scholarly journals Arts participation, mental well-being and social inclusion: Mixed methods evaluation of an Open Arts studio for people with mental health needs

2014 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
pp. 341-354 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ceri Wilson ◽  
Jenny Secker ◽  
Lyn Kent
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mixed Methods ◽  
Social Inclusion ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Needs ◽  
Mental Health Needs ◽  
Arts Participation ◽  
Mixed Methods Evaluation ◽  
Mental Well Being

scholarly journals Supporting the emotional needs of young people in care: a qualitative study of foster carer perspectives

BMJ Open ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. e033317
Author(s):  
Rachel M Hiller ◽  
Sarah L Halligan ◽  
Richard Meiser-Stedman ◽  
Elizabeth Elliott ◽  
Emily Rutter-Eley
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Young People ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Needs ◽  
Depth Information ◽  
Emotional Needs ◽  
Mental Health Systems ◽  
Mental Health Needs ◽  
Qualitative Focus Groups

ObjectivesYoung people who have been removed from their family home and placed in care have often experienced maltreatment and there is well-developed evidence of poor psychological outcomes. Once in care, foster carers often become the adult who provides day-to-day support, yet we know little about how they provide this support or the challenges to and facilitators of promoting better quality carer–child relationships. The aim of this study was to understand how carers support the emotional needs of the young people in their care and their views on barriers and opportunities for support.Design and participantsParticipants were 21 UK foster carers, recruited from a local authority in England. They were predominantly female (86%), aged 42–65 years old and ranged from those who were relatively new to the profession (<12 months’ experience) to those with over 30 years of experience as a carer. We ran three qualitative focus groups to gather in-depth information about their views on supporting their foster children’s emotional well-being. Participants also completed short questionnaires about their training experiences and sense of competence.ResultsOnly half of the sample strongly endorsed feeling competent in managing the emotional needs of their foster children. While all had completed extensive training, especially on attachment, diagnosis-specific training for mental health problems (eg, trauma-related distress, depression) was less common. Thematic analysis showed consistent themes around the significant barriers carers faced navigating social care and mental health systems, and mixed views around the best way to support young people, particularly those with complex mental health needs and in relation to reminders of their early experiences.ConclusionsFindings have important implications for practice and policy around carer training and support, as well as for how services support the mental health needs of young people in care.

Promoting mental health of immigrant seniors in community

2014 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 146-156 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sharon D. Koehn ◽  
Pavlina Jarvis ◽  
Sharanjit K. Sandhra ◽  
Satwinder K. Bains ◽  
Madeleine Addison
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Older Adults ◽  
Social Inclusion ◽  
Service Providers ◽  
Community Organizations ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Determinants ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Economic Determinants ◽  
Mental Well Being

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to explore if and how community organizations providing services to late-in-life Punjabi immigrants in British Columbia, Canada, offer services with the potential to promote their mental health or well-being. The authors also wanted to know how Punjabi seniors perceived available services and if they supported their mental well-being. Design/methodology/approach – To guide the research, the authors used the VicHealth Framework, which identifies three overarching social and economic determinants of mental health: social inclusion (SI), freedom from violence and discrimination, and access to economic resources and participation. This mixed methods study combines descriptive survey and qualitative focus group data with input from Punjabi seniors and community service providers. Findings – All three mental health determinants were identified as important by service providers and seniors, with SI as the most important. Family dynamics (shaped by migration and sponsorship status) influence all three determinants and can promote or diminish mental well-being. Research limitations/implications – The pilot study is limited in sample size and scope and further inquiry with different groups of immigrant older adults is warranted. Practical implications – Service providers assert that more outreach and sustainable funding are needed to reach the majority of potential beneficiaries unable to participate in community programmes. Information on mental well-being of seniors should be targeted at both seniors and their families. Originality/value – The VicHealth Framework provided a unique lens through which to explore the contributions of community organizations to mental health promotion for immigrant older adults.

Research watch: Coronavirus (COVID-19), mental health and social inclusion in the UK and Ireland

2020 ◽  
Vol 24 (3) ◽  
pp. 117-123 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sue Holttum
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Social Inclusion ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Anxiety And Depression ◽  
Children And Young People ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Mental Well Being

Purpose This paper aims to examine recent papers on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health, including implications for some of the groups of people already less included in society. Design/methodology/approach A search was carried out for recent papers on mental health and the COVID-19 pandemic. Findings Two papers describe surveys of adults in the UK and Irish Republic in the first days of lockdown. Low income and loss of income were associated with anxiety and depression. These surveys could not examine distress in Black and minority ethnicities, who have higher death rates from COVID-19. Two surveys of children and young people report distress and what can help. One paper summarises a host of ways in which the pandemic may affect mental well-being in different groups, and what might help. Another calls for research to understand how to protect mental well-being in various groups. Originality/value These five papers give a sense of the early days of the pandemic, especially in the UK. They also highlight the needs of some specific groups of people, or the need to find out more about how these groups experience the pandemic. They suggest some ways of trying to ensure that everyone has the best chance to thrive in the aftermath of the pandemic.

scholarly journals Sporting memories & the social inclusion of older people experiencing mental health problems

2015 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 202-211 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Clark ◽  
Charlie Murphy ◽  
Tony Jameson-Allen ◽  
Chris Wilkins
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Older People ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Social Inclusion ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Problems ◽  
Community Settings ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Mental Well Being

Purpose – Social exclusion and isolation of older people and their mental health are likely to be more significant, interlinked issues for society as countries experience an ageing demographic profile. The authors urgently need to identify effective ways of addressing these challenges that can be easily mobilised to meet diverse needs in different settings. The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of sporting memories (SM) work as one approach to help meet this need. This SM work entails the use of sports-based reminiscence to engage with older people experiencing mental health problems. To date this has especially focused on people living with dementia in institutional and in community settings. Design/methodology/approach – The paper sets out the SM idea and discusses lessons learnt from case studies of its application to meet the inclusion and mental health needs of different older people in institutional and community settings. Findings – The evidence from the application of SM work to date is that it is an effective and flexible means of engaging people to improve their social inclusion and mental well-being. It can be readily deployed in various care and community settings. Research limitations/implications – The evidence to date is of case studies of the use of SM work, and, although these are now extensive case studies, further research is needed on the costs and impacts of SM work. Practical implications – SM work is a flexible and readily adoptable intervention to engage older people and help improve their social inclusion and mental well-being. Social implications – SM work can be an important part of meeting some of the challenges society faces with an ageing population profile. Originality/value – This is the first paper to set out the SM work.

Promoting mental well-being and social inclusion through art: evaluation of an arts and mental health project

Arts & Health ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 51-60 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jenny Secker ◽  
Mick Loughran ◽  
Kirsten Heydinrych ◽  
Lyn Kent
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Inclusion ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Project ◽  
Mental Well Being ◽  
Art Evaluation

Empowerment and arts participation for people with mental health needs

2007 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 14-23 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jenny Secker ◽  
Helen Spandler ◽  
Sue Hacking ◽  
Lyn Kent ◽  
Jo Shenton
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Health Needs ◽  
Mental Health Needs ◽  
Arts Participation

scholarly journals Public mental health: key challenges and opportunities

2018 ◽  
Vol 15 (3) ◽  
pp. 51-54 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan Campion
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Disorder ◽  
Public Mental Health ◽  
Well Being ◽  
High Income ◽  
Mental Health Needs ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
Needs Assessments ◽  
Implementation Gap ◽  
Mental Well Being

Public mental health involves a population approach to mental health, and includes treatment of mental disorder, prevention of associated impacts, prevention of mental disorder and promotion of mental well-being, including for those people recovering from mental disorder. Such interventions can result in a broad range of impacts and associated economic savings even in the short term. However, even in high-income countries only a minority of people with mental disorder receive any treatment, while provision is far less in low- and middle-income countries. Coverage of interventions to prevent mental disorder and promote mental well-being is far less even in high-income countries, despite such interventions being required for sustainable reduction in the burden of mental disorder. This implementation gap results in a broad set of impacts and associated economic costs. Mental health needs assessments represent an important framework and mechanism to address this implementation gap – in low- and middle-income as well as high-income countries. Training and support to perform mental health needs assessments is important, as is the use of information derived from such assessments to more effectively advocate for the required level of resources to address the implementation gap. Such a public health approach to mental health represents an opportunity for psychiatrists to advocate more effectively for resources at both the local and national level. This can improve the coverage and outcomes of a range of public mental health interventions that result in broad impacts and associated economic savings, which can be estimated.

scholarly journals Creative practice in a group setting

2015 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 141-147 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elaine Argyle ◽  
Gary Winship
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Social Inclusion ◽  
Service Use ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Mental Health Service Use ◽  
Group Setting ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Creative Practice ◽  
Mental Well Being

Purpose – Involvement in creative practice is commonly regarded as “therapeutic” but what is actually meant by this and how does this work promote social inclusion and mental well-being, particularly when performed in a group setting? Drawing on the findings of a research project called Clay Transformations (AHRC), the purpose of this paper is to consider these questions. The project involved running a series of clay workshops aimed at people with experience of mental health service use and those who work with them. Design/methodology/approach – In order to explore the significance of art involvement to people who use mental health services, qualitative research findings are presented. These are then linked to relevant literature in order to consider the way in which workshop participation helped to promote social inclusion and mental well-being. Findings – Many benefits were gained from workshop attendance deriving from involvement in the process and the outcome of art creation. These benefits were enhanced by the group context in which the work took place and the mutual support and interaction arising from this group membership. Originality/value – The recognition of the therapeutic value of creative practice has been accompanied by the emergence of the notion of “mutual recovery” which extends the concept of recovery beyond an individualised focus. The positive findings of this project uphold these developments and suggest that mental health practice should address the wider social contexts that can facilitate the promotion of mental well-being.

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