Understanding how clinician-patient relationships and relational continuity of care affect recovery from serious mental illness: STARS study results.

It has been claimed (Abbati et al, 1987) that patients benefit from continuity of professional involvement sustained over a long period. Schizophrenia sufferers in particular find it harder than non-sufferers to articulate their difficulties and concerns, and may adjust poorly to change, only building up trust in professionals over an extended period. In their turn, professionals need time to get to know such individuals and to recognise ‘early signs’ (Birchwood et al, 1989) of possible relapse. Management of potential decompensation involves a knowledge of how the individual has responded to changes in medication in the past and what psychosocial factors may be relevant. Working with such patients refines the clinician's skills in interacting with them, obtaining their compliance with a particular regime, and pre-empting potential problems. Without this background of knowledge and experience, the management of sufferers may be crude with adverse results for the patient.

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Personal reactions to sexual assault disclosures made by female clients diagnosed with serious mental illness

The Journal of Mental Health Training Education and Practice ◽

10.1108/jmhtep-10-2017-0057 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 13 (4) ◽

pp. 248-256

Author(s):

Charlotte Strauss Swanson ◽

Tracy Schroepfer

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Mental Illness ◽

Sexual Assault ◽

Serious Mental Illness ◽

Mental Health Practitioners ◽

Personal Factors ◽

Content Type ◽

Study Results ◽

Health Practitioners ◽

Female Clients

Purpose Mental health practitioners working with female clients diagnosed with a serious mental illness (SMI) often face client disclosures of sexual assault. Research has shown that practitioners’ responses can be complicated by the diagnosis and lack of professional training; however, less is known about the role their personal factors may play. The purpose of this paper is twofold: to further understanding of practitioners’ personal reactions and investigate how these reactions affect their professional response. Design/methodology/approach Nine mental health practitioners participated in face-to-face interviews, in which they were asked to describe their personal reactions when faced with a disclosure and to discuss how these reactions influence client assessment, treatment and referral. Findings The study results show that lacking training, practitioners expressed feelings of uncertainty, fear and worry about how best to respond without causing further harm. Findings serve to inform future training to support practitioners and, as a result, improve care and treatment for this population. Originality/value This study is unique because it explores the personal reactions mental health practitioners’ experience when responding to disclosures of sexual assault among women diagnosed with an SMI and how these reactions may impact their professional response.

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Assessing the Real-Time Mental Health Challenges of COVID-19 in Individuals With Serious Mental Illnesses: Protocol for a Quantitative Study (Preprint)

10.2196/preprints.19203 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Raeanne Cristine Moore ◽

Colin Andrew Depp ◽

Philip D Harvey ◽

Amy E Pinkham

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Mental Illness ◽

Serious Mental Illness ◽

Ecological Momentary Assessment ◽

Mental Health Problems ◽

Extended Period ◽

Mental Illnesses ◽

Study Results ◽

Ecological Momentary ◽

Momentary Assessment

BACKGROUND The outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has caused significant stress and mental health problems among the general public. However, persons at greatest risk for poor mental health outcomes, such as people with serious mental illness, have been largely overlooked. OBJECTIVE This paper presents the protocol for a study that aims to examine the mental health impact of COVID-19 and social distancing behaviors in people with serious mental illness and the behaviors undertaken to prevent COVID-19 infection in this group. METHODS Participants will include individuals with serious mental illness (eg, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder) and nonpsychiatric control participants who are currently participating in or have previously participated in several ongoing parent observational studies. Data will be collected from April 2020 through August 2020. Participants will complete phone interviews at 2 time points to assess their current emotional functioning and discuss the measures they have taken to prevent COVID-19 infection. Baseline (pre-COVID-19) mental health, sampled by ecological momentary assessment over an extended period, will be compared with current mental health, also sampled by ecological momentary assessment over an extended period. Demographic, cognitive, and psychosocial factors at baseline will be used to examine risk and resilience to current mental health and coping. RESULTS The inclusion of participants for the first round of telephone assessments started on April 3, 2020 and will be completed by May 31, 2020. As of April 30, 2020, 101 individuals had completed these first-round assessments. The second round of telephone assessments will likely occur between June 1, 2020, and August 31, 2020. Study results will be published in peer-reviewed scientific journals. CONCLUSIONS Our findings will have broad implications for understanding the psychological consequences of COVID-19 among vulnerable persons with serious mental illness and will provide the opportunity to identify targets to reduce negative outcomes in the future. We also hope our efforts will provide a roadmap and resources for other researchers who would like to implement a similar approach. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT DERR1-10.2196/19203

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Assessing the Real-Time Mental Health Challenges of COVID-19 in Individuals With Serious Mental Illnesses: Protocol for a Quantitative Study

JMIR Research Protocols ◽

10.2196/19203 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 9 (5) ◽

pp. e19203 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Raeanne Cristine Moore ◽

Colin Andrew Depp ◽

Philip D Harvey ◽

Amy E Pinkham

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Mental Illness ◽

Serious Mental Illness ◽

Ecological Momentary Assessment ◽

Mental Health Problems ◽

Extended Period ◽

Mental Illnesses ◽

Study Results ◽

Ecological Momentary ◽

Momentary Assessment

Background The outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has caused significant stress and mental health problems among the general public. However, persons at greatest risk for poor mental health outcomes, such as people with serious mental illness, have been largely overlooked. Objective This paper presents the protocol for a study that aims to examine the mental health impact of COVID-19 and social distancing behaviors in people with serious mental illness and the behaviors undertaken to prevent COVID-19 infection in this group. Methods Participants will include individuals with serious mental illness (eg, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder) and nonpsychiatric control participants who are currently participating in or have previously participated in several ongoing parent observational studies. Data will be collected from April 2020 through August 2020. Participants will complete phone interviews at 2 time points to assess their current emotional functioning and discuss the measures they have taken to prevent COVID-19 infection. Baseline (pre-COVID-19) mental health, sampled by ecological momentary assessment over an extended period, will be compared with current mental health, also sampled by ecological momentary assessment over an extended period. Demographic, cognitive, and psychosocial factors at baseline will be used to examine risk and resilience to current mental health and coping. Results The inclusion of participants for the first round of telephone assessments started on April 3, 2020 and will be completed by May 31, 2020. As of April 30, 2020, 101 individuals had completed these first-round assessments. The second round of telephone assessments will likely occur between June 1, 2020, and August 31, 2020. Study results will be published in peer-reviewed scientific journals. Conclusions Our findings will have broad implications for understanding the psychological consequences of COVID-19 among vulnerable persons with serious mental illness and will provide the opportunity to identify targets to reduce negative outcomes in the future. We also hope our efforts will provide a roadmap and resources for other researchers who would like to implement a similar approach. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID) DERR1-10.2196/19203

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Hope, adaptability, and job-search intensity among individuals living with serious mental illness

Journal of Vocational Rehabilitation ◽

10.3233/jvr-211147 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-7

Author(s):

Brian J. Stevenson ◽

Uma Chandrika Millner ◽

Sarah A. Satgunam ◽

Richard Love

Keyword(s):

Mental Illness ◽

Regression Analysis ◽

Serious Mental Illness ◽

Job Search ◽

Career Adaptability ◽

Background Factors ◽

Search Intensity ◽

Study Results ◽

Primary Relationships ◽

Job Search Intensity

BACKGROUND: Increased intensity in job-search behavior is associated with important employment outcomes like job attainment. There is evidence that work hope, and career adaptability are important antecedents of higher job-search intensity. However, there is no evidence that these relationships exist among individuals living with serious mental illness. OBJECTIVE: This study seeks to improve our understanding of factors that contribute to job-search intensity among individuals living with serious mental illness. METHODS: Eighty-five individuals living with serious mental illness completed surveys of demographics, work hope, career adaptability, and job-search intensity. Correlational and regression analysis was used to examine the primary relationships in this study. RESULTS: Education level, employment status, and use of vocational rehabilitation services were background factors related to job-search intensity. Controlling for background factors, regression analysis found that work hope positively predicted job-search intensity, and career adaptability negatively predicted job-search intensity. Our model explained 35%of the variance in job-search intensity. Additionally, individuals who were employed had significantly higher career adaptability than individuals who were unemployed. CONCLUSIONS: Work hope and career adaptability are related to important vocational outcomes among individuals living with serious mental illness.

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