scholarly journals The impact of suicide on community mental health teams: findings and recommendations

2002 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 50-52 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stuart Linke ◽  
Jenny Wojciak ◽  
Samantha Day

Aims and MethodThe study investigated the personal impact of patient suicides on the members of community mental health teams and the sources of support utilised for coping with adverse effects.ResultsForty-four questionnaires were returned. Eighty-six per cent of staff reported having had at least one patient suicide, with an average of 4.2 suicides. The majority of staff reported that patient suicides had significant adverse effects on their personal and professional lives. Some of the effects were long-lasting (greater than 1 month). Staff found that peer support, reviews, dedicated staff meetings and support from senior colleagues were of most value.Clinical ImplicationsStaff require skilled and dedicated support following a patient suicide in order to minimise its detrimental effects on personal, professional and team functioning.

2000 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 20-23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ian Dewar ◽  
John Eagles ◽  
Susan Klein ◽  
Nicola Gray ◽  
David Alexander

Aims and MethodThis survey is the first UK study of trainee psychiatrists' experiences of patient suicide. One hundred and three senior and specialist registrars in psychiatry working in Scotland completed the questionnaire, representing an 81% response rate.ResultsAlmost half (47%) had experienced suicide of a patient in their care or otherwise known to them (e.g. through on-call experiences). Although only 28% recalled previous training on issues to consider following a suicide, all of these doctors found this to be of value. Many reported that patient suicide had a deleterious impact on their personal and professional lives. The most valuable supports were informal, and the trainees' consultants appeared particularly well placed to offer support and advice.Clinical ImplicationsMany trainee psychiatrists experience the suicide of a patient. Such experiences have potential for adverse effects on doctors' professional practice and personal life. Greater availability of training in this area would allow trainees to be better prepared for such an event. Trainees' consultants have a pivotal role to play in providing appropriate advice and support after a patient suicide.


Author(s):  
E. McGuire ◽  
S. Murthy

Suicide is a relatively common event in those seeking psychiatric care. However, its impact is nonetheless traumatic and devastating for those involved in the care of the patient. Community mental health teams (CMHTs) address every aspect of a patient’s life, which creates a unique relationship between the team and the patient. Patient suicide can have serious, detrimental effects on individual team members, on the functioning of the team itself and on the care of other patients in the aftermath of such an event. In spite of this, there are limited protocols to guide CMHTs in this situation. This article seeks to emphasise the impact of patient suicide on CMHTs as a specific entity. It highlights the need for more research in this area, in order to direct the formation of more coherent local and national guidelines.


2013 ◽  
Vol 37 (8) ◽  
pp. 272-275
Author(s):  
Laura Boyd ◽  
Colin Crawford ◽  
Eugene Wong

Aims and methodWe examined the impact of implementing a new Acute Mental Health Emergency Assessment Protocol (AMHEAP) on joint psychiatric assessments out of hours within Forth Valley, Scotland, over the course of 4 calendar months. The protocol states that assessments should be carried out by a junior doctor and a registered, qualified mental health nurse. The impact measures were taken as admission rates and experience of the doctor in training.ResultsIn the 4 months that were examined (1 June–30 September 2011), 79.5% of out-of-hours emergency assessments were performed jointly. Admission rates were significantly decreased (P<0.001) compared with a similar period in 2008, before the AMHEAP protocol was developed. Most junior doctors valued the experience of joint assessment.Clinical implicationsJoint assessment can enhance patient experience, reduce hospital admission, and provide a learning opportunity for junior doctors in emergency psychiatric assessments. However, it represents a move away from the doctor as sole decision maker.


Psychiatriki ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 30 (4) ◽  
pp. 281-290 ◽  
Author(s):  
G Konstantakopoulos ◽  
K. Pikouli ◽  
D Ploumpidis ◽  
E Bougonikolou ◽  
K Kouyanou ◽  
...  

1997 ◽  
Vol 21 (5) ◽  
pp. 260-263 ◽  
Author(s):  
Martin Commander ◽  
Sue Odell ◽  
Sashi Sashidharan

The difficulty in achieving good quality community mental health care for homeless people has received increasing attention during the last few years. Less consideration has been given to the provision of inpatient care. By comparing data collected before and after its inception, we examined the impact of a specialist community mental health team for homeless people on ‘no fixed abode’ admissions in Birmingham. Although the team was successfully involved in the admission and discharge process in a substantial proportion of cases, many admissions still took place out of hours and involved the police, while discharge was often against medical advice and occurred without follow-up. These findings and their implications for the provision of homeless services are discussed.


BJPsych Open ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph Butler ◽  
Simone de Cassan ◽  
Margaret Glogowska ◽  
Thomas R. Fanshawe ◽  
Phil Turner ◽  
...  

Background Physical health outcomes in severe mental illness are worse than in the general population. Routine physical health check completion in this group is poor. Aims To quantitatively and qualitatively evaluate the impact of point of care (POC) blood testing on physical health check completion in community mental health services. Method In a prospective cohort design, we equipped an early intervention service (EIS) and a community mental health team (CMHT) with a POC blood testing device for 6 months. We compared rates of blood test and full physical health check completion in the intervention teams with a matched EIS and CMHT, historically and during the intervention. We explored attitudes to POC testing using thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews with patients and clinicians. Results Although the CMHT scarcely used the POC device and saw no change in outcomes, direct comparison of testing rates in the intervention period showed increased physical health check completion in the EIS with the device (rate ratio RR = 5.18; 95% CI 2.54–12.44; P < 0.001) compared with usual care. The rate was consistent with the EIS's increasing rate of testing over time (RR = 0.45; 95% 0.09–2.08; P = 0.32). Similar trends were seen in blood test completion. POC testing was acceptable to patients but clinicians reported usability, provision and impact on the therapeutic relationship as barriers to uptake. Conclusions POC testing was beneficial and acceptable to patients and may increase physical health check uptake. Further research, accounting for clinician barriers, is needed to evaluate its clinical and cost-effectiveness.


BMJ Open ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (9) ◽  
pp. e016107 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sherifat Oduola ◽  
Til Wykes ◽  
Dan Robotham ◽  
Tom K J Craig

ObjectivesKey challenges for mental health healthcare professionals to implement research alongside clinical activity have been highlighted, such as insufficient time to apply research skills and lack of support and resources. We examined the impact of employing dedicated staff to promote research in community mental health clinical settings.DesignQuasiexperiment before and after study.SettingSouth London and Maudsley National Health Service Foundation Trust.Participants4455 patients receiving care from 15 community mental health teams between 1 December 2013 and 31 December 2014.Outcome measuresThe proportion of patients approached for research participation in clinical services where research champions were present (intervention group), and where research champions were not present (comparison group).ResultsPatients in the intervention group were nearly six times more likely to be approached for research participation (Adj. OR=5.98; 95% CI 4.96 to 7.22).ConclusionsInvesting in staff that promote and drive research in clinical services increases opportunities for patients to hear about and engage in clinical research studies. However, investment needs to move beyond employing short-term staff.


Author(s):  
Naheem Hakim ◽  
Andrew R. Thompson ◽  
Gail Coleman-Oluwabusola

AbstractThe Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) programme started in 2008, but it contained little provision for specifically meeting the needs of Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) groups. The purpose of this evaluation was to describe the experience of transition from BAME community mental health worker (CMHW) to IAPT low-intensity psychological wellbeing practitioner (PWP) in order to identify possible gains and losses for the former communities served, and the factors that might contribute to successful training of people with BAME expertise. Four former CMHWs who had transitioned into working as PWPs were interviewed. Semi-structured interviews were used. The data were analysed using thematic analysis. Six major themes were identified with the benefits of training emerging as an important factor for the participants in enhancing their role. Three of the themes interconnected and focused on the impact for BAME communities in terms of access to service and barriers. Evident in the interviews were descriptions of adaptations that were made as a result of CMHW having access to both new and old skills. Finally, two themes focused on the participant recommendations as to how IAPT services might become more culturally responsive. The findings suggest that there can be significant benefits for services to provide IAPT training to people already providing culturally specific services. The participants reported that low-intensity cognitive behavioural therapy (LICBT) was effective, but only when cultural sensitive adaptations were made. The evaluation has some clear recommendations as to how IAPT services might seek to offer culturally responsive CBT. Suggestions for carrying out further practice-based evaluations are made.


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