Meg Fluharty summarises a recent Cochrane review, which tells us that high-dose buprenorphine is an effective maintenance treatment for heroin compared to placebo, but fixed flexible-dosing methadone is superior to buprenorphine at participant retention.
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Helen Bould tells us that mindfulness may do many things, and is queuing up to take its place with CBT as the panacea of mental illness, but in her view it cannot yet lay claim to solving binge eating.
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Alex Langford summarises a relatively large and pragmatic study, which provides firm evidence that the newer antipsychotic, Paliperidone, is no better at preventing relapse or controlling psychotic symptoms than its decades-old comparator, Haloperidol.
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Josephine Neale summarises a recent review of qualitative evidence that finds carers’ views are mixed and lie on a spectrum of acceptance of their relative as actively dying with dementia.
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The evidence-base supporting the use of exercise for depression is ever growing. Susie Johnson reports on a recent systematic review that adds to the discussion, but it’s not without its own limitations.
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This blog should set the cat amongst the pigeons! Ioana Cristea reviews a recent network meta-analysis in Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica and discovers that CBT supporters face some well-documented criticism that requires a considered response. Do join in with the discussion and tell us what you think of this new research.
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For me, one of the most infuriating aspects of health care is the relegation of mental health problems, and mental health services, as secondary to physical health. There are a myriad of examples of this, from the classic stigma that people with mental health problems receive compared to those with physical health problems (fantastically illustrated [read the full story…]
Mental health in the workplace is an area that we’ve blogged about a few times before. This blog features a recent review by Tan et al on workplace interventions for depression. Mental disorders are the leading cause of sickness absence (Harvey, 2009 and Henderson, 2011), and depression in particular is predicted to be the leading [read the full story…]
In Scandal, Social Work and Social Welfare (Policy Press 2005), Butler and Drakeford examine the ways, in which, social welfare policy is often formulated in a response to scandals or inquiries. These scandals highlight areas of abuse or neglect but also can act as an engine for change. This is true across all areas of [read the full story…]
This is a dilemma I frequently face when I am called out to see someone with dementia on the ward or living in a nursing home. On the one hand I am thinking that anything I use can potentially have serious side-effects and will probably lead to increased health risks and increased mortality. On the [read the full story…]
