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The post(hu)man always rings twice: theorising the difference of impairment in the lives of people with ‘mental health problems’
- Authors:
- VANDEKINDEREN Caroline, ROETS Griet
- Journal article citation:
- Disability and Society, 31(1), 2016, pp.33-46.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
A vital debate in British disability studies concerns the question of how impairment can be theorised, taking place between those who claim a critical realist ontology and those who argue for a critical social ontology. Recently, this discussion on impairment issues seems to merge with the agenda of the newly emerging perspective of critical disability studies. In contrast to the recent claim of Vehmas and Watson in Disability & Society that critical disability theorists only engage in a relativistic deconstruction of impairment, as critical disability scholars the authors explore the recent work of Braidotti who addresses a difference between a deconstructive anti-humanist stance and an affirmative post-humanist turn. Inspired by our empirical research, the authors theorise the difference of impairment in the lives of people with ‘mental health problems’ that can imply, in theoretical and in practical real-life terms, both a limitation and a potential that matters (Edited publisher abstract)
Mental health, mental capacity and human rights: a practitioner’s guide
- Author:
- BRITISH INSTITUTE OF HUMAN RIGHTS
- Publisher:
- British Institute of Human Rights
- Publication year:
- 2016
- Pagination:
- 28
- Place of publication:
- London
This booklet provides information about human rights values and approaches for practitioners working in services supporting people with mental health or mental capacity issues. It looks at how the Human Rights Act work, legal duties under the Human Rights Act, and provides information about the key rights which are most relevant to practice in mental health and/or mental capacity settings. Human rights discussed include: right to life; right not to be tortured or treated in an inhuman or degrading way; right to liberty; right to respect for private and family life, home and correspondence; and right not be discriminated against in relation to any of the human rights. For each human right, the booklet outlines how practitioners might encounter this rights in their work, their practitioner duties, whether practitioners are able to restrict this right, and provides a short example. The booklet also includes a flowchart to help identify human rights issues in practice. It is the first of eight booklets developed as part of the British Institute of Human Rights (BIHR) project ‘Delivering Compassionate Care: Connecting Human Rights to the Frontline’, which aims to ensure that staff have the knowledge and skills uphold the dignity and human rights of the people using their services. It has been produced alongside seven issue-specific resources. (Edited publisher abstract)
Mental health, smoking and poverty in the UK:
- Author:
- LANGLEY Tessa
- Publication year:
- 2016
- Pagination:
- 25
- Place of publication:
- Nottingham
By using information from existing research and datasets, this report quantifies the extent to which smoking exacerbates poverty in adults with mental health conditions in the UK. It estimates the number adults in the UK with mental health problems who are recognised as living in poverty and who currently smoke; the expenditure of these smokers on tobacco; and the number of adults with a mental disorder not formally classified as being in poverty, but who are smokers and would be classified as living in poverty if their expenditure on tobacco were subtracted from their household income. Analysis is based on two nationally representative datasets, the Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey and the Health Survey for England. The analysis found that smoking prevalence is very high in poor adults with a mental problem, with an estimated 900,000-1,200,000 people with a common mental disorder living in poverty who are currently smokers. It also estimates that approximately 10% of the estimated 1.3 million poor smokers with common mental health problems would be lifted out of poverty if they were to quit smoking. The report suggest that the average annual expenditure by poor smokers with a mental disorder is around £1220. The report concludes that smoking creates a significant financial burden for an already deprived group. Strengths and limitations of the study are also highlighted. (Edited publisher abstract)
Barriers to attendance at Recovery Colleges
- Authors:
- DUNN Elizabeth Anne, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Mental Health and Social Inclusion, 20(4), 2016, pp.238-246.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to explore what affects attendance at Recovery College, what students who have missed classes perceive to be the barriers to attendance and suggestions for improvement. Design/methodology/approach: Survey of 16 students who have missed Recovery College classes. Findings: The most common reasons for non-attendance were personal factors associated with physical illness; competing commitments or life events; and worries about other students and anxiety. Recovery College factors included inconvenient location, time or date of the course and poor communication from the college. Students found individual learning plans (ILPs) helpful and that they improved attendance. Recommendations are made to improve attendance through clearer information and communication; ILPs, text reminders before classes and phone calls from tutors if students miss classes. Originality/value: Many services are looking at how to become more cost effective – improving attendance is one such way. This paper offers an analysis of barriers to attendance and makes recommendations about how attendance can be improved. (Publisher abstract)
Validation of Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale (WEMWBS) in a population of people using Secondary Care Mental Health Services
- Authors:
- BASS Malcolm, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Mental Health, 25(4), 2016, pp.323-329.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
- Place of publication:
- London
Aims: To investigate the validity of using the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being Scale (WEMWBS) for measuring the mental well-being of users in a secondary care mental health service user population. Method: Data was collected from two NHS Trusts and one charity. Analyses are based on 1180 completed WEMWBS. Results: WEMWBS scores for this population are significantly lower than those in a general population (Mean 34.9, SD 13.8). Overall the data analyses supported the use of WEMWBS in this population sample. The Rasch analysis found that the majority of the items can be seen as measuring one dimension. The confirmatory factor analysis supports a one factor solution and thus, measures a single underlying concept. Conclusions: The findings from this study show WEMWBS to be a valid and reliable measure for this population sample. (Edited publisher abstract)
Attitudes to mental health problems and mental wellbeing: findings from the 2015 British Social Attitudes survey
- Author:
- NATCEN SOCIAL RESEARCH
- Publisher:
- NatCen Social Research
- Publication year:
- 2016
- Pagination:
- 16
- Place of publication:
- London
This paper presents new findings on attitudes to mental wellbeing and mental health problems. It shows that most people are confident they know what it means to have good mental wellbeing. People are aware of different factors that impact on their mental wellbeing and the things they can do to improve it. Two-thirds spend at least “quite a lot” of time thinking about their own mental wellbeing, and a majority feel they know what to do to improve their mental wellbeing and have the time to do so. Spending time with friends and family, going for a walk or getting fresh air, and getting more sleep are widely regarded by people as activities which help them feel more positive. However, there are varying levels of acceptance of those with mental health problems, and perceptions of prejudice towards people with these conditions are still widespread. Levels of acceptance are higher for a person with depression than schizophrenia. Perceptions of workplace prejudice have improved over time, but the view that someone with a mental health problem would be just as likely to be promoted as anyone else is still only held by a minority. People who have personal experience of mental health problems, or who know someone close to them who has had such problems, express lower levels of prejudice. (Edited publisher abstract)
How included are mental health service users in decisions about their medication?
- Author:
- HOLTTUM Sue
- Journal article citation:
- Mental Health and Social Inclusion, 20(3), 2016, pp.141-148.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to consider four recent articles relating to how included service users are in decision making about their medication in mental health services. Design/methodology/approach: One article describes conversations between a psychiatrist and service users about medication. The second paper describes a study in which young people were supported with the aim of developing their confidence to challenge medication decisions. The third paper reports on interviews with both professionals and service users about medication decisions. The fourth paper presents a theory of how the wider context can affect medication decision making in mental health. Findings: The first paper shows how a psychiatrist can persuade service users to accept medication decisions. The second paper shows how some young people can challenge medication decisions if they have the right support. The third paper illustrates how both professionals and service users may doubt service users’ ability to decide about medication, and pessimistically suggests that shared decision making may be unrealistic. In contrast to this, the fourth paper offers hope of changing how mental health services are organised in order to enable service users to be more empowered about medication decisions. Originality/value: A model of shared decision making is being imported into mental health from physical health. These four papers illustrate problems with a simple transfer from physical to mental health. The present paper points to differences in apparent awareness of different clinical researchers of the need to tackle service users’ disempowerment in mental health care, showing how some researchers are tackling this. (Publisher abstract)
‘I didn't know other people existed who hear voices…’ – qualitative perceptions of a hearing voices group for people with learning disabilities
- Authors:
- TOMLINS Rose, CAWLEY James
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Learning Disabilities, 44(3), 2016, pp.204-212.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Group work for people who experience voice hearing in the mainstream population has been shown to have various benefits; however, there is little research describing hearing voices groups for people with learning disabilities. This study describes perceptions of a new hearing voices group for people with mild learning disabilities. Semi-structured interviews with twelve participants were conducted. This included three clients who attended the hearing voices group, three of their family members/carers and one professional. In addition, of those who were referred to the group but chose not to attend, one client, two family members/carers and two professionals were interviewed. Interview data were transcribed verbatim and thematic analysis was used to identify three overarching themes; the first ‘benefits of our hearing voices group’ described participants’ evaluations and perceptions of the hearing voices group. The second ‘making the decision to attend’ covers factors that influence clients when deciding whether or not to attend a hearing voices group. In the final theme ‘positive and negative contributors to the voice-hearing experience’, participants reflected on factors that affect the voice-hearing experience. The hearing voices group was valued by participants; however, services should consider the barriers to attendance faced by some clients. Strategies for addressing these are discussed. (Publisher abstract)
Money on your mind
- Authors:
- HOLKAR Merlyn, MACKENZIE Polly
- Publisher:
- Money and Mental Health Policy Institute
- Publication year:
- 2016
- Pagination:
- 32
Analyses the connections between money and mental health, and examines why experiencing mental health problems can make it harder to manage personal finances and living in financial stress can harm an individual's mental health. It draws on the findings of a survey of over 5,000 people who have lived with mental health problems. Of those responding to the survey 72% said their mental health problems had made their financial situation worse and 86% said their financial situation had made their mental health problems worse. The report looks at the journey from financial difficulty to mental health problems and identifies some of the indirect causes of mental distress. In its conclusions the report highlights recommendations for financial services, retailers and health professionals. The final section outlines the methodology used for the survey. (Edited publisher abstract)
The annual bullying survey 2016
- Author:
- DITCH THE LABEL
- Publisher:
- Ditch the Label
- Publication year:
- 2016
- Pagination:
- 31
- Place of publication:
- Brighton
This report presents the findings of a survey of 8,850 young people aged 12-20 on their experience of being bullied and bullying others. Included in the report is the following: key bullying statistics in the UK; the motivations of bullying; frequency and nature of bullying experienced; the impact of bullying; rates of young people bullying others; reasons why young people bully others; the impact of family dynamics, stress and trauma and relationships on bullying behaviour; feedback for schools and colleges; recommendations; and real stories and experiences. The survey found that 1.5 million young people (50 per cent) have been bullied within the past year; 145,800 (19 per cent) of these were bullied every day; people who have been bullied are almost twice as likely to bully others; twice as many boys as girls bully (66 per cent of males vs. 31 per cent females); one in five have physically attacked somebody; 44 per cent of young people who have been bullied experience depression and 41 per cent social anxiety; and 33 per cent of those being bullied have suicidal thoughts. The report also comes with tips and advice for schools, colleges, practitioners, parents/guardians and young people. (Edited publisher abstract)