Participative mental health consumer research for improving physical health care: An integrative review

Abstract

People with mental illness have a significantly lower life expectancy and higher rates of chronic physical illnesses than the general population. Health care system reform to improve access and quality is greatly needed to address this inequity. The inclusion of consumers of mental health services as co-investigators in research is likely to enhance service reform. In light of this, the current paper reviews mental health consumer focussed research conducted to date, addressing the neglect of physical health in mental health care and initiatives with the aim of improving physical health care. The international literature on physical healthcare in the context of mental health services was searched for articles, including mental health consumers in research roles, via Medline, CINAHL and Google Scholar, in October 2015. Four studies where mental health consumers participated as researchers were identified. Three studies involved qualitative research on barriers and facilitators to physical health care access, and a fourth study on developing technologies for more effective communication between GPs and patients. This review found that participatory mental health consumer research in physical health care reform has only become visible in the academic literature in 2015. Heightened consideration of mental health consumer participation in research is required by health care providers and researchers. Mental health nurses can provide leadership in increasing mental health consumer research on integrated care directed towards reducing the health gap between people with and without mental illness.

Peer support interventions seeking to improve physical health and lifestyle behaviours among people with serious mental illness: A systematic review

“…; Happell et al . , ). Across the seven included studies, there is a suggestion from three papers that PSI reduce weight, although none of these results were significant (Aschbrenner et al .…”

“…However, this is in some regards not surprising, given that peer recovery support intervention programmes are generally still in their infancy. Nonetheless, there have been recent policy decisions to increase the delivery of peer support programmes to improve physical health and lifestyle factors in people in Australia and internationally (Dixon et al 2016;Happell et al 2015Happell et al , 2016. Across the seven included studies, there is a suggestion from three papers that PSI reduce weight, although none of these results were significant (Aschbrenner et al 2015(Aschbrenner et al , 2016Schneider et al 2011).…”

Assessment of cardiovascular risk in an Italian psychiatric outpatient sample: A chart review of patients treated with second‐generation antipsychotics

“…If CMHS represent the optimal setting to implement these changes, community mental health nurses can provide the leadership needed to improve mental health research and practice to reduce inequalities in physical care among people with mental illness (Happell et al . ). Mental health nurses are also critical in reorganizing health‐care services to better support people with mental illness in recovery and well‐being.…”

A Web-Based Toolkit to Provide Evidence-Based Resources About Crystal Methamphetamine for the Australian Community: Collaborative Development of Cracks in the Ice

“…For example, consumer experts contributed to initial brainstorming, provided feedback on preliminary designs and different iterations of the Web-based toolkit, reviewed the beta website, and provided ideas for future development. Consumer participation is important to ensure that consumer needs, concerns, and values are not overlooked [ 18 , 19 ]. Engaging and linking with consumers was a critical component of the codevelopment process and ensured a strong end user voice in the final Cracks in the Ice toolkit.…”