World Mental Health Day

Today, the Mental Health Foundation, the UK's leading mental health research charity, aims to raise public awareness of important issues on World Mental Health Day.
The Day, which is recognised by the World Health Organisation, champions good mental health, for everyone.
Like the Foundation, the University is focused on rigorous research and practical based study, pioneering change, in pursuit of equality for those suffering from mental health issues, and advanced knowledge.  
Like the Foundation, we aren't afraid to challenge the status quo or tackle difficult or under researched issues. Here is just a sample of the research we are undertaking in the Faculty of Health and Social Care, working towards better outcomes for patients, their families and society as a whole:
• Access to mental health services: Exploring the barriers and facilitators to helping distressed young people in Hull and the East Riding. The aim of the study is to explore mental health support for young people in the Hull and East Riding area, looking at what support is available, young people’s attitudes to accessing this support, and how various services interact in providing that support.
We hope to identify factors that encourage or discourage young people from accessing support, and make recommendations that will increase positive help-seeking behaviour in this group.
The results of the study will be used to make recommendations to improve services for distressed young people in Hull and the East Riding. There will be a one-day conference to at the end of the project where we will share our findings. This event is open to the public and will be held at the University of Hull on 5 December 2016. For more information contact Dr Jo Bell or visit this link.
• The identification of physical illness in people with serious mental illnesses such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, which is contributing to a poorer quality of life and significantly reducing life expectancy. International work by Dr Jacquie White, Associate Dean Learning Teaching and Quality, also includes ongoing training of health professionals.
• The psychological impact of pregnancy and childbirth and perinatal mental health. Depression during pregnancy is now as prevalent as postnatal depression, but treatment is often patchy because midwives do not have sufficient training to diagnose the condition. Professor Julie Jomeen suggests that women who have suffered with depression in pregnancy tend to endure mental health problems after the birth too, and that it is not uncommon for partners to also become depressed, which in turn can have an effect on the children too. Effective training to detect cases early and treat them is essential.

To find out more about our research, please visit this link. http://www2.hull.ac.uk/fhsc/research.aspx Or contact Kirsty Fishburn, Mental Health Lecturer, Tedl: 01482 464681