Published yesterday in the Lancet, the Multicentre Study of Self-harm in England is a large (30,950 patients) cohort study of people presenting to hospital emergency departments in Oxford, Manchester and Derby, with self-poisoning or self-injury during 2000-2007. We know that people who self-harm have an increased risk of dying early, but this study tries to [read the full story…]
Staff supporting people with learning disabilities may find it extremely difficult to deal with bereavement in somebody they support. It is important to recognise that everybody has the right to grieve when they lose somebody they cared for, and this is just as true for people with learning disabilities. The researchers in this study recognised [read the full story…]
Pain is not uncommon after dental procedures. This can be linked with an increase in fear of dental procedures and the possible avoidance of treatment. This is of particular importance in children and adolescents and the use of pre-operative analgesics had been suggested as a way of reducing peri-operative pain. The aim of this Cochrane [read the full story…]
Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT – pronounced as the word rather than the initials) is based on the notion that it is important to accept what is out of your personal control but commit to action to improve and enrich your life. ACT is an approach which sets out to teach psychological skills to deal [read the full story…]
This new briefing paper from the NHS Confederation and the Centre for Mental Health looks at the impact that personalisation and recovery are having on mental health services in England. The first part of this paper describes personalisation, personal budgets and personal health budgets. The second sets out their shared philosophy and discusses what the [read the full story…]
There’s a growing body of evidence that shows how relatively minor adjustments in the workplace can have a huge impact on supporting people with mental health problems and help them stay in work. The Department of Health has published guidance that will help employers think through the changes that they can make in the workplace [read the full story…]
The Prison Reform Trust work in 2008 suggested that people with learning disabilities in the UK faced ‘personal, systemic and routine’ discrimination from the point of arrest through to release from prison. This Australian study looked at the experience of people in the state of Victoria. The researchers were interested in the experiences and perceptions [read the full story…]
We don’t have accurate statistics on the numbers of children living with alcohol misusing parents. It’s estimated that 79,000 babies in England are living with a parent who is classified as a ‘problematic’ drinker (‘hazardous’ or ‘harmful’). The Office of the Children’s Commissioner has published a Rapid Evidence Assessment about the impact that alcohol misuse [read the full story…]
Over the last few years, we have seen more and more children and young people being prescribed antipsychotic drugs. The theory behind this increase is that the newer antipsychotic drugs have fewer side effects than the older typical antipsychotics. However, some small and relatively short duration studies have shown that the newer drugs may also [read the full story…]
Yesterday, we posted about the increasing longevity of people with learning disabilities and the potential for problems with sleep disturbance in this group. Today, we look at a review of the current evidence relating to the age related needs of these older adults who may be at increased risk of age-related disorders like dementia and [read the full story…]
