioning and for-profit or charity provision is failing disabled people. The report includes checklists and recommendations for all services and specific recommendations for individual services, including Safeguarding Board; health and social care services; and housing services. The project was funded by Big Lottery Fund through DRILL (Disability Research on Independent Living and Learning) Fast Track.
(Edited publisher abstract)
This toolkit aims to help social workers, mental health and housing professionals to make their services more accessible and relevant for disabled/Deaf women and girls who have experienced violence or abuse. It is based on the findings of use-led research led by Vision Sense and co-produced with Against Violence and Abuse (AVA) and the Centre for Disability Research (CeDR) at Lancaster University. The report provides the results of a literature review on longer term interventions; a review of learning from Safeguarding Adults Reviews (SARs), Domestic Homicide Reviews and Preventable Death Reports to identify learning from service providers; and the results of interviews with disabled/Deaf women and girls who has experienced violence on what they want from services to help them stay safe in the medium and longer term. The research identified severe barriers to equality of outcome for disabled or Deaf women who are survivors of violence, particularly at the intersection of gender, disability, ethnicity, poverty and multiple disadvantage. It concludes that the co-production of solutions with disabled survivors who have a lived experience of violence can help to achieve quality of outcome and improve life chances. The research also found that much regulation in safeguarding, inspection, commissioning and for-profit or charity provision is failing disabled people. The report includes checklists and recommendations for all services and specific recommendations for individual services, including Safeguarding Board; health and social care services; and housing services. The project was funded by Big Lottery Fund through DRILL (Disability Research on Independent Living and Learning) Fast Track.
(Edited publisher abstract)
Subject terms:
literature reviews, disabilities, hearing impairment, women, girls, violence, abuse, adult abuse, survivors, user views, access to services, safeguarding, safeguarding adults, hate crime, intervention, mental health services, housing, learning disabilities, domestic violence, social workers, social care provision;