Living with chronic kidney disease, or experiencing acute kidney injury, is associated with potentially serious psychological and psychiatric harm. To read the full article, log in using your MPFT NHS OpenAthens details.
Social support is also important for health, especially when recovering from an illness. A dog provides companionship and may be a way of getting to know other dog owners in the neighbourhood.
However, the studies do not prove that dog ownership has a direct effect on health, only that it seems to be linked to longer life. While people who enjoy the company of dogs may benefit from exercise and companionship, the study does not show that people who are happily social and active without dogs should get one.
Ultimately this research cannot prove cause and effect. Both optimism and lifespan may be influenced by many hereditary, health, lifestyle and personal factors. People with a good overall standard of health and wellbeing are probably more likely to be optimistic about their future. While researchers attempted to adjust their analysis for these sort of factors, it's hard to remove their influence fully.
It's also questionable how applicable the results of these optimism assessments, taken 15 to 30 years ago from very specific groups of older US nurses and war veterans, are to the general UK population.
Nevertheless the research highlights the importance that mental health and wellbeing can have on physical health.
Although many home nations fans might find sitting through this year’s rugby world cup matches a little too nerve-racking at times, the NHS says watching the sport can actually be good for your mental health and wellbeing.
Despite the growing prevalence of depression in the Chinese elderly, there is conflicting evidence of life course socioeconomic position (SEP) and depression onset in China, and whether this association is akin to that observed in Western societies. We compared incident risk of mid–late life depression by childhood and adulthood SEP in China and England, a country where mental health inequality is firmly established. To read the full article, log in using your NHS OpenAthens details.
This study found that almost half of health care workers reported experiencing a mental illness, which could have significant implications for service delivery. Some health care workers held causal explanations of mental illness that were not evidence based. To read the full article, log in using your NHS OpenAthens details.
Conclusions: Our findings suggest that the current application of gamification to apps and technologies for improving mental health and well-being does not align with the trend of positive reinforcement critiqued in the greater health and well-being literature. We also observed overlap between the most commonly used gamification techniques and existing behavior change frameworks.
Social workers are among the largest group of professionals in the mental health workforce and play a key role in the assessment of mental health, addictions and suicide. Most social workers provide services to individuals with mental health concerns, yet there are gaps in research on social work education and training programmes. The objective of this scoping review is to examine literature on social work education and training in mental health, addictions and suicide. Open Access Article
There is good evidence that job stressors are prospectively related to mental health problems, particularly depressive symptoms. This review aimed to examine whether job stressors were also related to use of psychotropic medications. To read the full article, log in using your MPFT NHS OpenAthens details.
Older Men at the Margins was a two-year study to understand how men aged 65 and over from different social backgrounds and circumstances experienced loneliness and social isolation. It also explored the formal and informal ways they sought to stay connected with others and feel less lonely.
Adults who are sleeping rough and living with mental illness and substance misuse will benefit from £1.9 million funding to improve their access to vital healthcare.
Improving the way people travel and their experience at rail stations, airports and on roads, could play a significant role in improving their mental wellbeing, a new study commissioned by London City Airport reveals. The report also provides new estimates of the cost of poor mental health in different parts of England.
Globalised and 24/7 business operations have fuelled demands for people to work long hours and weekends. Research on the mental health effects of these intensive temporal work patterns is sparse, contradictory or has not considered gender differences. Our objective was to examine the relationship between these work patterns and depressive symptoms in a large nationally representative sample of working men and women in the UK. To read the full article, log in using your NHS OpenAthens details.
Residents of disadvantaged neighbourhoods report higher levels of depressive symptoms; however, few studies have employed prospective designs during adolescence, when depression tends to emerge. We examined associations of neighbourhood social fragmentation, income inequality and median household income with depressive symptoms in a nationally representative survey of adolescents. To read the full article, log in using your NHS OpenAthens details
Globalised and 24/7 business operations have fuelled demands for people to work long hours and weekends. Research on the mental health effects of these intensive temporal work patterns is sparse, contradictory or has not considered gender differences. Our objective was to examine the relationship between these work patterns and depressive symptoms in a large nationally representative sample of working men and women in the UK. Free Access
Conclusions: The results of this RCT suggest that mindfulness-based resilience training delivered in an internet format can create improvements in adaptive resilience and related resources among high-risk workers, such as first responders. Despite a number of limitations, the results of this study suggest that the RAW Mindfulness Program is an effective, scalable, and practical means of delivering online resilience training in high-risk workplace settings. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time a mindfulness-based RTP delivered entirely via the internet has been tested in the workplace.
Conclusions: Older adults are motivated to use digital technologies to improve their mental health, but barriers remain that developers need to address for this population to access them.
When leaders seek to create a healthy working environment for their employees, often the focus will be on improving physical wellbeing, such as using office furniture that supports the body effectively or encouraging the use of laptop/screen stands to prevent neck pain. However, it is crucial that leaders seek to create a working environment that also takes care of the mental health of employees. To read the full article, log in using your NHS OpenAthens details.
Existing research on the relationship between economic recessions and suicides has almost completely concentrated on the most recent global financial crisis (2008). We provide the most comprehensive explanation to date of how different types of economic/financial crises since 1970 have affected suicides in developed countries. To read the full article, log in using your NHS OpenAthens details.
This release focuses on findings about loneliness collected through the survey. It provides additional demographic breakdowns and looks at estimated levels of loneliness against other key survey measures.
Emergency workers dedicate their lives to promoting public health and safety, yet suffer higher rates of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and major depression (MD) compared with the general population. They also suffer an associated increased risk for physical health problems, which may be linked to specific immunological and endocrine markers or changes in relevant markers. Poor physical and mental health is costly to organisations, the National Health Service and society. Existing interventions aimed at reducing risk of mental ill health in this population are not very successful. More effective preventative interventions are urgently needed. We first conducted a large-scale prospective study of newly recruited student paramedics, identifying two cognitive factors (rumination and resilience appraisals) that predicted episodes of PTSD and MD over a 2-year period. We then developed internet-delivered cognitive training for resilience (iCT-R), a supported online intervention, to modify cognitive predictors. This protocol is for a randomised controlled trial to evaluate the efficacy of the resilience intervention. Open Access Article
New and expectant fathers will be offered mental health checks and treatment under radical action to support families, NHS England chief executive Simon Stevens announced today (2 December 2018).
A new report focusing on men's mental health in the workplace has been published.
The report from The Work Foundation looks into the changes over the past decade that have influenced men’s role in the workplace and the impact of this on men's mental health.
The threat of major incidents has increased anxiety among young people and emergency care health professionals. In this blog, we discuss the impact of major incidents on mental health and outline how health professionals can make sure they are prepared.
The C&I Wellbeing team have been providing mental health awareness training, as well as practical advice and toolkits to help managers proactively enhance their own mental wellbeing, as well as that of other staff. C&I psychologists recently held a workshop for the cast and production team of the National Theatre’s production of ‘Nine Night’. They have also provided a range of one to two hour talks on topics including ‘Coping with Anxiety’, ‘Alcohol & Substance Misuse’, ‘Improving Sleep’, and ‘Grief and Bereavement’.
We all experience loneliness in different ways, and it can affect us at different stages and transition points in life. Tackling loneliness is a ‘review of reviews’ that is based on a sift of 364 evidence reviews from across the world, and within the UK. It’s a first step towards understanding what we know about what works to reduce loneliness.
The national Mental Health at Work 2018 Report was conducted by You Gov, Business in the Community and Mercer for the third year running. The report is to encourage employers to raise awareness and take action in supporting good mental health and wellbeing in the workplace.
This strategy sets out the approach to tackling loneliness in England. It marks a shift in the way we see and act on loneliness, both within government and in society more broadly.
It builds on the work of many organisations and individuals over the years, and is government’s first major contribution to the national conversation on loneliness and the importance of social connections. This strategy is an important first step, government is also committed to long-lasting action to tackle the problem of loneliness.
Conclusions: This preliminary research provides evidence for the capabilities of e-learning modules to effectively promote workplace resilience and a working model of team resilience.
"Although we should be cautious about the study findings, they represent another potential reason to adopt a Mediterranean diet. We already know the diet is good for our hearts – adopting a healthy diet and lifestyle may well be good for our mood, too."
The suggestion that children should have limited screen time, enough sleep and plenty of physical activity isn't particularly controversial.
This study adds to evidence that these might be sensible lifestyle adaptations for children.
But this type of study can't prove that any one of these is directly responsible for children's mental abilities.
This pilot study of the Resilience@Work program suggests that a mindfulness-based resilience program delivered via the Internet is feasible in a high-risk workplace setting
Understanding the circumstances associated with feeling lonely and explaining what we know works in supporting people to tackle feelings of persistent loneliness.
Mental Health at Work has launched a new tool to help organisations have better conversations around mental health in the workplace.
The tool is a gateway to documents, guides and information from organisations across the UK, all aimed at helping to make a significant contribution to combating discrimination against mental health and providing employers with the tools they needs.
dentifying frail older people, and in particular, people who are psychologically frail in a community setting is difficult. This article investigates predictors of psychological frailty and constructs a short and effective pre-detection tool for highly psychologically frail older people. To read the full article, log in using your NHS OpenAthens details.
Carer burden and carer stress are well-documented concepts, and can lead to depression and a risk of suicide in some individuals. It is important that this risk is considered when supporting informal carers of people living with dementia. To read the full article, log in using your MPFT NHS OpenAthens details. SSOTP (legacy account) - You can request a copy of this article by replying to this email. Please ensure you are clear which article you are requesting.
Depression often goes hand in hand with a diabetes diagnosis, but mental health support is sorely lacking. More than six out of ten people with diabetes sometimes or often feel down due to the long-term condition, according to Diabetes UK. To read the full article, log in using your MPFT NHS OpenAthens details. SSOTP (legacy account) - You can request a copy of this article by replying to this email. Please ensure you are clear which article you are requesting.