Are homeless people more likely to die by suicide?

Featured

Ian Cummins explores a study that analysed data from the National Confidential Inquiry into Suicide and Safety in Mental Health, which finds that homeless people were more likely to die by suicide after discharge from hospital than non-homeless people.

[read the full story...]

Life after leaving hospital: when does a duty of care end?

shutterstock_1447419326

Sally McManus writes her debut elf blog on a recent national cohort study of multiple adverse outcomes following first discharge from psychiatric care, which finds that mental health inpatients are more likely to experience all types of adversity after leaving hospital.

[read the full story...]

Bridging the gap between mental and physical healthcare in general hospitals #TreatAsOne

yuliya-ginzburg-23577

Kirsten Lawson presents the findings and recommendations of the recent National Confidential Enquiry into Patient Outcome and Death #TreatAsOne report.

[read the full story...]

The weekend effect in mental health services: new evidence suggests no increased risk of suicide, inpatient mortality or seclusion

3393509125_0e29963925_o

Laura Hemming reviews two recent studies that investigate whether patients admitted to a psychiatric hospital at the weekend had worse clinical outcomes, as well as the specific weekend versus weekday incidences of suicide in very high-risk mental health patients.

[read the full story...]

What happens to people after discharge from secure psychiatric hospital?

2608963638_c428e17307_b

Laura Hemming considers a recent systematic review of patient outcomes following discharge from secure psychiatric hospitals. The review finds that patients from secure units have a higher chance of mortality and suicide following discharge, than people from other settings.

[read the full story...]

Continuity of relationships can help older adults cope with care transition

Older woman

Jill Manthorpe reports an updated NIHR-funded literature review of how we can improve older adults’ experiences of care transition.

[read the full story...]

Sustained smoking cessation intervention for hospitalised smokers

shutterstock_226102486

Sally Adams summarises a new randomised controlled trial in JAMA, which tests a sustained care intervention and post-discharge smoking cessation for hospitalised smokers.

[read the full story...]

Does staying in hospital longer make you better?

shutterstock_127396787

De-institutionalisation, the advent of community care and development of psychotropic medicines are implicated in the reduction in hospital bed numbers and mean length of stay. There remains a huge variance in length of stay and outcomes across the UK and beyond (NHS Confederation, 2011). Figures on length of stay and service configuration are difficult to [read the full story…]

People who died by suicide are more likely to have been last discharged from a general hospital

Restraint is used widely in inpatient mental health settings both in the UK and internationally, but is linked with multiple adverse outcomes.

Suicide is a significant public health concern in the UK and globally. Recently it was reported that the UK male suicide rate in 2012 was 3.5 times that of women (Siddique, 2014). In 1981, when the data series these reports were based on began, the male suicide rate was 1.9 times that for women. However, overall [read the full story…]

Mortality rates amongst drug users in relation to time after hospital discharge

Illustration of man addicted to drugs

People with substance misuse problems often present to services with complex physical and mental health needs.  Studies in the UK have indicated that common mental health problems are the norm in people in treatment for substance misuse. Weaver et al (2003) found 70% of people in treatment for substance misuse in London also had a [read the full story…]