Displaying items by tag: Mental Health

33-year-old James Ward has a low IQ and mental health problems. In 2006 he fought with his father and was given a ten-month jail sentence. Unable to cope with prison life, he set fire to his mattress and was sentenced under Imprisonment for Public Protection (IPP). An IPP is a sentence with no release date. All who know James believe he is not a risk to the public, he's just a risk to himself. He is suicidal, self-harms, and needs the right support. The Parole Board is now working to find James a hostel and mental health support. His sister said she had yet to speak to her brother about his release, and was unsure whether he even knew he was to be freed. She added, ‘I hope other IPP prisoners who are way over tariff can now also be released’. IPPs were abolished in 2012, but 3,000+ people are still serving them.

The Manchester Arena attack on 22 May was a traumatic event which has caused severe emotional shock to many of those directly affected by it. These could be survivors, family members of victims, professionals who dealt with the event at the time, or professionals seeking clinical advice about their service users needing help. In response to these needs, the NHS Manchester Resilience Hub has been established. It will coordinate care and support for children, young people, and adults whose mental health and/or emotional well-being has been affected by the incident. The Hub is based in Greater Manchester but is for everyone who was affected, wherever they may live. It offers phone-based advice, support, and information, and can make calls on survivors’ behalf if they are struggling to get the help they need. Pray for the trained mental health professionals and voluntary sector counselling agencies who will be delivering this service.

Adult mental health hospitals in Northern Ireland currently have a target of discharging patients within 7 days of their being declared medically fit. However, one mental health patient spent 1,235 days stranded in an acute unit awaiting discharge in the Southern Health and Social Care Trust. Over the past two years, 16 patients waited more than 100 days for discharge and five were delayed for more than a year. Discharged mental health patients are often placed in supported accommodation and a lack of these facilities can lead to delays. A spokesperson said, ‘Trust policy ensures community-based care and treatment is put in place as soon as possible for patients who can be safely discharged. But they can only be safely discharged when appropriate accommodation is available’.

A campaign to encourage conversation about mental health among children and young people will be piloted in three Welsh schools, with others to follow. It will raise mental health awareness through a programme (using lottery funding) which works with pupils, teachers and parents. One in ten young people experiences mental health problems, with the associated stigma and discrimination often making life even harder. The scheme will work closely with schools to help young people develop the confidence to talk more openly about mental health - at school, with friends, or at home. When Laura was seven or eight she realised that hearing voices was not something everyone experienced, so she kept it a secret and her mental health got worse. At the age of 15 she told her mum; she says that talking saved her. Now she has support from family and friends.

The Duchess of Cambridge was speaking at a Royal College for Obstetricians and Gynaecologists reception to launch a project about mental health in early parenthood. The educational films promote understanding of mental health for parents struggling with their infants. She spoke of the ‘pressure of being a perfect parent’ and admits experiencing lack of confidence and feelings of ignorance after becoming a mother. Even she, with all the benefits of having help at home, had found parenthood a ‘huge challenge’. She said, ‘Nothing can really prepare you for the sheer overwhelming experience of what it means to become a mother. Personally, becoming a mother has also been a rewarding and wonderful experience.’

Malegapuru Makgopa, South Africa’s health ombudsman, has said that 94 mentally-ill patients died  of starvation, dehydration and diarrhoea at care centres last year. The deaths followed a ‘reckless’ attempt by the government to save money by transferring patients from a specialised institution to centres with ‘invalid licences’. Mr Makgopa released his findings in a report entitled ‘94 Silent Deaths and Counting’. Visibly angry, he described the deaths as unlawful and called on law enforcement agencies to take up the cases. His investigation was prompted by complaints from families who were desperately searching for their relatives. A total of 1,900 patients were transferred by the Gauteng health department to various unregulated care organisations. The findings have led to the resignation of the province’s health minister.