A new clinic dedicated to combating addiction to "Club" drugs such as ecstasy and ketamine has opened up in West London at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital. A similar clinic was opened in 2009 at South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust (SLAM). It is hoped that the new clinic will be instrumental in preventing users of club drugs from progressing onto cocaine and heroin
Mencap has criticised the ability of health professionals to understand, due to a lack of adequate training, the Mental Capacity Act and to then apply it to people with profound and multiple learning disabilities (PMLD). As a direct result people with PMLD have too little involvement in the decision-making surrounding their care. After a three year collaboration with four other services Mencap have now published a guidance toolkit on their website: Involve Me
A study in International Psychogeriatrics journal investigated why carers of ethnic minority dementia sufferers were significantly later in obtaining medical help compared to non ethnic carers. The authors concluded that traditional beliefs surrounding the duty of the family to look after its members prevented carers from seeking specialist help. The researchers also concluded that interventions were required that would break down the barriers to ethnic carers accessing specialist help.
NHS figures just released show a sharp increase in children being treated for eating disorders. In England 2000 children were treated with 197 under the age of 13 being admitted to hospital. The figures from 35 hospitals were procured under the Freedom of Information Act.
Figures released by by the NHS Information Centre reveal that there has been a decrease in smoking, drinking and drug taking by teenagers. The data for 2009-2011 was procured from a survey conducted on 7,264 11- 15 year olds from 246 schools
The Office of National Statistics has released Social Trends 41. Included in this comprehensive set of data is mental health information. The report gives figures that show the use of antidepressants has risen dramatically since 1991. In that year 9 million prescriptions were authorised, but by 2009 it had risen to 39.1 million. The data also shows that in England in the period of 2009-10, 11% of the population was diagnosed with depression. According to the Royal College of General Practitioners eating disorders are going undetected in men. Apparently a doctor when faced with an abnormally thin male is likely to diagnose depression rather than anorexia or bullimia. Although NHS figures register a 66% rise in the past ten years in men being admitted to hospital for eating disorders, the charity BEAT says the NHS does not keep statistics for non-hospitalised sufferers and this could be the tip of the iceberg.
The coalition government has indicated that it wants to radically change the way drug addicts are treated. In the wake of this the Centre for Policy Studies, a Conservative party linked think tank, has concurred that the present methods are not working. It recommends that methadone prescribing and benefits funding that cost around £3.6bn per year be replaced with a rehabilitation programme
A survey carried out on behalf of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation has highlighted the influence of parental drinking habits on their offspring. It appears that even moderate parental overindulgence can affect teenage attitudes what is acceptable limits of intake
Statistics gathered by the mental health charity Rethink have found that support for the siblings of people with mental illness is an area that needs addressing. In the case of 20% of the participants of the survey, there was no support at all. This had a detrimental effect on the mental health of the siblings themselves
