South Asia’s silent struggle: people with severe mental illness suffer high burden of physical illness

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An international group of experts from the University of York CADA Implementation Science Summer School summarise a recent study on the prevalence of physical health conditions and health risk behaviours in people with severe mental illness in South Asia (Bangladesh, India and Pakistan).

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Step-by-Step: promising digital app for Syrian refugees with depression

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Dafni Katsampa critiques a recent randomised controlled trial evaluating the effectiveness of Step-by-Step, a WHO-guided digital intervention for Syrian refugees with depression in Lebanon.

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Be kind to your mind and exercise: can exercise buffer the effects of stressful life events?

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In his debut blog, Justin Chapman reviews a longitudinal study which finds that exercising can buffer against depression after stressful life events.

Justin is live blogging for The Mental Elf at #EquallyWellAu23 this week, alongside Elf Coordinator Laura Hemming who is on live tweeting duties.

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Smoking and bipolar disorder: the physical and mental health impact of tobacco cessation

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Hannah Walsh explores the clinical and research implications of this French cohort study on bipolar disorder and smoking status, and how risks differ for current, former and never smokers.

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Mapping the trajectory of psychiatric diagnoses: Danish study finds that mental health diagnoses may change over time

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In her latest blog, Dona Matthews summarises a recent publication in The Lancet Psychiatry, which mapped the psychiatric diagnostic trajectories of 184,949 Danish patients over a 10-year period.

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When we help people with PTSD who are suicidal, do we give them the care they need?

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A group of MSc students at UCL summarise a study exploring the secondary mental health care treatment patients with comorbid PTSD and suicidality receive in London.

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Integrating smoking cessation treatment into routine care for people with mental illness: how will the NHS cope?

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Amelia Talbot summarises a qualitative study on people’s views of integrating smoking cessation treatment into routine care for people with mental illness.

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Suicide and self-harm in children: prevalence rates cause for concern

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In Mahmoud Arif’s debut blog, he and Rasanat Fatima Nawaz summarise a meta-analysis published in The Lancet Psychiatry, which estimated the prevalence rates of self-harm behaviours and suicidal ideation in children aged 12 years and under.

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Psychosis and loneliness: overcoming the practical, social and emotional barriers to better relationships

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Hosana Tagomori and Dafni Katsampa review a qualitative study exploring the experience of loneliness among people diagnosed with psychosis.

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Where I lay my head is home: residential instability and earlier onset of psychosis

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Liana Romaniuk summarises a recent US cross-sectional study which suggests that residential instability (moving home a lot) may lead to disrupted social networks and relationships, predisposing vulnerable youth to greater stress, which can increase their risk of psychosis.

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