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.

Library Bulletin

Serious Mental Illness

The current bulletin for Serious Mental Illness, produced by Greater Manchester Mental Health Trust, is now available to view and download. Some articles may require an Open Athens account to read the full text articles. For support accessing any of the articles within the bulletin please contact: academic.library@lscft.nhs.uk

The Health Foundation’s Networked Data Lab

Improving children and young people’s mental health services: local data insights from England, Scotland and Wales

This briefing presents analysis from The Health Foundation’s Networked Data Lab (NDL) about children and young people’s mental health. The analysis from local teams across England, Scotland and Wales has highlighted three key areas for urgent investigation, to help ensure children and young people get the care they need. These are: rapid increases in mental health prescribing and support provided by GPs; the prevalence of mental health problems among adolescent girls and young women; and stark socio-economic inequalities across the UK.

Public Health

Current awareness updates

The Lancet Psychiatry Commission on Intimate Partner Violence and Mental Health.
The Mental Elf; 2022.
(Rachel Milligan summarises the recently published Lancet Psychiatry Commission on Intimate Partner Violence and Mental Health, which establishes a roadmap for strengthening responses across mental health services, research, and policy.)

Indicator: Hospital admissions as a result of self-harm in children and young people.
Nuffield Trust; 2022.
(Early identification, accurate diagnosis and effective treatment of mental health conditions can help to prevent self-harm and suicide in children and young people. Self-harm is when somebody intentionally damages or injures their body, and is a common way of coping with or expressing overwhelming emotional distress. Hospital admission rates are a useful measure of intentional self-harm, and an indicator of how well we are preventing this suffering from occurring.)

Finding an NHS dentist in England.
House of Commons Library; 2022.
(This page provides information on how to find an appointment with an NHS dentist in England, including a summary of guidance from the NHS and Healthwatch websites. It also provides information on NHS dental charges. The Commons Library debate pack on NHS Dentistry in England (June 2022) – https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cdp-2022-0112/ – provides more in-depth, contextual information on Government policy, dental contracts and provision.)

Improving the way family support services work for minority ethnic families.
Early Intervention Foundation (EIF); 2020.
(This report explores the experiences of minority ethnic families in accessing and receiving family support, to better understand the challenges and opportunities in how family support services work for minority ethnic families and young people.)

Improving children and young people’s mental health services Local data insights from England, Scotland and Wales.
The Health Foundation; 2022.
(This briefing presents analysis from the Health Foundation’s Networked Data Lab (NDL) about children and young people’s mental health. The analysis highlighted three key areas for urgent investigation, to help ensure children and young people get the care they need. These are: rapid increases in mental health prescribing and support provided by GPs; the prevalence of mental health problems among adolescent girls and young women; stark socioeconomic inequalities across the UK.)

Public Health

Current Awareness Updates

Risk communication and community engagement (RCCE) for monkeypox outbreaks: Interim guidance, 24 June 2022.
World Health Organization (WHO); 2022.
(This Interim Guidance outlines recommendations, considerations and methods to raise awareness, manage risk perception, maintain trust and proactively support people at risk to make informed decisions to protect themselves and others from monkeypox.)

Addressing local inequalities through employment.
NHS Employers; 2022.
(A series of case studies showcasing how NHS and non-NHS partners are coming together to support people into work.)

Flooding and public mental health: assessment and management UK Health Security Agency (This guidance on flooding and health aims to provide information for public health authorities, emergency services and health professionals on the measures needed to prevent major effects on health arising from floods in England.)

New resources for safeguarding and empowering young people with SEND when online Learning disability today (A UK-based charity has created new resources to safeguard and empower young people with Special Education Needs and Disabilities (SEND) when they are online. Childnet’s new project, Thrive Online, is designed to help educators, parents and carers to support young people aged 11 and over to use the internet in a safe and meaningful way. The free resources cover important topics such as digital wellbeing, healthy online relationships and online pornography.)

Cracking Good Food; Promoting Healthy Eating

(Cracking Good Food have created a support booklet that includes a weekly
guide to family meals that are low fuel and nutritious. Their in-house nutritionist has researched current food prices at ALDI and Tesco to compile a guide to create a nutritionally balanced meal plan costing between £45-£60 each week to feed a family of 4.)

Library Bulletin

Serious Mental Illness

The current bulletin for Serious Mental Illness, produced by Merseycare NHS Foundation Trust, is now available to view and download. Some articles may require an Open Athens account to read the full text articles. For support accessing any of the articles within the bulletins please contact: academic.library@lscft.nhs.uk

Public Health

Current Awareness Updates

Online support for family carers of people with dementia: what works for their mental health?
The Mental Elf; 2022.
https://www.nationalelfservice.net/populations-and-settings/family-carers/online-support-family-carers-dementia/
(Clarissa Giebel reflects on a recent systematic review which investigates online support for family carers of people with dementia.)

The Khan review: making smoking obsolete.
Office for Health Improvement & Disparities (OHID); 2022.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-khan-review-making-smoking-obsolete
(Independent review by Dr Javed Khan into the government’s ambition to make England smokefree by 2030. The review makes 15 recommendations for government to achieve a smokefree society.)

Safer by Design: How can collaboration help design safer gambling?
Demos; 2022.
https://demos.co.uk/project/safer-by-design-how-can-collaboration-help-design-safer-gambling/ (Demos and Playtech hosted two roundtables that brought together those in the industry with gambling experts from academia, charities and policy. The first looked at the role policy and regulation can play, and sought ideas and input on how the gambling sector could learn from other areas. The second looked at gambling as a health issue, and how stakeholders might draw on progress made in other areas such as digital resilience and wellbeing.)

State of the Nation: A comprehensive, retrospective view of NHS data.
Wilmington Healthcare; 2022.
https://wilmingtonhealthcare.com/state-of-the-nation/
(This report looks at key data trends over the course of the pandemic, establishing how new trends in health care activity, patient numbers, disease burden, NHS operational practice, prescribing and regional variation have emerged. The report groups the data into six key areas: hospital episode statistics; demographic segmentation; therapy area analysis; referral to treatment; prescribing insights; and regional insights.)

Mental health and loneliness: the relationship across life stages.
Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport; 2022.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/mental-health-and-loneliness-the-relationship-across-life-stages
(This report presents the findings from a qualitative study exploring the experiences of loneliness among those who had experienced a mental health condition. Previous research has shown there is a link between experiences of loneliness and poor mental health. The DCMS commissioned the National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) to explore this issue across four key life stages as part of developing the evidence base for work on tackling loneliness.)


Royal College of Psychiatrist

Eliminating inappropriate out of area placements in mental health

Source: Royal College of Psychiatrist

The government’s deadline to eliminate inappropriate out of area placements for adult acute patients by the end of March 2021 has now been missed by a full year. Sometimes hundreds of miles away from home, patients are unable to access their usual support networks while at their most vulnerable, often finding their care seriously disrupted, with long-term implications for their recovery. The NHS spent £102 million on inappropriate out of area placements in the 12 months up to and including March 2022 – the equivalent to the cost of the annual salary of more than 900 consultant psychiatrists. This briefing sets out the urgent action the NHS should take to ensure all patients get the care they need from properly staffed, specialist services in their local area.  

Mental health and loneliness

The relationship across life stages

Source: Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS)

This report presents the findings from a qualitative study exploring the experiences of loneliness among those who had experienced a mental health condition. Previous research has shown there is a link between experiences of loneliness and poor mental health. The DCMS commissioned the National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) to explore this issue across four key life stages as part of developing the evidence base for work on tackling loneliness.

Tackling mental health disparities

Centre for Mental Health 

Source:King’s Fund

Mental health inequalities mean that while it is true that anyone can experience mental ill health, the risks are much higher for certain groups who experience structural discrimination and disadvantage. This briefing sets out 10 evidence-based actions that the government could take in the forthcoming disparities White Paper. Read the briefing here.