Public Health

Current Awareness Updates

COVID-19 vaccines for autumn 2022: JCVI advice, 15 August 2022.
Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC); 2022.
(Statement setting out the latest advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) on COVID-19 vaccines for autumn 2022.)

NHS prescription charges in England.
House of Commons Library; 2022.
(The cost of an NHS prescription, who is entitled to free prescriptions and how to get help with prescription costs.)

Homeless hostel residents and staff struggle to access health and social care services.
The Mental Elf; 2022.
(In her debut blog, Ava Phillips summarises a paper that finds both people living in homeless hostels, and staff working there, feel marginalised and struggle to access the health and social care they need.)

As waiting lists grow for anxiety disorders, should we be turning to digital interventions?
The Mental Elf; 2022.
(Theo Kyriacou and Andie Ashdown explore a recent systematic review that brings together two decades of research, which suggests that digital health interventions for anxiety disorders may be a more effective alternative to inactive controls, such as waiting-list groups.)

No place for cheap alcohol: the potential value of minimum pricing for protecting lives.
World Health Organization (WHO); 2022.
(Pricing policies and taxation are among the most effective measures that policy-makers can use to address these harms, but they remain underutilized across the Region. This report reviews the status of implementation of minimum pricing globally, provides an overview of the most recent evidence behind the policy, addresses its main strengths and limitations and offers practical considerations for countries.)

Public Health

Current awareness updates

Family hubs and start for life programme: local authority guide.
Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC); 2022.

(Guidance and sign up form for local authorities pre-selected to take part in the family hubs and start for life programme.)

Commissioning quality standard: alcohol and drug services.
Office for Health Improvement & Disparities (OHID); 2022.
(Guidance for local authorities to support them in commissioning effective alcohol and drug treatment and recovery services in their areas.)

Direct and indirect health impacts of Covid-19 in England: emerging Omicron impacts

Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC); 2022 This paper (produced together with the Office for National Statistics) gives an overview of the direct health impacts of Covid-19 in terms of morbidity and mortality and the indirect impacts arising through behavioural changes and health system pressures.

Public Health Outcomes Framework: August 2022 data update

Office for Health Improvement & Disparities (OHID); 2022.

The Public Health Outcomes Framework (PHOF) examines indicators that help health and care professionals and the public to understand trends in public health. The data is presented in an interactive tool that allows users to view it in a user-friendly format. The data tool also provides links to further supporting information, to aid understanding of public health in a local population.

Library Bulletins

Learning Disabilities and Suicide Prevention

The current bulletins for Learning Disabilities and Suicide Prevention, produced by Merseycare NHS Foundation Trust, are now available to view and download.

For support accessing any of the articles within the bulletins please contact: academic.library@lscft.nhs.uk

The British Journal of Psychiatry

BJPsych Themed Issue 2022: Precision Medicine and Personalised Healthcare in Psychiatry published online

The latest themed issue from the British Journal of Psychiatry (BJPsych) explores the field of precision medicine; the clinical applications, tools and treatments of personalising precision in psychiatry. To find out more watch the guest editor video below and access the entire issue.

Public Health

Current Awareness Updates

Weight loss outcomes achieved by adults accessing an online programme offered as part of Public Health England’s ‘Better Health’ campaign.
Toon J. BMC Public Health 2022;22(1456):-.
(This service evaluation shows that an online programme, offered as part of a national campaign, can offer effective support to a large number of people with different starting BMIs and from different socioeconomic backgrounds. An increased level of engagement leads to better weight losses.)

National operational framework: asylum accommodation.
Office for Health Improvement and Disparities and Home Office; 2022.
(This framework contains the minimum standard principles to support the health and wellbeing needs of asylum seekers living in initial and contingency sites.)

Supporting healthy relationships among parents of children with behaviours that challenge: A practical guide.
Early Intervention Foundation (EIF); 2022.
(This practical guide for local areas has been developed to improve understanding of how risk factors among parents of children with behaviours that challenge can impact on parental conflict and in turn on child outcomes, how to effectively engage these parents, what evidence-based support can be offered, and how to appropriately assess progress for these families.)

Heads Up: Rethinking mental health services for vulnerable young people.
Commission on Young Lives; 2022.
(The report looks at the growing crisis of mental health problems among children and young people in England and puts forward ambitious and innovative proposals to redesign young people’s mental health services, particularly for those young people at risk of harm.)

How can NHS anchors support communities to create health: Learning from the community response to COVID-19.
The Health Creation Alliance; 2022.
(This report provides real-world insight into how NHS anchor institutions are working in partnership communities, capitalising on both their strengths to address health inequalities.)

LSCFT Research Bulletin

Latest Edition

The July edition of the LSCFT research bulletin is now available to view and download. This showcases some of the work our colleagues have been involved in.

If you are conducting your own research and would like to feature in our next bulletin please send your work or citation to: academic.library@lscft.nhs.uk

Library Bulletins

Community Health and Depression

The current bulletins for Community Health and Depression, produced by Merseycare NHS Foundation Trust, are now available to view and download.

For support accessing any of the articles within the bulletins please contact: academic.library@lscft.nhs.uk

Resource of the Month

ORCHA APP Library

ORCHA (the Organisation for the Review of Care and Health Applications) is an online app library, giving you the opportunity to download, share and recommend health and care related apps.

With thousands of health and care apps available on the market, it can be hard to decide which apps are reliable and trustworthy.

  • ORCHA only include apps which have been reviewed against best practice criteria.
  • This allows you to map apps for either your personal or professional needs.
  • Simply search for the app you are looking for or browse the contents.
  • Save the apps to your favourites or recommend to others (including patients via a text/email or APP code).
  • Access the Digitial Health Academy for bite size training videos to gain new skills and CPD points.

It’s easy to sign up. Visit: https://lscft.orcha.co.uk. In the top right corner – click ‘Sign up’ and enter your details. Upgrade your account with the code: LSCFT01 to access the Digital Health Academy.

Please feel free to download our resource of the month poster and share with your team or within your department.

Public Health

Current Awareness Updates

Tackling mental health disparities.
Centre for Mental Health; 2022.
(The pandemic is accompanied by a rise in demand for mental health services. Even before the pandemic, mental ill health was one of the most prevalent forms of illness. Inequalities mean that while it is true that anyone can experience mental illness, the risks are much higher for certain groups who experience structural discrimination and disadvantage. Tackling mental health disparities shares ten evidence-based actions that the Government could take in the forthcoming white paper.)

Grassroots participation in sport and physical activity.
National Audit Office (NAO); 2022.
(This report examines how far the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport and Sport England have achieved value for money in their spending on grassroots sport and physical activity amongst those aged 16 and over, and have supported value for money in the system-wide spending across government. We consider the decade since the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, with a particular focus on the period since 2015, when government launched its Sporting Future strategy.)

Menopause and the workplace: how to enable fulfilling working lives: government response Department for work and pensions; July 2022 This report lays out the government’s response to the recommendations made in the independent report Menopause and the workplace, published in November 2021. This report aimed to bring about comprehensive change and support for those experiencing the menopause, in key areas of government policy, employer practice, and wider societal and financial change.

The rollout of the Covid-19 vaccine programme in England House of Commons Comittee of Public Accounts; July 2022 This report calls for efforts to be redoubled to reach those not vaccinated or fully vaccinated as it warns that nearly three million adults in England are unvaccinated against Covid-19. It finds that comparatively low vaccination rates persist in many vulnerable groups and have even dropped further for some. It calls for NHS England and UKHSA to urgently evaluate which methods are most effective for increasing uptake, including fresh approaches to tackle the persistent low uptake observed in some ethnic groups.

Creating a smoke-free South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw integrated care system  NHS Confederation; June 2022 This case study details a smoking cessation programme in South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw that aims to saves lives, decrease health inequalities and reduce hospital re-admissions by making effective treatment for tobacco addiction part of the routine care offered in hospitals.