mental health problems

Edition of the series "All in the mind" which looks at cognitive behavioural therapy and asks how effective a treatment it is for mental health problems.

This is episode 2 of this series in which Mariella Frostrup and guests, Jan Parker, Richard Reeves and Roger Catchpole, discuss what parents can do to help children with mental health problems and how you define a 'normal' level of unhappiness in childhood and adolescence.

Paper looking at the types of conversations which take place between doctors and patients, particularly concerning diabetes and mental illness. It concludes that doctors are learning to talk and listen to ever more assertive patients and that improving the quality of conversations is vital to empowerment and innovation.

This booklet, produced by the Mental Health Foundation, provides information about how people with depression can use exercise to help them get better, and that they may be able to get 'prescriptions' for exercise from their GP.

This paper looks at barriers to employment for people with mental health problems and at efforts that are being made to support their efforts to find and sustain work. Barriers include: stigma and discrimination; low expectations and a lack of resources; financial disincentives. There is some discussion of government policy and the Pathways to Work scheme.

The importance of employment and its links with mental health are summarised and the European policy context described. The report then asks what the consequences of poor mental health for economic activity are, if a trend in productivity losses over time can be seen and what we know about employment rates for people with mental health problems. Barriers to employment, the economic case for helping such people remain in the workforce, assessing the cost effectiveness of interventions to this end, legislative and policy actions, and the way forward are discussed.

This resource discuses exercise therapy as a treatment for mild or moderate depression. The report looks at research which indicates incidences of GP 'prescriptions' for exercise in the treatment of depression are low. The Mental Health Foundation is embarking on a campaign to promote exercise referral, the aim of which is to remove the main obstacle to the use of exercise therapy as a first-line treatment for mild or moderate depression in primary care – the failure of information to reach those who may be able to use it. Up and Running? marks the beginning of this campaign.

Report of an independent review into children's services in England which considered how effectively different services are working together and pinpointed areas for improvement.

The Scottish Recovery Indicator (SRI) is a mental health service development tool designed to aid mental health services in making sure their activities are focused on assisting the recovery of people using their services.

Dignity in Care is a campaign being run by the Department of Health's website in the UK. It "aims to eliminate tolerance of indignity in health and social care services through raising awareness and inspiring people to take action." The focus of the campaign has mainly been on older people but has now been extended to include people with mental health needs. The website provides further information on the different aspects of the campaign, including relevant publications.