Not all wealth is health: how does parental wealth affect children’s cognitive ability, mental and physical health?

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Vishal Bhavsar reviews a cohort study which finds that greater parental housing wealth was associated with fewer emotional and behavioural problems in children.

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Social security? Evidence about benefits and mental health

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Andy Bell summarises a collection of recent academic research papers that have sought to understand the impact of a range of changes to the UK benefits system on people’s mental health.

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Who do we help after an opiate overdose?

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Ian Hamilton reviews a recent US study exploring the incidence of treatment for opioid use disorder in people following a non-fatal opiate overdose.

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Mental health and benefits insecurity

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Consultant psychiatrist Dr Dieneke Hubbeling critically analyses a recent study looking at mental health benefits insecurity, and concludes that it is important for clinicians to realise that there is probably no such thing as benefits security.

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The ‘syndemics’ theory: a better explanation for ethnic disparities in the incidence and prevalence of psychosis?

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Today Bibire Baykeens looks into ethnic disparities in psychotic experiences explained by area-level syndemic effects; a brand new paper in the British Journal of Psychiatry.

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Poverty causes mental illness and vice versa: how can we end this vicious cycle?

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Andy Bell summarises a new international report that presents the causal links and mechanisms of action between poverty, anxiety and depression.

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Universal Credit increases mental health problems, but not employment

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Alan Simpson summarises a recent longitudinal study that explores the impact that UK welfare reform, specifically Universal Credit, has had on the mental health of people across England, Scotland and Wales.

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Going beyond the Mental Capacity Act in assessing capacity: recognising and overcoming biases and stereotypes #MentalCapacity2020

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Health and social care professionals routinely assess the mental capacity of people to make decisions about their lives, in accordance with the Mental Capacity Act, 2005. A new briefing note for policy makers and mental health professionals looks at how we can mitigate the risk of assumptions and biases in assessments of mental capacity.

Alex Ruck Keene, an expert in mental capacity and mental health law, summarises the briefing and looks forward to the live streamed #MentalCapacity2020 debate at 12pm on Thursday 26th March.

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Determinants of mental health: a briefing from the Commission for Equality in Mental Health

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Noortje Uphoff summarises a briefing from the Commission for Equality in Mental Health, which outlines how people from disadvantaged groups are more likely to be exposed to the factors that have a negative impact on our mental health.

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Population-based approaches to improving mental health: a view from the USA

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David Gunnell writes his debut elf blog on a recent review of population-based approaches to mental health. He calls for joined-up strategies across Government Departments to prevent mental illness and improve population mental health.

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