Early intervention in psychosis services: better outcomes, improved costs

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Gemma Shields reports on a recent longitudinal retrospective controlled study of the economic impact of early intervention in psychosis services in England.

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What is the sociodemographic recipe for happiness?

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Mark Horowitz summarises a recent study that investigates the impact that socio-economic gradients have on mental well-being. He finds to his surprise that the relationship between socio-economic characteristics and low mental well-being is not the inverse of the relationship with high mental well-being.

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Moving on from home for adults with learning disabilities: families’ experiences

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What are the experiences of families who are supporting their adult sons and daughters with learning disabilities to move on to their own homes?

Here, Mandy Johnson looks at a study, which sets out to answer that question.

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Rural housing problems, mental health and substance use

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Ian Cummins considers an Australian study on the interplay of rural issues, mental health problems and substance use on housing and access to a secure home.

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Social determinants of mental health: how our societies are making us mentally unwell and what we can do about it

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Mark Horowitz summarises the new WHO and UCL Institute of Health Equity (Michael Marmot) report and research paper on social determinants of mental health. He concludes that it’s time to focus on the root causes of mental distress, namely poverty, unemployment, poor education and social isolation.

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Eight stories in film showing people with learning disabilities living their own lives

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Living your own life in your own home is something most of take for granted. It’s just something you do. We don’t tend to think about community, or independent living, or planning, we get on with it. This is not always the case for people with learning disabilities. In this post, we wanted to link [read the full story…]

People with learning disabilities in Scotland more likely to live in deprived areas

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In 2000, the Scottish Executive published ‘The same as you?’ a ten year programme to meet the needs of people with learning disabilities in Scotland. Following a two year review, last year they published a new ten year strategy, known as ‘The keys to life – Improving Quality of Life for People with Learning Disabilities’, [read the full story…]

A strong business case exists for investing in early and community-based interventions for mental health, says report

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This report provides everything that is needed for people working in mental health services to make a business case for investing in early and community-based interventions. This includes, commissioners, practitioners, local authorities, policy-makers, providers, and social care. As part of this document, the authors have provided the evidence for the cost-effectiveness of a range of [read the full story…]

Moving to better neighbourhoods: bad for boys, good for girls?

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The link between external influences such as family and neighbourhood experiences and young people’s mental health outcomes has been extensively commented on in the literature. While it is more common for studies to focus on the individual or family level, looking at things from a wider perspective is interesting especially from a public mental health [read the full story…]