Antipsychotics and risk of violence and suicide in people diagnosed with personality disorders

Newer antipsychotics are not necessarily superior to older drugs.

A group of MSc students from UCL summarise a study examining the links between antipsychotics, risk of violent crimes and suicidal behaviour in people diagnosed with a ‘personality disorder’.

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Here comes the sun: associations between daily light exposure and psychiatric disorders

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Emiliana Tonini summarises a large-scale cross-sectional study, which suggests that encouraging individuals to increase their exposure to bright natural light during the day and minimise exposure to artificial light at night may help with our mental health.

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Is brief text messaging effective to reduce repeat hospital-treated self-harm?

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Amelia Mullett summarises an Australian RCT on the efficacy of a short message service brief contact intervention (SMS-SOS) in reducing repetition of hospital-treated self-harm.

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The enforced use of cameras in patients’ bedrooms may not reduce the incidence of self-harm

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John Baker looks at a recent study of the Oxevision system, which claims that their ‘vision-based patient monitoring’ reduces self-harm on acute mental health wards.

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Trigger warnings: to use, or not to use? That is the question

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A group of leading researches at Orygen Australia review a recent meta-analysis on the efficacy of trigger and content warnings on media outlets that indicates warnings may not be as helpful as we thought.

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Is targeting loneliness the key to releasing people from entrapment and preventing suicide?

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Liam Pikett summarises a cross-sectional study exploring the association of family, social and romantic loneliness with suicidal ideation and self-harm.

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Europe’s climate hotspot: climate change and mental health in Italy

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Francesca Bentivegna and Ivar Maas consider a scoping review exploring climate change, trauma and mental health in Italy, one of the most affected Mediterranean countries.

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There is a clear association between socioeconomic deprivation and self-harm

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A group of UCL masters student review a multi-centre study on socio-economic disparities in patients who present to hospital for self-harm in England, which found large variations in patients characteristics and pre-self-harm experiences.

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Exploring people’s experiences of psychotherapy for self-harm: the importance of the therapeutic alliance

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Hannah Wallace summarises a systematic review exploring people’s experiences of psychotherapy for self-harming behaviours, which highlights the importance of therapeutic rapport and the clinical competencies that support developing a good relationship between clinicians and service users.

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Trauma informed care on acute inpatient units: reducing self harm and restrictive practices

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Dr Kirsten Lawson is back! In this blog, Kirsten explores a service evaluation of trauma informed care practices in acute inpatient units, looking specifically at reductions in self-harm and restraint practices.

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