National guidance to support integrated care boards to commission acute mental health inpatient services for adults with a learning disability and autistic adults

NHS England – November 2023

This guidance will support integrated care boards (ICBs) to commission acute mental health inpatient services for adults with a learning disability and autistic adults. It is national guidance for ICBs to follow as they commission for their populations and sets out minimum standards and expectations to consider when commissioning high quality inpatient care.

People with a learning disability and autistic people should not be admitted to a mental health hospital unless there is a suspected or identified mental health need requiring inpatient care and support. The draft mental health bill seeks to limit the grounds upon which people with a learning disability and autistic people can be detained in hospital under the Mental Health Act.

National guidance to support integrated care boards to commission acute mental health inpatient services for adults with a learning disability and autistic adults

Enhancing doctors’ working lives – 2023 annual report

NHS England – November 2023

The report details new and developing initiatives which support the delivery of more integrated and person-centered care and highlights those developed to reduce the impact the pandemic has had on training progression and wellbeing.

Enhancing doctors’ working lives – 2023 annual report

love the NHS, but…’: preventing needless harms caused by poor communications in the NHS

Demos – November 2023

This report makes a case for the urgent need to improve communication within the NHS. It found that more than half (55%) of people have experienced poor communications from the NHS in the past five years, and 1 in 10 say their care has been affected as a result. Demos calls on the government for: an expansion of the system of care co-ordinators; an expansion of the system of care navigators in GP surgeries; and improvements to the uptake and use of the NHS app.

Read the Report – ‘I love the NHS, but…’: preventing needless harms caused by poor communications in the NHS

Young People and Gambling 2023.

The Gambling Commission; 2023.

This report, produced by NatCen, is on the final step in the experimental phase of the gambling participation and the prevalence of problem gambling survey

Young People and Gambling 2023.

Exploring public attitudes towards the use of digital health technologies and data

Health Foundation – November 2023

• The NHS is looking to advances in digital health technologies and data to help tackle current pressures and meet rising demand. But ensuring new uses of technology and data have the backing of the public is critical if they are to become business as usual.
• In March 2023, we commissioned a survey of 7,100 nationally representative members of the public (aged 16 years and older) to investigate their attitudes to uses of health technologies and data, and the key factors affecting their views. Our earlier publication based on this survey reported on attitudes specifically towards virtual wards.
• Overall, the public thinks technology improves the quality of health care and is supportive of its many possible uses. But not all technologies are equally liked: those that empower people to manage their health and better connect them with the NHS seem to be more popular, while those that could be seen to ‘come between’ the clinician and patient – like chatbots or care robots – are least popular.

Read the Report – Exploring public attitudes towards the use of digital health technologies and data

Preserving the world for future generations – RCPCH report

RCPCH – November 2023

Over the last two years, our engagement team has been on the road around the whole of the UK, talking to CYP about climate change and its impact on their physical and mental health. To support this work, we also conducted a literature review to capture the perceptions and priorities of children and young people globally. So, in total, the report summarises the voices and perspectives of almost 100,000 CYP from across the world.

From this research, we identified reoccurring themes. These were the most prominent:

• Worries about the future
• Governmental influence and young people’s perceptions on government action to combat climate change
• Ideas from CYP to combat climate change
• Importance of engaging and empowering CYP
• Climate change and inequalities
• Impacts of climate change
• Climate change education and how education is embedded within schools
• Barriers to improving climate change
• Climate change and the rise of negative emotions associated with it

Alongside the detailed report, we have published an executive summary which breaks down the evidence behind each CYP recommendation. It aims to provide decision makers and paediatricians in the UK with an overview of why CYP care about this topic and the action CYP want them to take to lighten the burden of climate change felt by the younger generations.

Read the Report – Preserving the world for future generations – RCPCH report

NICE draft updated guideline recommends more treatment choices for menopause symptoms

NICE – 17th November 2023

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has recommended wider treatment options for menopause in new draft guidance today.

Cognitive behavioural therapy has been recommended for NHS use after evidence showed it can help reduce menopause symptoms relating to depression, hot flushes and trouble sleeping.

The frequency and severity of hot flushes and night sweats were reduced by the therapy, according to NICE – as was how long it takes to fall asleep and the amount of time before waking.

Cognitive behavioural therapy should now be considered alongside, or as an alternative to, hormone replacement therapy (HRT).

Further information – NICE draft updated guideline recommends more treatment choices for menopause symptoms

Reducing harm from ligatures in mental health wards and wards for people with a learning disability

CQC – 21st November 2023

This guidance is written for staff with responsibilities for:

• caring for patients on mental health wards, and on wards for people with a learning disability
• assessing and managing risks to patients in the inpatient care environment
• those buying, installing and maintaining fixtures and fittings for mental health wards and wards for people with a learning disability.

The main focus is on removing or reducing the risk of patients taking their own lives or harming themselves using a ligature, particularly in combination with an anchor point. However, the practices covered will have wider benefits for patients and staff.

Further information – Reducing harm from ligatures in mental health wards and wards for people with a learning disability

Delivering greener, more sustainable and net zero mental health care: Guidance and recommendations

Royal College of Psychiatrists (RCPsych); 2023.

This new guidance on delivering sustainable mental health care will empower and guide mental health professionals across the system to continue building a greener NHS, benefiting our patients, communities, and staff. As we move forward, the next critical step is the implementation of the recommendations within the guidance, marking our collective effort towards achieving a more sustainable health and care system

Delivering greener, more sustainable and net zero mental health care: Guidance and recommendations.

Mental Health of Children and Young People in England, 2023 – wave 4 follow up to the 2017 survey

NHS Digital – 21st November 2023

This report presents findings from the fourth (wave 4) in a series of follow up reports to the 2017 Mental Health of Children and Young People (MHCYP) survey, conducted in 2023. 2,370 children and young people who took part in the MHCYP 2017 survey took part in the wave 4 follow up.

The mental health of children and young people aged 8 to 25 years living in England in 2023 is examined, as well as their household circumstances, and their experiences of education and services and of life in their families and communities.

Comparisons are made with 2017, 2020 (wave 1), 2021 (wave 2), and 2022 (wave 3) where possible, to monitor changes over time.

Mental Health of Children and Young People in England, 2023 – wave 4 follow up to the 2017 survey