Estimating demand for mental health care among Australian children and adolescents: Findings from the Young Minds Matter survey

Objective: Mental health service use by individuals without a diagnosed mental disorder is sometimes termed ‘met un-need’. However, provision of services for this group may be necessary to provide appropriate assessment, referral and early intervention. This study quantified child and adolescent use of, and perceived need for, mental health services to inform population-level service planning. Methods: Young people in Australia’s Young Minds Matter survey ( n = 5837, 5–17 years), were categorised into four ‘need’ groups: (1) 12-month mental disorder diagnosis; (2) remitted for more than 12 months (or experiencing a condition not surveyed); (3) 12-month subthreshold mental health problem; and (4) no indication of need for help (i.e. did not meet the requirements of the first three categories). Service demand (use of, or perceived need for, a mental health service) and number of sessions received were estimated for each, separately for children (5–11 years) and adolescents (12–17 years). Results: Some 20.1% (95% CI: [18.6, 21.7]) of children and 32.3% (95% CI: [30.5, 34.2]) of adolescents expressed a demand for mental health services in the past year. Service demand decreased across the need groups. Perceived need without service use was higher among those with a 12-month subthreshold mental health problem (13.8/20.2%) than those who had experienced a mental health problem that had remitted for more than 12 months (or were experiencing a condition not surveyed) (9.3/12.6%). In addition, 23.6% of children and 24.6% of adolescents with a demand for mental health services were classified as experiencing no indication of need for help. Conclusions: This study quantified the number of children and adolescents in Australia who are likely to require mental health services. Findings suggest that not everyone in this group who has an expressed service demand meets diagnostic thresholds, but among those who do, service demand is higher.

Associations between dimensions of Mental Health Literacy and adolescent help-seeking intentions

Background: Adolescence is a critical period for the development of mental health problems. However low mental health literacy (MHL) may impede help-seeking for these problems. Although MHL is a multidimensional construct and adolescent help-seeking can be through formal and informal means, little is known about how dimensions of MHL influence these help-seeking intentions. This study examines associations between dimensions of MHL and formal and informal help-seeking intentions among adolescents. It also investigates whether informal help-seeking mediates the association between dimensions of MHL and formal help-seeking, and whether these associations are moderated by gender. Methods: A cross-sectional survey including measures of MHL, and help-seeking intentions was distributed to participants in ten schools (12-18 years) across Scotland (n = 734). Data were analysed using Confirmatory Factor Analyses (CFA) and Structural Equation Modelling (SEM). Results: CFA identified two distinct dimensions of MHL: ability to identify a mental health problem, and knowledge of treatment efficacy. Only knowledge of treatment efficacy was associated with increased intention to seek formal and informal help. Ability to identify a mental health problem was negatively associated with both forms of help-seeking intention. Informal help-seeking mediated the association between both forms of MHL and formal help-seeking. Gender did not moderate associations between MHL and help-seeking. Conclusions: Distinct dimensions of MHL have disparate associations with adolescent help-seeking intention. Care should be taken when providing MHL interventions to ensure that adaptive forms of MHL are equally promoted. Future research should investigate possible mechanisms by which discrete forms of MHL influence adolescent help-seeking.

Caring for People with Mental Health Problems Who Present at the Emergency Department: a Nurse Educator's Journey

<p><b>The New Zealand Emergency Department (ED) nurse is faced daily with the challenge of caring for patients of all ages with a wide variety of presenting complaints. Courses are available for ED specialty work such as trauma and paediatric assessment. However, as this thesis argues, it is difficult to access updated and ongoing education in relation to caring for people with mental health problems who present to the Emergency Department. In addition to this education deficit are the challenges of providing care in an overcrowded ED environment. Such factors contribute to a perceived lack of confidence and sometimes ambivalence or frustration on the part of nursing staff in caring for this group. This may result in an inconsistent standard of care for the the person with a mental health problem unless such issues are addressed.</b></p> <p>The aim of this research paper was to explore the education needs of ED nurses when caring for people with mental health problems. A literature review was undertaken to investigate the broad education strategies available to overcome these challenges. Diverse approaches were identified such as workshops, clinical guidelines, and mental health consultation-liaison roles. Research was also identified that examined ED nursing attitudes and their learning needs in relation to mental health.</p> <p>This paper concludes with a discussion of recommendations for the New Zealand setting with the intention of developing a more confident and competent nursing workforce, who are better prepared to care for the person with a mental health problem.</p>

Caring for People with Mental Health Problems Who Present at the Emergency Department: a Nurse Educator's Journey

<p><b>The New Zealand Emergency Department (ED) nurse is faced daily with the challenge of caring for patients of all ages with a wide variety of presenting complaints. Courses are available for ED specialty work such as trauma and paediatric assessment. However, as this thesis argues, it is difficult to access updated and ongoing education in relation to caring for people with mental health problems who present to the Emergency Department. In addition to this education deficit are the challenges of providing care in an overcrowded ED environment. Such factors contribute to a perceived lack of confidence and sometimes ambivalence or frustration on the part of nursing staff in caring for this group. This may result in an inconsistent standard of care for the the person with a mental health problem unless such issues are addressed.</b></p> <p>The aim of this research paper was to explore the education needs of ED nurses when caring for people with mental health problems. A literature review was undertaken to investigate the broad education strategies available to overcome these challenges. Diverse approaches were identified such as workshops, clinical guidelines, and mental health consultation-liaison roles. Research was also identified that examined ED nursing attitudes and their learning needs in relation to mental health.</p> <p>This paper concludes with a discussion of recommendations for the New Zealand setting with the intention of developing a more confident and competent nursing workforce, who are better prepared to care for the person with a mental health problem.</p>

Prevalence and Correlates of Work-Phobic Anxiety in a National Representative Sample

Work anxiety is a common mental health problem that is often overlooked and often causes long periods of sick leave. This is the first representative survey on the distribution of work-phobic anxiety in Germany. Of the 2,030 working-age participants (18 – 67 years), 7 % had increased work-phobic anxiety of a moderate (5 % with scores >1.5 – 2.5 on a scale from 0 – 4) or high (2 % with scores >2.5 – 4) degree. People with high levels of work-phobic anxiety reported the longest sick leave durations during the past 12 months (8 weeks) and the most periods of unemployment in their professional lives. The three groups were similar in age, sex, and partnership status. People with high work-phobic anxiety perceived themselves least competent in almost all dimensions of psychological capacity. Occupational health must consider work-phobic anxiety as a specific mental health problem closely linked to work-ability problems.

Anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic in hospital staff: systematic review plus meta-analysis

BackgroundThis study was conducted to systematically review the existing literature examining the prevalence of anxiety among hospital staff and identifying the contributing factors to address the complications of this disorder and develop effective programmes for reducing the complications of this mental health problem.MethodsWe searched the electronic databases including PubMed, EMBASE, Scopus, Web of Science and Google Scholar from January 2020 to February 2021. To perform meta-analysis, the random effects model was used. To assess the statistical heterogeneity of the included studies, the I2 index was used, and 95% CI was estimated. Data analysis was performed by R software.ResultsIn the final analysis, 46 articles with the total sample size of 61 551 hospital staff members were included. Accordingly, anxiety prevalence among healthcare workers (HCWs) was 26.1% (95% CI 19% to 34.6%). The prevalence rates of anxiety in health technicians and medical students were 39% (95% CI 13% to 73%) and 36% (95% CI 15% to 65%), respectively, indicating a much higher prevalence than other hospital staff members. Furthermore, a positive significant relationship between prevalence of anxiety among HCWs and their age was approved (p<0.001). The prevalence rate of anxiety was higher among women 37.7% (95% CI 25.4% to 51.8%) than men 27.2% (95% CI 18.2% to 38.6%).ConclusionThe findings show a moderately high prevalence rate of anxiety in hospital staff. Due to the high prevalence of this mental health problem in health technicians, medical students and frontline health workers, it is highly suggested that healthcare institutions offer mental health programmes for these working groups in order to appropriately manage anxiety during the COVID-19 pandemic.