Mental Health Resources

Covid-19 has had a severe impact on everyone’s lives, but the past year has been exceptionally challenging for nurses and healthcare workers battling the pandemic on the frontline.

There are striking parallels between the experiences veterans faced in conflict to those which healthcare professionals continue to face in the fight against Covid-19. Any traumatic event — whether a global pandemic or experience of war — takes its emotional toll. Repeated exposure can overwhelm the nervous system and lead to burnout and trauma fatigue.

There are currently 15 million people in England who have a longterm condition, which is defined as one which currently has no cure other than drugs and symptomatic management (Bennett et al, 2012). At present, the UK population is affected by the Covid-19 pandemic, and those with a long-term condition have been advised to selfisolate to prevent being infected by the virus (Department of Health [DH], 2020). This paper explores some of the effects of stress and anxiety with reference to Covid-19, as well as how the pandemic has affected the community nurse’s role.

Increased rates of non-attendance/did not attend (DNA) to healthcare appointments remain a problem in the National Health Service in terms of increased costs and wasted clinician time (Stone et al, 1999; Murdock et al, 2002; Milne et al, 2006; Sims et al, 2012; National Health Service, 2019). As resources become increasingly limited, this needs to be tackled. One of the main reasons for missed appointments is forgetfulness (Kilaspy et al, 2000; Neal et al, 2005). This evaluation assessed the effect of an inexpensive short message service (SMS) reminder programme on 76 patients who attended 496 depot clinic appointments in a community mental health team (CMHT). As a result, the average DNA reduced from between 5% and 12%. Attendance was also found to be correlated with frequency of depot administration. SMS reminders could provide an inexpensive way of achieving reductions in DNA at CMHT depot clinics, but further research with a larger and randomised sample size is indicated.

People who are extroverted tend to seek social stimulation and opportunities to engage with others through social interaction. Yet, whether you have an introvert or extrovert personality, loneliness can strike anyone. Being an extrovert by nature, experiencing enforced lockdown earlier this year was initially extremely daunting and challenging for me. Although well past the ‘flush of youth ‘, I am still in a section of life where my calendar was filled with meetings, attendance at international conference/exhibitions,
networking and travelling, giving me a purpose to manage my professional and home life with positivity.

Anxiety disorders are common amongst elderly housebound clients and are undertreated with detrimental effects to this population. Effective treatment for anxiety includes access to a talking therapy. Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) for anxiety is proven to be successful and has a low r elapse rate. Elderly housebound clients have poor access to talking therapies which compounds existing health inequalities. District and community nurses could be instrumental in enabling elderly housebound clients to have access to CBT approaches for the treatment of anxiety at an early stage, which could gr eatly improve outcomes.

• Mental Health Clinical Assessor (RMN)
• Registered Mental Health Nurse (CAMHs)
• Advanced Nurse Practitioner (ANP)
• Acute Nurse (Band 5)
• Community/District Nurse (Band 5)
• Community / District Nurse (Band 5)
• Community / District Nurse (Band 5, 6 & 7)
• Acute Nurse (Band 5)

In each issue we investigate a hot topic currently affecting you and your community practice. Here, we look at the current state of NHS mental health services and ask the question

Depression is the ‘common cold’ of elderly mental health. Many older housebound patients suffer from depression. This has often not been recognised and treated. District/community nurses are the healthcare practitioners most likely to be in contact with these clients. Their role in assessing the emotional health of clients and taking action to address mental health issues is crucial. Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) has a strong evidence base for treatment of depression. Knowledge of its principles could be integrated into therapeutic conversations that district/community nurses have with clients.

In each  issue  we investigate a hot topic currently affecting you and your community practice. Here, Jason Beckford-Ball looks at the current state of the NHS Mental Health Services and asks the question...

The management of nutrition in people with dementia is complex as it involves weight loss due to cognitive and physical problems caused by the condition. There is a range of practical approaches that the community nurse can implement, but these must be adjusted to suit each person. Often, a large proportion of the community nurse’s time is spent supporting carers, family and friends who are looking after a relative who has dementia at home. This can be a demanding role and carers often experience physical and emotional fatigue. For those working with patients with dementia in nursing, residential and care homes, it is particularly important that staff are supported with strong leadership to provide a flexible approach to meal times and that suitable menu options are available.