National Helpline Research Articles

The First Telephone Line for the Psychological Support to Oncological Patients and Their Family Members in Serbia.

In October of 2010, Serbian Association for Psycho-Oncology, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health of Serbia and the National Health Insurance has launched the first national telephone line for free psychological counseling and support for oncology patients and their families. The aim of this study was to present results of the first national telephone helpline for psychological support for oncological patients and their families. METHODS The telephone line for the psychological help and support was available from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., seven days a week and on holidays. A total of 12 previously educated psychologists were involved, with two on duty in the mornings and two in the afternoons.The basic work principles of the Line were anonymity for users (if they wished), free of charge service available to patients from all of Serbia, careful listening, emphatic reflection on anything communicated by users and adequate counselling. Since the beginning of the project (October 2010 up to April 2011) we received a total of 2,748 calls from across Serbia. Almost half of these calls were repeated calls, as patients asked for continuous psychological counselling. Larger percent (63.9%) of women called, when compared to men (35.4%) who used the Line. Most (52.4%) conversations were categorized as "psychological support and counseling," and as continual psychological counseling work (21.1%). The large number of calls suggests that this kind of public, free service for psychosocial and psychological support to cancer patients is necessary in Serbia.

Predicting NGOs’ Reports on Psychological and Physical Domestic Violence in Small Countries

Psychological and physical abuses are often characterised as the most misunderstood, common and underreported assaults. Researching help seek behaviours of these assaults can aid reporting. Our research question was whether psychological and physical domestic abuse can be predicted based on the victims gender and age and whether the victim was living with the suspect(s). Secondary data from the only available NGO of domestic violence in the Republic of Cyprus was used. A sample of 590 reports of domestic violence made to this national helpline was analysed. Binary logistic regression was conducted to answer the question of interest. Victimsgender and whether or not they were living with the suspect(s) can predict the type of abuse reported to a small extent. Male victims were more likely to report psychological abuse whilst female victims were more likely to report physical abuse. Victims living with the suspect(s) were more likely to report psychological abuse. No correlation was found between the victimsages and the type of abuse reported.

National Helpline for Problem Gambling: A Profile of Its Users' Characteristics.

Gambling has seen a significant increase in Italy in the last 10 years and has rapidly become a public health issue, and for these reasons the first National Helpline for Problem Gambling (GR-Helpline) has been established. The aims of this study are to describe the GR-Helpline users' characteristics and to compare the prevalence rates of the users with those of moderate-risk/problematic gamblers obtained from the national survey (IPSAD 2010-2011). Statistical analysis was performed on data obtained from the counselling sessions (phone/e-mail/chat) carried out on 5,805 users (57.5% gamblers; 42.5% families/friends). This confirms that the problems related to gambling concern not only the gamblers but also their families and friends. Significant differences were found between gamblers and families/friends involving gender (74% of gamblers were male; 76.9% of families/friends were female), as well as age-classes and geographical area. Female gamblers had a higher mean age (47.3 versus 40.2 years) and preferred nonstrategy-based games. Prevalence rates of GR-Helpline users and of moderate risk/problematic gamblers were correlated (Rho = 0.58; p = 0.0113). The results highlight the fact that remote access to counselling can be an effective means of promoting treatment for problem gamblers who do not otherwise appeal directly for services.

Commentary: Innovations in programming for HIV among adolescents: towards an AIDS-free generation.

Ultimately achieving an AIDS-free generation might rely more than we thought on developing adolescent leaders as agents of change -- not simply behavior change but societal and legal change. Innovative programming may be expanding adolescents’ social networks and engagement increasing their HIV-specific knowledge and increasing demand for HIV testing and treatment; but what is to meet this demand; and how will the effects of these programs be rigorously measured? Technology companies and mobile host sites are not clinicians or experts in evaluation. Even dizzying advances in technology are useless if adolescents have no access to them or are not able to access health promoting information services or networks. Moving forward technology and social innovators -- young and old -- must task themselves with removing barriers to testing and treatment that will reduce the sheer numbers of HIV infections and AIDS deaths in this population. Innovations must support adolescents’ access to a wider array of confidential testing options available in the community and through the health sector link them to biomedical and other prevention services of proven efficacy such as antiretroviral therapy medical male circumcision and to specific harm reduction interventions. In the years to come it is network disruption -- of entrenched social mores stigma attitudes and discriminatory practices -- that will constitute true innovation. (Excerpts)

CHILD-ON-CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE: RESULTS OF A SURVEY IN JOHANNESBURG

Child-on-child sexual abuse in South Africa has been recognised only recently as a significant social problem, reflected in the dearth of research on the topic. There is also a lack of evidence in South Africa on the extent of abuse and issues that relate to youth sex offending (Ehlers & Wood, 2001; Mbambo, 2002). It is difficult to establish the extent of either child-on-child or child-on-adult sex offending in South Africa, because not all of these cases are reported or recorded (Stout, 2003). It is estimated, however, that 42% of sexual offences reported to Childline, a national help-line providing crisis intervention services, are committed by other children (Vanzant, 2004) and the latest statistics available from the Department of Correctional Services (2007) show that on 31 January 2007 a total of 288 children were in prison for crimes of a sexual nature. It was reported in the Pretoria News that in South Africa a daily average of 82 children were charged for indecently assaulting or raping other children (Maughan, 2006:1). There is also a dearth of empirical international research and literature on the origins of child-on-child sexual abuse (Lightfoot & Evans, 2000).

PARE0010 The Relationship between Musculoskeletal Diseases and Ageing

BackgroundMusculoskeletal conditions (MSKs) are one of the largest causes of physical disability in the UK and, while it affects people of all ages including children, it particularly affects older people....

Utilization of a telephone interactive voice-response tobacco cessation support service in the Islamic Republic of Iran

Telephone smoking cessation counselling is a very cost-effective means of reaching dependent smokers in a population. We investigated the frequency of contacts and the types of topics that people accessed after a national telephone helpline was set up in the Islamic Republic of Iran at the beginning of 2011. From a total of 23 979 calls received over a 24-month period, 26.5% of callers hung up without selecting any menus. The most frequently accessed menu was addresses of smoking cessation support services (23.9%), followed by methods of smoking cessation (14.0%), self-help materials for quitting smoking (11.8%) and nicotine dependence assessment (10.4%). The average number of contacts decreased dramatically after the first month of the service but there was a significant increase in the 2 months preceding the feast of Ramadan. Religious messages provide a good opportunity to engage individuals in smoking cessation and may be useful in the planning of media campaigns.

Malpractice claims in Swedish telenursing: lessons learned from interviews with telenurses and managers.

This study deals with serious malpractice claims within Swedish Healthcare Direct, the national telephone helpline in Sweden. At least 33 claims of malpractice have been filed since the service was created in 2003. Although a low number, consequences have been tragic. Research in Swedish telenursing on contributing systemic and organizational factors and consequences of malpractice claims is sparse. The objective was to explore the direct experience of telenurses' and call center managers' involvement in actual malpractice claims-with focus on factors that may have contributed to the claims-and on the consequences of the claims. Six telenurses and five managers agreed to participate in open-ended interviews. A directed content analysis approach was chosen to analyze the transcribed interview texts. Stress, shiftwork, fatigue, multitasking, understaffing, and factors embedded in the system could have contributed to the malpractice claims. Safety management was treated locally, with no attempts at organizational reforms. The solitary nature of the telenursing task emphasizes the importance of an organization, which works toward providing an environment where telenurses can feel safe and supported. This may require, in turn, a change in both organizational and professional attitudes toward safety and risk of error. The greatest hinder may be healthcare providers themselves. If the difficulties in recruiting participants for this study are any indication, reaching out to healthcare providers who remain silent may be the greatest challenge.

NHS Scotland encourages pharmacists to refer NRT clients to national stop smoking helpline

NHS Scotland encourages pharmacists to refer NRT clients to national stop smoking helpline

The process of stopping recruitment and trial treatment in a trial of a psychological therapy for people with personality disorder following a safety alert

The study team were advised by the independent oversight committees to stop recruitment to the trial and the delivery of the trial therapy due to a difference in the number of reported hospitalisations between the treatment and control group. There was a lack of guidance on how to proceed with implementation of the changes in a trial of this type and little precedent for cessation of trial treatment in a psychotherapy trial following a safety alert. Furthermore, there were concerns over the potential for distress and disruption to participants and clinical teams as a result of the trial changes and the potential risks of discontinuing treatment prematurely. A collaborative approach to the development of the process and supporting documents was adopted, with attention given to the impact on participants and clinical teams. The changes were implemented as an urgent safety measure. The following were developed: • Written process for implementation. • Written information for participants, potential participants and clinical teams. • Guidance documents for sites. • Arrangements for local and national telephone helplines. • Media response. The following key features were intended to reduce the impact on participants and clinical teams: • Prompt, but careful action. • Staged, allowing adequate time to inform and support participants and clinical teams, and ensuring feedback received could inform further development. • Clinically appropriate, with reference to national guidelines and accepted good practice. • Honest, concise and consistent information given to all concerned and follow-up support offered as appropriate. • Regular review and reflection.

Improving ethnic monitoring for telephone-based healthcare: a conversation analytic study

ObjectivesMedical and healthcare organisations—including the national cancer support and helpline organisation that is the subject of this study—are expected to collect and monitor information about the ethnicity of their client...

OP0245-PARE The emotional and information support needs of people living with polymyalgia rheumatica

BackgroundThe number of enquiries from clients living with polymyalgia rheumatica [PMR] to two national helplines has increased. The emotional and information support needs of this group has yet to be...

OP0140-PARE The complexity of living with rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases and other health problems

BackgroundMany people in the UK report they are living with additional health problems to their diagnosed rheumatic or musculoskeletal diseases (RMDs). It is well recognised that ischaemic heart disease and...

The effect of a web-based depression intervention on suicide ideation: secondary outcome from a randomised controlled trial in a helpline

ObjectivesThe effect of web-based interventions for depression on suicide ideation in callers to helplines is not known. The aim of this study was to determine if web-based Cognitive Behaviour Therapy...

Addressing information needs of vulnerable communities about incontinence: A survey of ten CALD communities

Urinary incontinence is a common and distressing condition. Using focus groups, we explored the views of ten ethnic language groups in Melbourne about knowledge and awareness of incontinence. The 218 participants (with or without incontinence) spoke with trained interpreters. Twenty focus group discussions of single and mixed sex groups were audio-recorded and transcribed into English. Narratives were analyzed using thematic analysis with open coding and also incorporated themes from literature. Participants' knowledge of incontinence was low and incontinence was thought to be an inevitable consequence of ageing. There was little understanding of treatments or assistance available under government-funded programmes. No group was aware of the national continence programme or phone helpline. Sensitivities of the topic plus language barriers in immigrant culturally and linguistically diverse communities may impose barriers to accessing help. Several groups thought they would cope with incontinence by themselves, while all groups suggested they would be able to discuss the condition with a doctor. Various preferences voiced about social limitations and permissible communications with others are described. Nurses should be aware of the needs and communication preferences of ethnic language groups regarding continence information and continence service delivery.

Physical and Mental Health in Patients and Spouses After Intensive Care of Severe Sepsis

To examine the physical and mental long-term consequences of intensive care treatment for severe sepsis in patients and their spouses under consideration of a dyadic perspective using the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model. Prospective study. Patients and spouses who had requested advice from the German Sepsis Aid's National Helpline were invited to participate. We included 55 patients who survived severe sepsis and their spouses an average of 55 months after ICU discharge. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, the Short Form-12 Health Survey, the Posttraumatic Stress Scale-10, and the Giessen Subjective Complaints List-24 were used. The Actor-Partner Interdependence Model was tested using multilevel modeling with the actor effect representing the impact of a person's posttraumatic stress symptoms on his or her own mental health-related quality of life and the partner effect characterized by the impact of a person's posttraumatic stress symptoms on his or her partner's mental health-related quality of life. A significant proportion of patients and spouses (26%-42%) showed clinically relevant scores of anxiety and depression; approximately two thirds of both, patients and spouses, reported posttraumatic stress symptoms defined as clinically relevant. Compared with normative samples, patients reported greater anxiety, poorer mental and physical health-related quality of life, and greater exhaustion; spouses had an impaired mental health-related quality of life and increased anxiety. Testing the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model revealed that posttraumatic stress symptoms were related to patients' (β = -0.71, 95% confidence interval -0.88 to -0.54) and spouses' (β = -0.62, 95% confidence interval -0.79 to -0.46) own mental health-related quality of life. Posttraumatic stress symptoms further influenced the mental health-related quality of life of the respective other (β = -0.18, 95% confidence interval -0.35 to -0.003 for patients; β = -0.15, 95% confidence interval -0.32 to 0.02 for spouses). Interventions to treat posttraumatic stress symptoms after critical illness to improve mental health-related quality of life should not only include patients, but also consider spouses.

Callers' experiences of contacting a national suicide prevention helpline: report of an online survey.

Background: Helplines are a significant phenomenon in the mixed economy of health and social care. Given the often anonymous and fleeting nature of caller contact, it is difficult to obtain data about their impact and how users perceive their value. This paper reports findings from an online survey of callers contacting Samaritans emotional support services. Aims: To explore the (self-reported) characteristics of callers using a national suicide prevention helpline and their reasons given for contacting the service, and to present the users’ evaluations of the service they received. Methods: Online survey of a self-selected sample of callers. Results: 1,309 responses were received between May 2008 and May 2009. There were high incidences of expressed suicidality and mental health issues. Regular and ongoing use of the service was common. Respondents used the service for complex and varied reasons and often as part of a network of support. Conclusions: Respondents reported high levels of satisfaction with the service and perceived contact to be helpful. Although Samaritans aims to provide a crisis service, many callers do not access this in isolation or as a last resort, instead contacting the organization selectively and often in tandem with other types of support.

Web-Based Cognitive Behavior Therapy for Depression With and Without Telephone Tracking in a National Helpline: Secondary Outcomes From a Randomized Controlled Trial

BackgroundAn earlier report indicated that callers to a telephone counseling service benefited from the addition of an evidence-based Web intervention for depression. It is not known whether the Web intervention would also lower alcohol use and stigma, or improve quality of life and knowledge of depression and its treatments.ObjectiveTo report the secondary outcomes of a trial of a Web-based cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) intervention for depression, including hazardous alcohol use, quality of life, stigma, depression literacy, and CBT literacy.MethodsWe recruited a sample of 155 callers to Lifeline, a national telephone counseling service in Australia, who met the criteria for moderate to high psychological distress. Participants were randomly assigned to 1 of 4 conditions: (1) Web CBT plus weekly telephone tracking, (2) Web CBT only, (3) weekly telephone tracking only, and (4) neither Web CBT nor telephone tracking. Participants were assessed at preintervention, postintervention, and 6 and 12 months postintervention.ResultsAt postintervention, participants who completed the Web intervention either with or without telephone support had lower levels of hazardous alcohol use (without tracking: P = .008, effect size = 0.23; with tracking: P = .003, effect size = 0.26), improved quality of life (without tracking: P = .001, effect size = 0.81; with tracking: P = .009, effect size = 0.63), and improved CBT literacy (without tracking: P = .01, effect size = 0.71; with tracking: P < .001, effect size = 0.80) compared with those who did not receive the Web intervention or telephone support. Results for quality of life and CBT literacy were maintained at 6- and 12-month’s follow-up, but differences in hazardous alcohol use were not significantly different between conditions at 6 and 12 months. Although omnibus tests for depression literacy and stigma were nonsignificant, contrasts revealed that those in the Web-only condition showed significantly lower levels of stigma than participants in the control condition at postintervention. This was true for participants in the Web-only and Web plus tracking conditions at 6 months. Similarly, those in the Web-only and Web plus tracking conditions had significantly higher depression literacy at postintervention, and this was maintained in the Web-only condition at 6-months’ follow-up. No significant differences were found in depression literacy and stigma between conditions at 12 months.ConclusionsEvidence-based Web interventions for depression can be effective not only in reducing depression symptoms but also in improving other health outcomes, including quality of life, hazardous alcohol use, and knowledge about effective strategies for depression self-management.Trial RegistrationInternational Standard Randomized Controlled Trial Number (ISRCTN): 93903959; http://www.controlled-trials.com/ISRCTN93903959/ (Archived by WebCite at http://www.webcitation.org/65y61nSsH)

Körperliche und psychische Langzeitfolgen nach intensivmedizinischer Behandlung einer schweren Sepsis bei Patienten und Angehörigen

This study aimed at investigating the physical and mental long-term sequelae in survivors of severe sepsis and in their relatives. Furthermore, the role of resilience as protective factor was examined. We contacted all persons who had requested free of charge advice from the German Sepsis Aid's National Helpline and asked them to answer a questionnaire. We included 87 patients and 90 relatives of patients who survived a severe sepsis. About two thirds of the patients and relatives reported clinically relevant post-traumatic symptoms. There were strong dyadic relations between patient and spouses regarding physical and mental health and quality of life. Resilience was found to be a significant negative predictor of physical complaints, anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress symptoms in patients and relatives. Diagnosis and therapy of mental disorders is of particular importance within primary care following sepsis.

P225 The post pandemic influenza experience in a busy district general hospital

The 2009/2010 swine origin influenza virus (H1N1) pandemic created a national helpline, vaccination program and advertising campaign that cost many millions of pounds. There were a number of deaths in...