scholarly journals Out of the shadows: mental health of Canadian armed forces veterans

2014 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 85-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
James M. Thompson ◽  
Mark A. Zamorski ◽  
Deniz Fikretoglu ◽  
Linda VanTil ◽  
Jitender Sareen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Service ◽  
Health Service ◽  
Population Studies ◽  
Armed Forces ◽  
The Public ◽  
National Surveys ◽  
The Past ◽  
Canadian Armed Forces

In the past 15 years in Canada, as in other nations, the mental health of veterans has emerged as a key concern for both government and the public. As mental health service enhancement unfolded, the need for wider population studies became apparent. This paper describes the renewal of services and key findings from national surveys of serving personnel and veterans.

Exploring the Dimensions of Recovery and User Experience

2014 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 305-311
Author(s):  
Peter Jones
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Service ◽  
Health Service ◽  
Health Service Provision ◽  
Domain Specific ◽  
The Past ◽  
Economic Climate ◽  
Health And Social Care ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Mental Health Service Provision

The concept of recovery is widely applied within service delivery in the field of mental health. The dimensions of recovery were explored using a singular conceptual framework known as Hodges’ model, which is shown to be suited to this particular task. This arises from the model’s structure, in that it encompasses the individual-group and a care domain specific to the political aspects of both health and social care. The evidence was found by relating recovery to the model’s care domains, which is also relevant to the experience of mental health service users and developments over the past decade in mental health service provision. Particular attention is given to the ‘Recovery Star’. This can be used as a key-working and outcomes tool. The discussion is also placed in a context of the current socio-economic climate, notably the ‘politics of recovery’ at a time of austerity.

Comparison of national trends in mental health service use intensity in Canadian military and civilian populations

2021 ◽  
pp. e20210005
Author(s):  
Deniz Fikretoglu ◽  
Aihua Liu ◽  
Mark A. Zamorski
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Service ◽  
Health Service ◽  
Service Use ◽  
Mental Health Service Use ◽  
Health Service Use ◽  
The Past ◽  
Adequate Care ◽  
Canadian Military ◽  
National Trends

LAY SUMMARY It is important that individuals who need mental health services receive adequate care. Mental health service use (MHSU) intensity is one measure of care adequacy. This study compares changes in the past decade in mental health service use intensity in Canadian military members and civilians. Mental health service intensity increased in both military and comparable civilians over the past decade. These findings show improvements in adequacy of care and are consistent with other studies reporting improvements in other aspects of mental health service use. However, there is a need to look at other indicators of care adequacy, such as the type of care received, in future studies.

Linking the past and the present: service users’ perspectives of how adverse experiences relate to their admission to forensic mental health services

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica Cartwright ◽  
Daniel Lawrence ◽  
Christopher Hartwright
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Service ◽  
Health Service ◽  
Service Users ◽  
Forensic Mental Health ◽  
Discussion Section ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Past ◽  
Secure Care ◽  
Adverse Experiences

Purpose This study aimed to explore how forensic mental health service users make sense of their past adverse experiences. Secondly, it aimed to explore whether service users considered their adverse experiences to be related to their current stay in a forensic mental health setting. Design/methodology/approach Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to analyse interviews with eight service users in low and medium secure care. Six of the participants were male and two were female. Findings Four super-ordinate themes emerged from the data: “Living amongst adversity”; “Managing adverse experiences”; “Making sense of going into secure care”; and “Coping with the past in the present”. All participants referred to multiple adverse experiences throughout their lives and used harmful coping strategies to manage these. Individual differences in how they related their past experiences to their detention in secure care were evident. Practical implications Author guidelines state that this section is optional. Implications for clinical practice are discussed at length in the discussion section. Originality/value This study offers an insight into the way in which forensic mental health service users make sense of their past traumas in relation to their current admission to secure services. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, no research has previously addressed this from the perspective of service users.

The use of the Legal System as a Mental Health Service for Children

1979 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lee H. Haller ◽  
Lawrence A. Dubin ◽  
Martin Buxton
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Service ◽  
Health Service ◽  
Legal System ◽  
Emotionally Disturbed ◽  
Court Decisions ◽  
The Past ◽  
The Law ◽  
Emotionally Disturbed Children

The interface of mental health and the law has been rapidly expanding over the past several years, as more and more cases of various sorts are being heard by the courts and new laws are passed. Although court decisions and laws may be viewed as an intrusion by the psychiatrists who work with emotionally disturbed children, the authors suggest that the effect is to present the professional with new alternatives for helping the patient. A number of these situations where the legal system can be utilized are presented.

scholarly journals Mental health service acceptability for the armed forces veteran community

2018 ◽  
Vol 68 (6) ◽  
pp. 391-398 ◽  
Author(s):  
P Farrand ◽  
A Jeffs ◽  
T Bloomfield ◽  
N Greenberg ◽  
E Watkins ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Service ◽  
Health Service ◽  
Armed Forces

scholarly journals A simple approach to the management of service risk in a local mental health service

1999 ◽  
Vol 23 (11) ◽  
pp. 649-651 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark Davies
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Mental Health Service ◽  
Health Service ◽  
Clinical Governance ◽  
Simple Approach ◽  
Mentally Disordered ◽  
The Public ◽  
Local Mental Health ◽  
Use Of Resources

Risk, and how to manage risk, have become dominant themes of this decade. Risk is essentially any feature of an organisation which is likely to prevent that organisation from achieving its primary aims (Rosen, 1995). In general, the lower the risk in an organisation, the higher the performance of that organisation is likely to be. In turn this can lead to more efficient use of resources. In the area of mental health, the consequences of risk can be serious, this being amply demonstrated by the public inquiries into homicides by mentally disordered people. Such inquiries consistently reveal inadequacies in local services providing mental health care (Appleby, 1997). The identification and management of risk within local mental health services has therefore become a priority. Clinicians as managers have a key role in such a development, particularly with the introduction of clinical governance (Oyebode et al, 1999). This paper outlines a simple approach to risk management in a local mental health service.

scholarly journals Help-Seeking Behaviours of Individuals with Mood Disorders

2005 ◽  
Vol 50 (10) ◽  
pp. 652-659 ◽  
Author(s):  
JianLi Wang ◽  
Scott B Patten ◽  
Jeanne VA Williams ◽  
Shawn Currie ◽  
Cynthia A Beck ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Service ◽  
Mental Health Services ◽  
Health Service ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Mood Disorders ◽  
Service Use ◽  
Mental Health Service Use ◽  
Health Service Use ◽  
The Past

Objectives: This study had the following objectives: 1) to estimate the 12-month prevalence of conventional and unconventional mental health service use by individuals with major depressive disorder (MDD) or mania in the past year, and 2) to identify factors associated with the use of conventional mental health services by individuals with MDD or mania in the past year. Methods: We examined data from the Canadian Community Health Survey: Mental Health and Well-Being (CCHS 1.2). Respondents with MDD ( n = 1563) or manic episodes ( n = 393) in the past 12 months were included in this analysis. Results: An estimated 63.9% of respondents with MDD and 59.0% of those with manic episodes reported having used some type of help in the past 12 months; 52.9% of those with MDD and 49.0% of those with manic episodes used conventional mental health services. Approximately 21% of respondents with either MDD or manic episodes used natural health products specifically for emotional, mental health, and drug or alcohol use problems. Respondents who reported comorbid anxiety disorders and long-term medical conditions were more likely to have used conventional mental health services. Conclusions: Relative to previous Canadian literature, our analysis suggests that the frequency of conventional mental health service use among persons with MDD has not increased significantly in the past decade. Further, the rate of conventional mental health service use by persons with manic episodes is unexpectedly low. These findings may reflect the lack of national initiatives targeting mood disorders in Canada. They have important implications for planning future education, promotion, and research efforts.

scholarly journals T243. MENTAL HEALTH SERVICE UTILIZATION IN YOUNG ADULTS REPORTING PSYCHOSIS-LIKE EXPERIENCES

2020 ◽  
Vol 46 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. S325-S325
Author(s):  
Miranda Bridgwater ◽  
Pamela Rakhshan Rouhakhtar ◽  
Mallory Klaunig ◽  
Emily Petti ◽  
Caroline Roemer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Service ◽  
Health Service ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Service Utilization ◽  
Mental Health Treatment ◽  
Health Service Utilization ◽  
Mental Health Service Utilization ◽  
Health Treatment ◽  
The Past

Abstract Background Psychosis-like experiences (PEs) may reflect elevated risk for the onset of serious mental illness, such as a psychotic disorder, as well as negatively impact functioning. Few studies have examined the relation between PEs and mental health service utilization or intent to seek treatment. Characterizing psychosis risk and service utilization among individuals in the peak developmental period for psychotic disorders (~ ages 18–25) may help the field improve psychosis screening tools and reduce the duration of untreated illness. Methods Participants (N = 439) were individuals between the ages of 18 and 25 years old (M = 20.24) who completed an online survey regarding their mental health experiences. They completed the PRIME Screen with distress and self-reported mental health service utilization throughout their lifetime and for the past two months. Participants were asked how strongly they were considering seeking mental health treatment (Likert-type scale, response options ranging from 1 [“Not at all”] to 5 [“Very much”]). The PRIME Screen symptom total score, total distress score, and specific item responses were used in bivariate correlations and a multiple linear regression model. Results Approximately a third of the participants (34%) screened positively on the PRIME, mean total score of 16.67 (SD = 14.53). Sixteen percent of participants reported seeking mental health treatment in the past two months, and 38% reported they were currently considering seeking treatment. There were no significant correlations between mental health service utilization in the past two months and PRIME symptom total score (p = .31), or distress total score (p = .32). PRIME total scores and PRIME distress total scores were also not significantly associated with lifetime utilization of mental health services (p = .22 and p =.45, respectively). There were significant relations between how strongly participants were considering seeking mental health treatment and both PRIME symptom total (r = 0.20, p < .01, N = 413) and distress total scores (r = 0.20, p < .01, N = 359). A multiple linear regression model indicated certain PRIME items contributed significantly to this relation (PRIME items 1[odd/unusual experiences], 3[thought control], 6[mind reading], and 12[concerns with “going crazy”]; all ps < .05). Follow-up analyses showed that distress associated with PRIME items 1, 3 and 12 was significantly higher (all ps < .01) than the mean PRIME distress item score. Discussion Results suggest that while a third of a college sample of young adults scored positively on the PRIME screen, PEs and related distress were not significantly related to lifetime or current mental health service utilization. Among those not already seeking services, however, both PEs symptom and distress were significantly associated with participants’ intent to utilize mental health treatment. Thus, individuals may experience distressing PE symptoms, but many do not receive mental health services. Higher endorsement of and distress with experiences relating to: odd/unusual experiences, thought control, mind reading, and concern with “going crazy” were more closely associated with intent to seek treatment, suggesting that specific PEs may increase individuals’ desire to address these concerns via mental health services. Findings highlight the need to identify and engage individuals not yet in treatment who have frequent/high level, distressing, and specific PEs.

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