scholarly journals Maternal Prenatal Mental Health and Placental 11β-HSD2 Gene Expression: Initial Findings from the Mercy Pregnancy and Emotional Wellbeing Study

2015 ◽  
Vol 16 (11) ◽  
pp. 27482-27496 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sunaina Seth ◽  
Andrew Lewis ◽  
Richard Saffery ◽  
Martha Lappas ◽  
Megan Galbally
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Mental Health ◽  
Emotional Wellbeing ◽  
Prenatal Mental Health

Development of the Shift Smartphone App to Support the Emotional Wellbeing of Junior Doctors: Design of a Prototype and Results of Usability and Acceptability Testing (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Isabelle Counson ◽  
Alexandra Bartholomew ◽  
Joanna Crawford ◽  
Katherine Petrie ◽  
Geetanjali Basarkod ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
User Experience ◽  
Help Seeking ◽  
Pilot Trial ◽  
User Involvement ◽  
Health Behaviours ◽  
Junior Doctors ◽  
User Centered Design ◽  
Emotional Wellbeing ◽  
Prototype Development

BACKGROUND Junior doctors report higher levels of psychological distress than more senior doctors and report several barriers to seeking professional mental health support, including concerns about confidentiality and career progression. Mobile health applications (mHealth apps) may be utilised to help overcome these barriers to assist the emotional wellbeing of this population and encourage help-seeking. OBJECTIVE We describe the development and pilot trial of the Shift mHealth app to provide an unobtrusive avenue for junior doctors to seek information about, and help for, wellbeing and mental health concerns that is sensitive to workplace settings. METHODS A 4-phase iterative development process was undertaken to create the content and features of Shift involving junior doctors, using principles of user-centered design. These four phases were: I) Needs assessment, based on interviews with 12 junior doctors; II) Prototype development with user experience feedback from two junior doctors; III) Evaluation, consisting of a pilot trial with 22 junior doctors to assess usability and acceptability of the initial prototype; and IV) Redesign, including user experience workshops with 51 junior doctors. RESULTS Qualitative results informed the content and design of Shift to ensure the app was tailored to junior doctors’ needs. The Shift app prototype contained cognitive-behavioural, mindfulness, value-based actions, and psychoeducational modules, as well as a tracking function visualising patterns of daily variations in mood and health behaviours. Pilot testing revealed possible issues with the organisation of the app content, which were addressed in a thorough restructuring and redesign of Shift with the help of junior doctors across three user experience workshops. CONCLUSIONS The current research demonstrates the importance of ongoing end-user involvement in the creation of a specialised mHealth app for a unique working population experiencing profession-specific stressors and barriers to help-seeking. The development and pilot trial of this novel Shift mHealth app are first steps in addressing the mental health and support-seeking needs of junior doctors, although further research is required to validate its effectiveness and appropriateness on a larger scale.

scholarly journals A scoping review about social and emotional wellbeing programs and services targeting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people in Australia: understanding the principles guiding promising practice

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Himanshu Gupta ◽  
Noemi Tari-Keresztes ◽  
Donna Stephens ◽  
James A. Smith ◽  
Emrhan Sultan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Young People ◽  
Torres Strait Islander ◽  
Aboriginal People ◽  
Program Planning ◽  
Promising Practices ◽  
Emotional Wellbeing ◽  
Social And Emotional ◽  
Torres Strait ◽  
Social And Emotional Wellbeing

Abstract Background Multiple culturally-oriented programs, services, and frameworks have emerged in recent decades to support the social and emotional wellbeing (SEWB) of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander (Aboriginal) people in Australia. Although there are some common elements, principles, and methods, few attempts have been made to integrate them into a set of guidelines for policy and practice settings. This review aims to identify key practices adopted by programs and services that align with the principles of the National Strategic Framework for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples’ Mental Health and Social and Emotional Wellbeing 2017–2023. Methods A comprehensive review of electronic databases and organisational websites was conducted to retrieve studies of relevance. Twenty-seven publications were included in the review. Next, we identified promising practices through a collaborative review process. We then used the principles articulated in the above-mentioned framework as the basis to complete a framework analysis. This enabled us to explore the alignment between current scholarship about SEWB programs and services with respect to the principles of the framework. Results We found there was a strong alignment, with selected principles being effectively incorporated into most SEWB program and service delivery contexts. However, only one study incorporated all nine principles, using them as conceptual framework. Additionally, ‘capacity building’, ‘individual skill development’, and ‘development of maladaptive coping mechanisms’ were identified as common factors in SEWB program planning and delivery for Aboriginal people. Conclusion We argue the selective application of nationally agreed principles in SEWB programs and services, alongside a paucity of scholarship relating to promising practices in young people-oriented SEWB programs and services, are two areas that need the urgent attention of commissioners and service providers tasked with funding, planning, and implementing SEWB programs and services for Aboriginal people. Embedding robust participatory action research and evaluation approaches into the design of such services and programs will help to build the necessary evidence-base to achieve improved SEWB health outcomes among Aboriginal people, particularly young people with severe and complex mental health needs.

Hitting the right note for child and adolescent mental and emotional wellbeing: a formative qualitative evaluation of Sistema Scotland’s “Big Noise” orchestral programme

2016 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 25-36 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christopher Harkins ◽  
Lisa Garnham ◽  
Aileen Campbell ◽  
Carol Tannahill
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Qualitative Evaluation ◽  
Qualitative Assessment ◽  
Potential Contribution ◽  
Emotional Wellbeing ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Causal Pathways

Purpose – Previous research emphasises the need for preventative interventions to reduce mental health problems among disadvantaged children and adolescents. There is however little consensus concerning the delivery and impacts of such interventions particularly non-clinical, arts-based models delivered within community settings. The purpose of this paper is to begin to address this deficit through a qualitative assessment of the short- to medium-term impacts to participants’ mental and emotional wellbeing within Sistema Scotland’s Big Noise orchestral programme. Design/methodology/approach – Semi-structured interviews, observation, participant drawing exercise, participatory filmmaking, focus group and analysis of programme engagement were undertaken to examine the mental and emotional wellbeing impacts of the programme which are observable at this early stage of programme delivery and participants’ lives. Findings – The qualitative findings indicate that participation in the Big Noise programme enhances participant mental and emotional wellbeing in three ways; first, the happiness and enjoyment of taking part in the programme and orchestra, particularly from music making; second, the security, belonging and relationships fostered through participation; the quality of musician/participant relationship is important here as is programme design which enables support, routine and structure; and third, increased pride, confidence and self-esteem, as a result of acquiring difficult musical skills, receiving regular praise and having frequent opportunities to demonstrate these acquired skills through regular orchestral performances. Originality/value – There is little evidence or understanding of community-based, preventative, arts interventions like Big Noise: their delivery, their life-course impacts and their potential contribution to mental health and to addressing social and health inequalities. The causal pathways in the field are under-theorised. These early findings are important as they serve as an important basis from which to consider the programme’s wider and longer term impacts, which will be assessed through an on-going longitudinal, mixed method summative evaluation.

scholarly journals Exploring experiences and impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on young racially minoritised people in the United Kingdom: A Qualitative Study

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rochelle Ann Burgess ◽  
Nancy Kanu ◽  
Tanya Matthews ◽  
Owen Mukotekwa ◽  
Amina Smith-Gul ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Mental Health ◽  
Young People ◽  
Survival Strategies ◽  
Emotional Wellbeing ◽  
Policy And Practice ◽  
Public Health Response ◽  
Significant Research ◽  
The Impact

Within high-income-countries, the COVID-19 pandemic has disproportionately impacted people from racially minoritised backgrounds. There has been significant research interrogating the disparate impact of the virus, and recently, interest in the long-term implications of the global crisis on young people’s mental health and wellbeing. However, less work explores the experiences of young people from racialised backgrounds as they navigate the pandemic, and the specific consequences this has for their mental health. Forty young people (age 16-25) from black, mixed and other minority backgrounds and living in London, participated in consecutive focus group discussions over a two-month period, to explore the impact of the pandemic on their lives and emotional wellbeing. Thematic analysis identified seven categories describing the impact of the pandemic, indicating: deepening of existing socioeconomic and emotional challenges; efforts to navigate racism and difference within the response; and survival strategies drawing on communal and individual resources. Young people also articulated visions for a future public health response which addressed gaps in current strategies. Findings point to the need to contextualize public health responses to the pandemic in line with the lived experiences of racialised young people. We specifically note the importance of long-term culturally and socio-politically relevant support interventions. Implications for policy and practice are discussed

A systematic analysis of genetically regulated differences in gene expression and the role of co-expression networks across 16 psychiatric disorders and substance use phenotypes

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zachary F Gerring ◽  
Jackson G Thorp ◽  
Eric R Gamazon ◽  
Eske M Derks
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Mental Health ◽  
Substance Use ◽  
Prefrontal Cortex ◽  
Psychiatric Disorders ◽  
Developmental Disorders ◽  
Association Studies ◽  
Genetic Correlations ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Genome Wide Association Studies

ABSTRACTGenome-wide association studies (GWASs) have identified thousands of risk loci for many psychiatric and substance use phenotypes, however the biological consequences of these loci remain largely unknown. We performed a transcriptome-wide association study of 10 psychiatric disorders and 6 substance use phenotypes (collectively termed “mental health phenotypes”) using expression quantitative trait loci data from 532 prefrontal cortex samples. We estimated the correlation due to predicted genetically regulated expression between pairs of mental health phenotypes, and compared the results with the genetic correlations. We identified 1,645 genes with at least one significant trait association, comprising 2,176 significant associations across the 16 mental health phenotypes of which 572 (26%) are novel. Overall, the transcriptomic correlations for phenotype pairs were significantly higher than the respective genetic correlations. For example, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and autism spectrum disorder, both childhood developmental disorders, showed a much higher transcriptomic correlation (r=0.84) than genetic correlation (r=0.35). Finally, we tested the enrichment of phenotype-associated genes in gene co-expression networks built from prefrontal cortex. Phenotype-associated genes were enriched in multiple gene co-expression modules and the implicated modules contained genes involved in mRNA splicing and glutamatergic receptors, among others. Together, our results highlight the utility of gene expression data in the understanding of functional gene mechanisms underlying psychiatric disorders and substance use phenotypes.

Biopsychosocial pathways to mental health and disease across the lifespan: The emerging role of epigenetics

2020 ◽  
pp. 190-206
Author(s):  
Charlotte A.M. Cecil
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Mental Health ◽  
Dna Methylation ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
Psychiatric Disorders ◽  
Regulate Gene Expression ◽  
Health And Disease ◽  
Regulate Gene ◽  
Epigenetic Processes

The biopsychosocial (BPS) model of psychiatry has had a major impact on our modern conceptualization of mental illness as a complex, multi-determined phenomenon. Yet, interdisciplinary BPS work remains the exception, rather than the rule in psychiatry. It has been suggested that this may stem in part from a failure of the BPS model to clearly delineate the mechanisms through which biological, psychological, and social factors co-act in the development of mental illness. This chapter discusses how epigenetic processes that regulate gene expression, such as DNA methylation, are fast emerging as a candidate mechanism for BPS interactions, with potentially widespread implications for the way that psychiatric disorders are understood, assessed, and, perhaps in future, even treated.

scholarly journals Working with unaccompanied asylum-seeking young people: cultural considerations and acceptability of a cognitive behavioural group approach

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dorothy King ◽  
Glorianne Said
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Young People ◽  
Physical Health ◽  
Family Environment ◽  
Rating Scale ◽  
Health Needs ◽  
Traumatic Experiences ◽  
Routine Practice ◽  
Emotional Wellbeing ◽  
Cognitive Behavioural

AbstractThis paper outlines a psychological skills group for unaccompanied asylum-seeking young people with a focus on cultural adaptations in the context of a UK mental health service. Unaccompanied asylum-seeking young people have typically experienced multiple losses, traumatic experiences, significant disruption and psychosocial stressors. These experiences occur during a key developmental period and outside of the context of a supportive family environment. Mental health difficulties are estimated to be present in 41–69% of this population. Prevalence rates are higher than among children seeking asylum with their families or children who are not from refugee or asylum-seeking backgrounds. Cognitive behavioural approaches were considered to be applicable and useful when working with this client group. Group approaches may offer unique benefits for this population through peer support and normalization. The group described was planned around three key themes: physical health needs, emotional wellbeing and resilience-building. A number of adaptations were made to meet the needs of this population which included engagement, considering physical health needs, sleep, language needs, issues related to power, race and status, and thinking about the needs of the group as young people. Attendance ratings, session rating scale outcomes, preliminary effectiveness data and qualitative feedback from young people identified that this is an acceptable approach for these young people. Unaccompanied asylum-seeking young people require a broad package of care; however, making adaptations to routine practice allowed access to evidence-based interventions to support mental health and wellbeing.

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