Are Women’s Mental Health Units Needed?

2018 ◽  
pp. 125-134
Author(s):  
Aoife Rajyaluxmi Singh
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Life Experiences ◽  
Mental Illnesses ◽  
Women Patients ◽  
Same Sex ◽  
Case Examples ◽  
The Core ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Experiences Of Women

This chapter describes the shift from mixed-sex to same-sex in-patient wards in the United Kingdom and the current challenges in providing in-patient psychiatric care. Two women’s-only mental health units (WMHUs) are described and the views of women patients and staff are highlighted with the use of case examples. The available evidence regarding the need for WMHUs is examined and demonstrates that women with mental illness have different preferences with regards to mixed- or same-sex in-patient care, that same-sex wards are not necessarily safer, and that quality of care can vary considerably. Given the differential life experiences of women as compared to men, a WMHU should be able to address issues such as the effects of trauma and violence. Further research is needed to improve the understanding of the core factors underlying women’s mental illnesses and the specific skills that staff need to provide effective treatment.

scholarly journals Understanding barriers to accessing mental health services for newcomers to Canada using Peterborough, Ontario, as an illustrative example

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nurun Layla Chowdhury
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Services ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
Mental Healthcare ◽  
Healthcare Services ◽  
Mental Illnesses ◽  
Cultural Barriers ◽  
Accurate Information

The quality of an individual’s mental health has a significant impact on their quality of life, as well as on the cost to society. Regular access to mental health services can help mitigate the risk factors of developing mental illnesses. This paper examines barriers to accessing mental health services, using the community of Peterborough, Ontario, as an example. Social, economic, and cultural barriers impact help-seeking amongst immigrants, putting them at a higher risk of developing mental disorders. The social determinants of mental health can be useful when developing policies aimed at improving utilization of mental healthcare services. Policy makers need to first focus on collecting accurate information on the population, and then developing targeted solutions to eliminate barriers such as language and employment that prevent help-seeking in immigrants.

7. Into the 21st century

2018 ◽  
pp. 112-124 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tom Burns
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Artificial Intelligence ◽  
Virtual Reality ◽  
21St Century ◽  
Mental Illnesses ◽  
New Science ◽  
The Core ◽  
New Treatment ◽  
The Brain ◽  
Manage Mental

‘Into the 21st century’ explains how there is an increased focus on how our body, and not just the brain, influences our mental health. Rapidly advancing computer technology, including artificial intelligence and virtual reality, is beginning to provide new treatment possibilities, not just support and simplify the old ones. The development of sophisticated imaging has supercharged the area of neurosciences and the increased understanding of genetics and the new science of epigenetics provide psychiatry with greater tools to identify and manage mental illnesses. A paradox with our increasingly technological and scientific advances is that the core dilemmas of psychiatry appear not to be diminishing. Psychiatry will survive the 21st century, but certainly it is changing.

Gender and Serious Mental Illness: A Feminist Perspective

1992 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 107-126 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carol T. Mowbray ◽  
Sandra E. Herman ◽  
Kelly L. Hazel
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Illnesses ◽  
Gender Composition ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Male Clients ◽  
Problem Formulations ◽  
Serious Mental Illnesses ◽  
Female Clients ◽  
Statistical Clustering

Perhaps in reaction to criticisms of “woman as problem” formulations, psychological literature has nearly ignored women with serious mental illnesses (SMI), although epidemiological research indicates that women are overrepresented in these diagnoses. Data are presented on characteristics, functioning, and services received for a sample of nearly 2,500 SMI clients. Statistical clustering of clients with similar profiles produced four out of six clusters with significant differences in proportions of female versus male clients represented. The results indicate that the extent to which SMI clients display gender-related symptoms and behaviors is a significant factor in clinician perceptions and in service utilization. However, results also show substantial overlap in gender composition of the clusters. Discussion centers on the quality of care and appropriateness of services for female clients. Future research is suggested, utilizing a feminist understanding of women's diversity and of sociopolitical factors related to mental health.

scholarly journals The Effect of Brief Crisis Intervention Package on Improving Quality of Life and Mental Health in Patients with COVID-19

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hossein Gharaati Sotoudeh ◽  
Seyyed Salman Alavi ◽  
Zari Akbari ◽  
Fereshteh Jannatifard ◽  
Valentin Artounian
Keyword(s):  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Mental Health ◽  
Crisis Intervention ◽  
Mental Illnesses ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Controlled Clinical Trial ◽  
Intervention Package ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Negative Effect

Objective: COVID 19 is having a devastating effect on mankind’s life. Individuals with COVID-19 will experience high levels of stress, depression, anxiety, and low quality of life. The goals the of present study were to investigate the effect of brief crisis intervention package on stress, depression, anxiety, and quality of life in patient with COVID-19. Method: In this randomized controlled clinical trial, 30 patients were randomly selected and divided into control and experimental groups. The experimental group was examined in four 60-minute sessions for one month. During this period, the control group received only routine treatment and therapy. Before and after the intervention, DASS21, the Symptom Checklist (SCL-25), and WHO-QOL were used to measure and record patient mental health and quality of life. Finally, data were analyzed using SPSS 24 software. Results: The average mental health score was assessed with WHO-QOL, DASS21, and SCL-25 before intervention and was not statistically significant (P = > 0.05), and the mean score of stress, anxiety, depression, WHO-QOL, SCL-25 after intervention was statistically significant (P < 0.001). Therefore, results showed the brief crisis intervention package was effective in improving the quality of life (P < 0.05) and mental illnesses (P < 0.05) in patients with COVID-19. Conclusion: The brief crisis intervention package can reduce the negative effect of patients with COVID-19. Therefore, this intervention can be used as a beneficial treatment to improve mental disorder symptoms and to improve the condition of people who suffer from COVID-19.

Correctional Mental Health Research and Program Evaluation

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nancy Wolff
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
Health Research ◽  
Mental Health Treatment ◽  
Mental Health Research ◽  
Psychosocial Treatment ◽  
Mental Illnesses ◽  
Health Treatment ◽  
Correctional Mental Health

Research in mental health issues in prisoner populations essentially stopped in the mid 1970’s. It is now re-emerging as a critical component of improving mental health care and helping toward recovery for the incarcerated mentally ill. Mental illness, ranging from acute anxiety to schizophrenia, is endemic within prisons and jails. Unlike their free world counterparts, however, incarcerated people have a constitutional right to mental health treatment. Yet, despite the need for and right to mental health treatment, remarkably little reliable and valid evidence is available on the nature and level of mental illness among incarcerated people, the effects of incarceration on symptomatology, the availability and quality of medication, cognitive, and psychosocial treatment for disorders, and how context impacts the effectiveness of the treatment that is available. Evidence is absent because corrections-based research is constrained by regulation, financing, and inexperience. In this chapter, the history of prisoner research and the evolution of federal regulations to protect prisoners as human subjects will be reviewed and then discussed in terms of how regulation has impacted correctional mental health research, after first defining what is meant by research and why research is needed to inform policy and practice decisions. This will be followed by recommendations for building the correctional mental health research evidence base. The intent here is to help researchers, in collaboration with stakeholders, develop, design, and implement research studies, and disseminate evidence to advance science and the quality of care available to incarcerated people with mental illnesses within the current regulatory environment.

scholarly journals Evolution of secure services for women in England

2011 ◽  
Vol 17 (5) ◽  
pp. 323-331 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jaydip Sarkar ◽  
Mary di Lustro
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Gender Differences ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Mental Disorder ◽  
Life Experiences ◽  
The Core ◽  
Secure Care ◽  
Medium Security ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Further Development

SummaryPatients detained at high and medium security reveal significant gender differences in the presentation of psychopathology, mental disorder and social and offending profiles. However, secure mental health services in England, like prisons, generally fail to recognise the core importance of the differing biopsychosocial development in women and the impact of life experiences on women's subsequent biopsychosocial functioning. As a consequence, women are often inadequately provided for in services dictated by the identified needs, risks and responsiveness of men. The lack of clinically appropriate facilities for women may account for the increased frequency with which women are readmitted to medium security and for their longer admissions to both high and medium secure care. New tertiary services are developing as a result of the lessons learnt while providing gender-blind care. However, further development is required to ensure that women receive services of the same quality, range and nature of those received by men.

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