scholarly journals Staff attitudes to completely smoke-free policies and smoking cessation practices in a mental health setting

2020 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 403-411
Author(s):  
A Ratier-Cruz ◽  
J G Smith ◽  
M Firn ◽  
M Rinaldi
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Smoking Cessation ◽  
Policy Support ◽  
Health Staff ◽  
Staff Attitudes ◽  
Mental Health Staff ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Allied Health Professionals ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Mental Health Settings

ABSTRACT Background Mental health trusts in England were expected to become completely smoke-free and embed smoking cessation practices by 2018. Such policies are fraught with concerns and have received mixed support from mental health staff. Understanding staff attitudes to these practices prior to enforcement of the policy could help design an effective implementation strategy. Methods A cross-sectional survey was conducted with clinical and non-clinical staff in a Mental Health Trust to understand smoking cessation practices and attitudes to the implementation of a completely smoke-free policy. Results There were 631 responses. Most participants disagreed with the policy on wards (59.6%) and throughout all mental health settings (57.4%). Clinicians expressed significantly lower organizational policy support (P = 0.001) than non-clinicians (P = 0.001). Psychiatrists were more supportive of the organizational items than nurses and allied health professionals. Clinicians’ attitudes towards smoking cessation practices were less positive for those who were current smokers (P < 0.001), but more positive for clinicians who had received or were interested in attending smoking cessation training (P < 0.001). Conclusions Partial and completely smoke-free policies remain unsupported by staff in mental health settings. Smoking cessation training appears to reinforce rather than alter attitudes towards smoking cessation.

Risk assessment in mental health: Staff attitudes and an estimate of time cost

2010 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 88-98 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chris J. Hawley ◽  
Tim M. Gale ◽  
Thanusha Sivakumaran ◽  
Brian Littlechild
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Risk Assessment ◽  
Health Staff ◽  
Staff Attitudes ◽  
Time Cost ◽  
Mental Health Staff

scholarly journals Factors impacting perceived safety among staff working on mental health wards

BJPsych Open ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 3 (5) ◽  
pp. 204-211 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alina Haines ◽  
Andrew Brown ◽  
Rhiannah McCabe ◽  
Michelle Rogerson ◽  
Richard Whittington
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Staff ◽  
Mental Health Staff ◽  
Staff Perceptions ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Perceived Safety ◽  
Core Issue ◽  
Components Analysis ◽  
Categorical Principal Components Analysis ◽  
Cross Sectional Design

BackgroundSafety at work is a core issue for mental health staff working on in-patient units. At present, there is a limited theoretical base regarding which factors may affect staff perceptions of safety.AimsThis study attempted to identify which factors affect perceived staff safety working on in-patient mental health wards.MethodA cross-sectional design was employed across 101 forensic and non-forensic mental health wards, over seven National Health Service trusts nationally. Measures included an online staff survey, Ward Features Checklist and recorded incident data. Data were analysed using categorical principal components analysis and ordinal regression.ResultsPerceptions of staff safety were increased by ward brightness, higher number of patient beds, lower staff to patient ratios, less dayroom space and more urban views.ConclusionsThe findings from this study do not represent common-sense assumptions. Results are discussed in the context of the literature and may have implications for current initiatives aimed at managing in-patient violence and aggression.

Tackling the unseen virus at the unseen frontier

2020 ◽  
Vol 16 (2) ◽  
pp. 65-68
Author(s):  
Cholan Anandarajah ◽  
Matilda Elliott ◽  
Koravangattu Valsraj
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Care ◽  
Health Staff ◽  
Health Unit ◽  
Compassionate Care ◽  
Mental Health Staff ◽  
Health And Social Care ◽  
Healthcare Environments ◽  
Mental Health Settings ◽  
Mental Health Unit

There has been widespread coverage, attention and discussion regarding the anxieties of COVID-19 pandemic in health and social care settings; however, compared to other healthcare environments, mental health care settings have not received a similar level of attention and concern. Interestingly there are unique challenges in mental health units and at the height of the pandemic there has been a significant impact on staff, patients and carers. Mental health staff have had to adapt their ways of working, focusing more on the physical health of patients and caring for COVID positive patients in a mental health unit. Anxiety about the infection spreading to other patients and to staff who interact very closely with patients were significant concerns, with the additional difficulties of accessing the appropriate PPE during the early stages of the outbreak. Some challenges are unique to mental health settings and become even more intense within a psychiatric intensive care unit (PICU). These include difficulties with isolation, social distancing and the reluctance of patients to wear masks. The lessons learnt caring for the most challenging patients in a PICU are explored. The adaptability, flexibility and commitment to providing kind, compassionate care at the height of the COVID pandemic is remarkable.

scholarly journals Staff attitudes to smoking and the smoking ban

2009 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 84-88 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kudlur Thyarappa Praveen ◽  
Swamy Nirvana Chandrappa Kudlur ◽  
Rudresh Paramishiyaiah Hanabe ◽  
Adeyemi Tiwalade Egbewunmi
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Response Rate ◽  
Smoking Ban ◽  
Health Staff ◽  
Clinical Implications ◽  
Service Users ◽  
Staff Attitudes ◽  
Mental Health Staff ◽  
Smoking Policy ◽  
Psychiatric Units

Aims and MethodOur aim was to explore attitudes of in-patient mental health staff to smoking and the smoking ban. A questionnaire was distributed to staff (n=450) working at National Health Service psychiatric units in three different locations.ResultsWe obtained 308 responses, at a response rate of 68.4%. Staff were generally less permissive towards smoking in mental health units when compared with previous studies. However, most (78.9%) feared that service users' states would deteriorate if they were not allowed to smoke.Clinical ImplicationsWe found small but noticeable change in staff attitudes following initial reforms in smoking policy. However, there is a need for further significant change in staff attitudes to facilitate implementation of a total smoking ban from July 2008.

scholarly journals Smoking Cessation Care for People with a Mental Illness: Family Carer Expectations of Health and Community Services

2016 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 221-230 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacqueline M. Bailey ◽  
Paula M. Wye ◽  
Emily A. Stockings ◽  
Kate M. Bartlem ◽  
Alexandra P. Metse ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
Smoking Cessation ◽  
Health Services ◽  
Critical Role ◽  
Community Services ◽  
Care Provision ◽  
Family Carer ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Cross Sectional

Introduction: Smoking prevalence remains high among people with a mental illness, contributing to higher levels of morbidity and mortality. Health and community services are an opportune setting for the provision of smoking cessation care. Although family carers are acknowledged to play a critical role in supporting the care and assistance provided by such services to people with a mental illness, their expectations regarding the delivery of smoking cessation care have not been examined.Aims: To explore family carer expectations of smoking cessation care provision by four types of health services, to clients with a mental illness, and factors associated with expectations.Methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted with carers of a person with a mental illness residing in New South Wales, Australia. Carers were surveyed regarding their expectations of smoking cessation care provision from four types of health services. Possible associations between carer expectation of smoking cessation care provision and socio-demographic and attitudinal variables were explored.Results: Of 144 carers, the majority of carers considered that smoking cessation care should be provided by: mental health hospitals (71.4%), community mental health services (78.0%), general practice (82.7%), and non-government organisations (56.6%). The factor most consistently related to expectation of care was a belief that smoking cessation could positively impact mental health.Conclusions: The majority of carers expected smoking cessation treatment to be provided by all services catering for people with a mental illness, reinforcing the appropriateness for such services to provide smoking cessation care for clients in an effective and systematic manner.

scholarly journals Veterans Health Administration staff experiences with suicidal ideation screening and risk assessment in the context of COVID-19

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (12) ◽  
pp. e0261921
Author(s):  
Summer Newell ◽  
Lauren Denneson ◽  
Annabelle Rynerson ◽  
Sarah Rabin ◽  
Victoria Elliott ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Primary Care ◽  
Suicidal Ideation ◽  
Health Staff ◽  
Veterans Health ◽  
Health Administration ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Mental Health Staff ◽  
Populations At Risk ◽  
Mental Health Settings

Universal screening for suicidal ideation in primary care and mental health settings has become a key prevention tool in many healthcare systems, including the Veterans Healthcare Administration (VHA). In response to the coronavirus pandemic, healthcare providers faced a number of challenges, including how to quickly adapt screening practices. The objective of this analyses was to learn staff perspectives on how the pandemic impacted suicide risk screening in primary care and mental health settings. Forty semi-structured interviews were conducted with primary care and mental health staff between April-September 2020 across 12 VHA facilities. A multi-disciplinary team employed a qualitative thematic analysis using a hybrid inductive/deductive approach. Staff reported multiple concerns for patients during the crisis, especially regarding vulnerable populations at risk for social isolation. Lack of clear protocols at some sites on how to serve patients screening positive for suicidal ideation created confusion for staff and led some sites to temporarily stop screening. Sites had varying degrees of adaptability to virtual based care, with the biggest challenge being completion of warm hand-offs to mental health specialists. Unanticipated opportunities that emerged during this time included increased ability of patients and staff to conduct virtual care, which is expected to continue benefit post-pandemic.

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