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Spotlight on... awareness weeks

Awareness weeks guide

R U OK Day ?

 

RU OK Day

Thursday 12th 2024

A conversation can change a life

R U OK? inspire and empower everyone to meaningfully connect with the people around them and start a conversation with those in their world who may be struggling with life.

You don't need to be an expert to reach out - just a good friend and a great listener.

Use these four steps and have a conversation that could change a life:

  • Ask R U OK?
  • Listen
  • Encourage action
  • Check in

R U OK?

UpToDate

Cochrane Library

Online resources

Reports

Articles

Interventions

Research

E-books

E-journals

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Articles

Interventions

Economic evaluations of eHealth interventions targeting mental health problems in the workplace: a systematic review
The study outcomes unveiled the potential cost-effectiveness of eHealth interventions targeting mental health issues, particularly these focusing on workplace stress. However, generalization is challenging due to variations in the methodologies across studies. .Journal of mental health 26 August 2024

Online versus in-person gatekeeper suicide prevention training: comparison in a community sample
Online training performed as good, or better than in-person suicide prevention gatekeeper training (GKT), on measured outcomes demonstrating utility and effectiveness of the modality for use in suicide prevention training practices. Findings additionally indicate that online training may reach participants that in-person programs do not. This study provides evidence that Online GKT has significant utility in addressing a crucial need for online alternatives to evidence-based suicide prevention training.  Journal of mental health 11 April 2024

Walking together in friendship: Learning about cultural safety in mainstream mental health services through Aboriginal Participatory Action Research
A lack of cultural safety in mental health services is likely to contribute to the disparity in outcomes between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and non-Indigenous Australians. Embedding cultural safety into research design allows for authentic community engagement and facilitates knowledge sharing around ways to improve cultural safety in mental health services. Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry 19 April 2024

Substance use during hospitalisation requiring an urgent clinical response: an opportunity for intervention
Inpatient drug use requiring an urgent clinical response was infrequently recognised but presents a risk of harm to patients and staff and increases service utilisation and costs. Both harm reduction and systematic approaches guided by institutional policy are recommended. Using these events as reachable moments to address driving factors may modify patients' risk from future events. Internal medicine journal 23 January 2024

The effectiveness of brief non-pharmacological interventions in emergency departments and psychiatric inpatient units for people in crisis: A systematic review and narrative synthesis
Categorising brief non-pharmacological interventions is feasible, but an evidence base for many is severely limited if not missing. Even when there is evidence, the inconsistency in outcomes often precludes clinicians from making inferences, although some interventions show promise. Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry 23 December 2023

Efficacy of a short message service brief contact intervention (SMS-SOS) in reducing repetition of hospital-treated self-harm: randomised controlled trial
The 22% reduction in repetition of hospital-treated self-harm was clinically meaningful. SMS text messages are an inexpensive, scalable and universal intervention that can be used in hospital-treated self-harm populations but further work is needed to establish efficacy and cost-effectiveness across settings. British journal of psychiatry 23 December 2023

“Put your personality into the call”: A qualitative interview study illuminating strategies for improving men’s engagement on crisis helplines
Findings highlight the value of crisis helplines for men’s suicide prevention services while identifying target areas to improve engagement. The authors discuss implications for the findings including suggestions for gender-sensitive care within crisis helplines. BMC public health 27 June 2024

Evidence-based brief interventions targeting acute mental health presentations for children and adolescents: systematic review
This review provides evidence to substantiate the benefits of brief interventions, in different settings, to reduce the burden of in-patient hospital and readmission rates to the emergency department. British journal of psychiatry 11 April 2024

Behavioural mental health interventions delivered in the emergency department for suicide, overdose and psychosis: a scoping review
A wide range of multicomponent ED-delivered behavioural health interventions for suicidality and opioid use disorder show short-term improvement on primary outcomes such as suicide reattempt. Few studies on non-opioid substances and psychosis are available. BMJ open 25 March 2024

Suicide prevention: Introducing the Lothian Safekeeping Plan© for parents as a clinical innovation for use alongside safety plans for children and young people
The Lothian Safekeeping Plan is a clinically led evidence-based practice innovation. It is a specific suicide prevention plan for use by parents as an additional, complementary, and enhanced resource to the Lothian Safety Plan for young people. It is recommended that healthcare professionals also use a parental safety plan when supporting young people presenting with suicidal crisis. Further research is needed to evaluate the impact of these plans. Journal of child and adolescent psychiatric nursing 18 February 2024

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Research

Experiences of individuals presenting to the emergency department for mental health reasons: A systematic mixed studies review
The experiences described by individuals presenting to emergency department for mental health reasons were mostly poor. The results illustrate a need for increased mental health education and training for all emergency department staff. Employment of specialist and lived experience workers should also be prioritised to support more therapeutic relationships and emergency department environments. In addition, greater investment in mental health systems is required to manage the current crisis and ensure future sustainability. Australian & New Zealand journal of psychiatry 16 June 2024

Mental health and wellbeing of international students in Australia: a systematic review
International students in Australia experience various issues affecting their mental health and wellbeing. More effort needs to be made to better support students. Journal of mental health 16 August 2024

Symptoms of the suicide crisis syndrome and therapist emotional responses: associations to self-harm and death by suicide within 18-months post-discharge among patients at an acute psychiatric department
The results indicated that patients with post-discharge episodes of self-harm are significantly different from patients who do not self-harm in terms of more intense symptoms of SCS during admission. Clinicians’ negative emotional responses may be relevant in the assessment of the risk of post-discharge self-harm. Journal of mental health 16 August 2024

Mental health and wellbeing outcomes associated with social, medical, and legal gender affirmation among trans young people in Australia
Gender affirmation is known to improve mental health among trans adults, but its impact on young people has been questioned. This study examined the mental health outcomes associated with social, medical, and legal gender affirmation among trans young people in Australia. International journal of transgender health 19 June 2024

Suicidal ideation, suicide plans and suicide attempts among Australian adults: Findings from the 2020–2022 National Study of Mental Health and Wellbeing
The implications of these findings for the forthcoming National Suicide Prevention Strategy are discussed. Suicidal thoughts and behaviours confer risk for suicide and are significant problems in their own right. Their prevention requires a strong whole-of-government response. Australian & New Zealand journal of psychiatry 10 June 2024

Safety plan use and suicide-related coping in a sample of Australian online help-seekers
Highlights

  • Safety plan use was examined among recently suicidal online help-seekers.
  • Only 1 in 10 participants had a safety plan.
  • Participants with safety plans had higher levels of coping and help-seeking.
  • Negative attitudes toward safety planning associated with higher suicidal ideation.
  • Further education about the benefits of safety planning is needed.

Journal of affective disorders 1 July 2024

Exploring the lived experience of receiving mental health crisis care at emergency departments, crisis phone lines and crisis care alternatives
The findings bring into sharp focus the lived experience of people accessing crisis care and contribute to the shortage of literature on subjective experiences. Providers may better meet the needs of those experiencing mental health crises by understanding the enduring impact of these interactions and the role of human connection beyond a focus on risk assessment, thereby providing opportunities for a joint understanding of risk and meaning-making. Furthermore, understanding the subjective experience of crisis care can guide reforms to ED and develop crisis alternatives to better meet the needs of people in crisis. Health expectations 8 April 2024

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E-books

This is just a sample of the e-books the library subscribes to – you will need your library login

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E-Journals

This is just a sample of the journals the library subscribes to – you will need your library login

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