British Journal of Mental Health NursingVol. 8, No. 2 EditorialMental health means mental health?Vicki WilliamsVicki WilliamsEditor, BJMHNSearch for more papers by this authorVicki WilliamsPublished Online:3 May 2019https://doi.org/10.12968/bjmh.2019.8.2.57AboutSectionsView articleView Full TextPDF/EPUB ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack CitationsPermissions ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InEmail View article References BBC News. Children's mental health services ‘postcode lottery’. 2019. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-47870001 (accessed 11 April 2019) Google ScholarFord M. Union members call for funding to bolster mental health workforce. 2019. https://www.nursingtimes.net/news/mental-health/union-members-call-for-funding-to-bolster-mental-health-work-force/7028549.article Google ScholarGamp J. MPs offered mental health support to help cope with ‘extraordinary pressures’ of Brexit. 2019. https://yhoo.it/2X2lkH5 (accessed 11 April 2019) Google Scholar FiguresReferencesRelatedDetails 2 May 2019Volume 8Issue 2ISSN (print): 2049-5919ISSN (online): 2052-496X Metrics History Published online 3 May 2019 Published in print 2 May 2019 Information© MA Healthcare LimitedPDF download

In the article, the author discusses mental health issues worldwide, particularly the need to address the inequalities in the access of mental health services, and the mental health policy of Public Health England (PHE).

Reducing inequalities in health, including mental health, is of high priority in many national policies. However, it is not yet known how mental health nurses might respond to these policies. Using examples from the available evidence, we argue that the causes of mental health inequalities are complex and thought to arise from fundamental divisions in society. These divisions are formed by social relationships, which are influenced by deep social structures, such as the economy or culture. The extensive range of social determinants means that there is no single explanation of why inequalities in mental health might occur. It also suggests that these determinants may act synergistically to create pockets of inequity where health needs are most complex. This poses difficult challenges for mental health nurses who undoubtedly have a key role in addressing mental health inequalities, although their role is likely to be restricted to service redesign and delivery. Mental health nurses are unlikely to address some of the deeper structural determinants of mental health inequalities, such as poverty, which can only be tackled through government-led reforms. Furthermore, we must be mindful of the possibility that services offered by mental nurses may have an uneven uptake across social classes, which in turn could serve to maintain or worsen mental health inequalities. Therefore, a key question for mental health nursing, policy and training is whether these limitations are clearly recognized.

Providing teacher candidates with a strong foundation in mental health literacy during their teacher education program is crucial in ensuring novice teachers are prepared to support the mental health needs of their students. In addition to responding to students, teacher candidates are typically at an age when mental health disorders are common and their personal mental health during the program also needs to be considered. In the current study, a survey was conducted with 375 teacher candidates in order to extend our understanding of the personal mental health and mental health literacy of pre-service teachers. Results showed that teacher candidate mental health was similar to the general population, with 77% reporting positive personal mental health. Teacher candidates did report high levels of stress. Teacher candidates had considerable personal and professional experience with mental health prior to starting the program and reported positive attitudes and moderate levels of knowledge about mental health disorders. Despite considerable experience and a positive perspective, teacher candidates did not feel ready or competent to support the mental health of students. Current teacher education programs should consider building on the knowledge and experience the teacher candidates bring, and enhancing their capacity to translate that knowledge into the classroom setting.

Many who seek primary health care advice about mental health may be using mobile applications (apps) claiming to improve well-being or relieve symptoms. We aimed to identify how prominent mental health apps frame mental health, including who has problems and how they should be managed. We conducted a qualitative content analysis of advertising material for mental health apps found online in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia during late 2016. Apps were included if they explicitly referenced mental health diagnoses or symptoms and offered diagnosis and guidance, or made health claims. Two independent coders analyzed app store descriptions and linked websites using a structured, open-ended instrument. We conducted interpretive analysis to identify key themes and the range of messages. We identified 61 mental health apps: 34 addressed predominantly anxiety, panic, and stress (56%), 16 addressed mood disorders (26%), and 11 addressed well-being or other mental health issues (18%). Apps described mental health problems as being psychological symptoms, a risk state, or lack of life achievements. Mental health problems were framed as present in everyone, but everyone was represented as employed, white, and in a family. Explanations about mental health focused on abnormal responses to mild triggers, with minimal acknowledgment of external stressors. Therapeutic strategies included relaxation, cognitive guidance, and self-monitoring. Apps encouraged frequent use and promoted personal responsibility for improvement. Mental health apps may promote medicalization of normal mental states and imply individual responsibility for mental well-being. Within the health care clinician-patient relationship, such messages should be challenged, where appropriate, to prevent overdiagnosis and ensure supportive health care where needed.

AbstractMental health has been a focus of over 200 journal articles using the HILDA Survey data. This brief review provides an overview of the mental health data collected through the HILDA Survey, and discusses the potential reasons why HILDA Survey data have been used so frequently in mental health research. We reflect on how the HILDA Survey data have: provided insights into the profile of mental health in the Australian community, illustrated the importance of social ties for mental health and enabled investigation of social inequalities in mental health.

High rates of mental health problems are a growing concern in Czech higher education, negatively impacting students’ performance and wellbeing. Despite the serious nature of poor mental health, students often do not seek help because of negative attitudes and shame over mental health problems. Recent mental health research reports self-compassion is strongly associated with better mental health and reduced shame. However, relationships between those constructs remain to be evaluated among Czech students. This study aims to appraise the relationships between mental health problems, negative mental health attitudes, mental health shame, and self-compassion in this population. An opportunity sample of 119 psychology students from a Czech university completed questionnaires regarding these constructs. Correlation, regression, and path analyses were conducted. Mental health problems were positively associated with negative mental health attitudes and shame, and negatively associated with self-compassion. Self-compassion negatively predicted mental health problems, while negative attitudes and shame did not. Last, self-compassion fully mediated the negative attitudes-mental health problems relationship, and partially mediated the shame-mental health problems relationship. Findings suggest self-compassion is essential for mental health in Czech students and associated with negative mental health attitudes and mental health shame. Czech universities can benefit from incorporating self-compassion training into their curricula to protect students’ mental health.

Mental health of an individual determines how they think, act and feel. Good mental health is followed by a positive attitude towards life enabling the person to cope with all the pressures life throws at her/him. If there are issues in dealing with everyday problems, it is a sign of an unhealthy mind which must be acknowledged and addressed as soon as possible. People who suffer from mental disorders are extremely vulnerable in the society. They are generally isolated, marginalized, humiliated, discriminated and stigmatized. They usually end in inhumane and unhygienic living conditions in mental hospitals as well as their own communities following grave violation of human rights. Now a day's poor mental health seems to be a global challenge. Service delivery in the mental health system has not progressed much especially in low and middle income nations. Present article deals with the determinants directly associated with the mental health. Barriers to the progress include delivery of quality mental healthcare services with challenges in mere availability at primary centres; mental health at the lowest priority in public-health issues; and small numbers of professionals trained in providing care to the people with mental illness.

In addressing the question of what mental health is we might proceed as if there is a single phenomenon-mental health-denoted by a single overarching concept. The task, then, is to provide an informative analysis of this concept which applies to all and only instances of mental health, and which illuminates what it is to be mentally healthy. In contrast, mental health pluralism is the idea that there are multiple mental health phenomena denoted by multiple concepts of mental health. Analysis and illumination of mental health may still be possible, but there isn't a single phenomenon or concept to be analysed in addressing the question of what mental health is. The question of pluralism has been overlooked in the philosophy of mental health. The discussion to follow is an attempt to get us to take mental health pluralism seriously. To that end, in this essay I have three primary goals: (1) to give a precise account of what mental health pluralism is, (2) to show that the question of pluralism should not be neglected in debate about what mental health is, and (3) to argue for mental health pluralism. I also draw out some implications of this discussion for philosophy, science, and psychotherapy.

Mental Nurse is billed as 'the internet resource for UK mental health nurses' and offers a range of information on all things connected to mental health.