It is well documented that people with severe mental health issues are more likely to smoke compared to the general population. Smoking reduces physical wellbeing and is a key modifiable risk factor for health inequality. Despite this, support to stop smoking as part of mental health recovery is limited.  

To support health care services provide appropriate guidance and advice, a group of researchers from universities across the UK have designed a Smoking Cessation Intervention specifically for people with Severe Mental Illnesses (SCIMITAR).

The intervention involves a practitioner who is...

Research suggests clear associations between the severity of childhood trauma, levels of substance use and dissociation - the detachment or disruption to normal consciousness. Despite the apparent link, it remains unclear whether the level of substance use can, in some part, explain the relationship between trauma severity and the extent of dissociation.

A recent study, published in the Journal of Substance Use, has investigated whether substance use significantly influences the link between childhood trauma and the severity of depersonalization - a common symptom of dissociation involving...

Abstract

Background

To facilitate decentralisation and scale-up of mental health services, Fiji’s Ministry of Health and Medical Services committed to implementing the World Health Organization’s mental health Gap Action Programme (mhGAP). mhGAP training has been prolific; however, it remains unclear, beyond this, how successfully Fiji’s national mental health program has been implemented. We aim to evaluate Fiji’s mental health program to inform Fiji’s national mental health program and to develop an evidence-base for best practice.

Methods

The study design was guided by the National...

Esta publicación forma parte de la serie “Recomendaciones para la Red Integrada de Salud Mental con base en la Comunidad”, y tiene como objetivo acercar sugerencias y recomendaciones como herramientas de trabajo que orienten a la asistencia de las personas que refieran o presenten un padecimiento mental (incluyendo consumo problemático de sustancias y/o adicciones), sin ningún tipo de menoscabo o discriminación en toda institución de salud y en la zona o ámbito comunitario de atención de dicha institución. Se halla enmarcado en la Convención de los Derechos de las Personas con Discapacidad y...

Applications are now open for the 2019 round of UNSW Medicine Neuroscience, Mental Health and Addiction  Theme and SPHERE Clinical Academic Group (CAG) Collaborative Research Seed Funding.

The UNSW Medicine Neuroscience, Mental Health and Addiction Theme and SPHERE CAG aims to address the burdens imposed by neurological, mental health, and drug and alcohol disorders. It constitutes a network of internationally recognised researchers and clinicians leading in the understanding and treatment of complex clinical conditions with physical, behavioural, mental and social dimensions across the...