Mental Health Promotion

Carole Devaney Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Mental Health Promotion Network

Definition of Mental Health

‘Mental health is the emotional and spiritual resilience which enables us to enjoy life and to survive pain, disappointment and sadness. It is a positive sense of well being and an underlying belief in our own and others dignity and worth’ Health Education Authority, Mental Health Promotion a quality framework, 1997, HEA, London

Mental health

• We all have mental health needs • It is more than an absence of mental illness • It influences: how we think about ourselves and others, our ability to learn and communicate; to form and sustain relationships; to interpret and cope with change and life events • How we think and feel impacts on our physical health • Poor mental health adds to the burden of disease and health inequalities

What is mental health promotion

• Mental Health Promotion : A Quality Framework (ref: National Service Framework – Standard 1 –Mental Health Promotion : A Quality Framework (HEA 1997) • Shifting the focus from illness to well-being and earlier intervention with groups at higher risk of mental ill health

What does it focus on?

• Any action to enhance the mental well being of individuals, families, organisations and communities • The factors which influence how we think and feel, individually and collectively • The impact this has on overall health and well-being

Mental Health Promotion cont.

Relevant to: • The whole population • Vulnerable groups and individuals at risk • People with mental health problems Activity: • Strengthening individuals • Strengthening communities • Reducing structural barriers to mental health

What influences our mental health?

• Exercise • Draw for 10 minutes on the flip chart sheets

Where are our mental health needs met?

• Early years • School • Home and Relationships • Community • Neighbourhood and Environment • Workplace and Employment • Later Life • Where we feel safe; included; valued; respected • Challenging the stigma of mental ill health

No Health without Mental Health

• Starting well • Developing well • Living well • Working well • Ageing Well

See: Foresight Mental Capital and Wellbeing Project (2008). Systems maps. The Government Office for Science, London. Page 3. http://www.bis.gov.uk/assets/biscore/corpora te/migratedD/ec_group/118-08-FO_b

Mental health promotion at different levels

At each level, it is relevant to the whole population, to individuals at risk, vulnerable groups and people with mental health problems .

• Strengthening individuals –increasing emotional resilience through interventions designed to promote self-esteem, life and coping skills, e.g. communicating, negotiating, relationship and parenting skills. • Strengthening communities - this involves increasing social inclusion and participation, improving neighbourhood environments, developing health and social services, which support mental health, anti-bullying strategies at school, workplace health, community safety, childcare and self-help networks.

• Reducing structural barriers to mental health - through initiatives to reduce discrimination and inequalities and to promote access to education, meaningful employment, housing, services and support for those who are vulnerable.

• • • • • • • • • •

Clients and Service Users

Lifestyle Advice/Intervention - smoking, alcohol and drugs, drinking, obesity, nutrition, sleeping, stress reduction Signposting and Referral/ Social prescribing – exercise opportunities – e.g. walking and gardening social networks, support groups, befriending projects, libraries, education and learning opportunities, benefits advice, volunteering opportunities, self esteem interventions Assessment of emotional health status of individuals with physical health problems particularly chronic illness Routine assessment of the physical health needs of individuals with mental ill health problems Recognition and appropriate responses to adult and child abuse Referral to parenting support and with attachment issues Building community capacity – involvement in local partnerships and networks and patient groups Challenging Stigma, Reducing access barriers and early recognition and referral in children and adults Service environment

Employers

• Exemplar Employers • Workplace/ building design • Well-being workplace policy • Management policies and practices including equality and diversity, bullying and harassment, appraisal, flexible working practices, reward and recognition, training and development • Lifestyle interventions • Managing stress • Retention and Recruitment of individuals with mental health problems • Green space, trees, shrubs • Access to water, healthy food options • Supervision and support mechanisms • Challenging stigma • Climate adaptation initiatives

Commissioners

• Guidance for commissioning mental health promotion • Public Health Outcomes • Integral to service provision – opportunistic and routine As part of the tendering/contracting process for example • Service providers have to demonstrate good employment practices • Service providers have to demonstrate climate adaptation polices etc

Benefits of mental health promotion

• Preventing mental ill health particularly depression, anxiety, self harm including drug and alcohol dependence and suicide • Improving the health and well-being of individuals with mental health problems • Wider universal benefits – improved physical health; increased emotional resilience; increased social inclusion and participation and improved productivity

This work was produced as part of the TIGER project and funded by JISC and the HEA in 2011. For further information see: http://www.northampton.ac.uk/tiger . This work by TIGER Project is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. Based on a work at tiger.library.dmu.ac.uk

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