The most recent Make Every Contact count public heath bulletin looking at latest evidence around smoking cessation, alcohol, healthy weight, healthy eating and physical exercise is now available. The bulletin is produced by Lancashire and South Cumbria NHS FT Library staff. If you cannot access any of the articles included in the bulletin please contact academic.library@lscft.nhs.uk.
Category: Smoking Cessation
Public Health
Current Awareness
Are UK health systems dementia ready?: Comparing dementia policy across the four nations of the UK.
Future Health; 2024.
(A dementia diagnosis remains one of the most feared by the public. The potential arrival of new treatments creates an opportunity to improve patient outcomes. But to do so will require health systems to be dementia ready quickly. Urgent action is now needed to make them so.)
Freely available online
When I’m 64: A strategy to tackle poverty before state pension age: summary report.
Fabian Society; 2024.
(The UK is facing a hidden poverty crisis among 60 to 65-year-olds. Since 2010, no significant measures to ameliorate the impact of the rising pension age have been introduced. This report looks at the roots of the problem and presents a strategy for solving it.)
Freely available online
The future for health after Brexit.
Nuffield Trust; 2024.
(This report tracks issues that are important for the delivery of health and care in the UK to understand how our changing relationship with Europe is changing the picture for the NHS and health more generally, and what the prospects are for the future. This latest report shows that global medicine shortages are being felt particularly acutely in the UK, and the country’s reliance on migration as a source of health and social care staff is intensifying.)
Freely available online
Internet Watch Foundation Annual Report 2023: #BehindTheScreens.
Internet Watch Foundation (IWF); 2024.
(IWF works to end child sexual abuse imagery online. The annual report contains 2023 trends and data, and case studies and provides some analysis on the distribution of child sexual abuse images and videos on the internet. The new data reveals thousands of images and videos of three to six year old children who have been groomed, coerced and tricked into sexually abusive acts, are now being found on the open internet.)
On the path to ending smoking: using new funding.
Action on Smoking and Health (ASH); 2024.
(With a major opportunity to reset our local strategies and make rapid progress towards ending smoking for all populations this paper has been developed by ASH in partnership with DsPH and Humber and North Yorkshire’s Centre for Tobacco Control Excellence to support local decision making in spending new funding to address smoking. It has been reviewed and endorsed by the Association of Directors of Public Health.)
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Public Health Updates
Current Awareness
Source: KnowledgeShare
Cold at home: How winter cost of living pressures continue to impact older people.
Age UK; 2024.
(This report from highlights concerns about the ongoing impact of the cost-of-living crisis on older people who are not receiving support from the benefits system. Many of these people are likely to be eligible for support but will still be missing out for a variety of reasons. Government figures show that an estimated 800,000 pensioners are eligible for Pension Credit but are missing out on this much-needed support.)
Freely available online
Alcohol dependence prevalence in England.
Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID); 2024.
(Estimates of the number of alcohol dependent adults in each local authority in England. Health commissioners can use this information to: estimate the number of alcohol dependent adults in their area and the number who need specialist treatment; and plan and improve alcohol treatment services.)
Freely available online
We’ve only just begun: Action to improve young people’s mental health, education and employment.
Resolution Foundation; 2024.
(This publication – the final report of a three-year research programme funded by the Health Foundation – explores the relationship between young people’s mental health and work outcomes, and how policy-makers should respond. It finds that young people are now more likely to experience a common mental disorder (CMD) than any other age group – a complete reversal compared with two decades ago, when they were least likely to.) Freely available online
Mental health 360.
The King’s Fund; 2024.
(Mental health 360 aims to provide a ‘360-degree’ review of mental health care in England. It focuses on eight core areas including prevalence, access and the mental health workforce.)
Freely available online
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Public Health
Current Awareness Updates
Source: KnowledgeShare
We’ve only just begun: Action to improve young people’s mental health, education and employment.
Resolution Foundation; 2024.
(This report is the culmination of a three-year research programme exploring the relationship between the mental health and work outcomes of young people. The research was funded by the Health Foundation and is part of their broader Young people’s future health inquiry. It finds that more than 1 in 3 (34%) of young people aged 18–24 reported symptoms that indicated they were experiencing a common mental health disorder like depression, anxiety or bipolar disorder.)
Cold at home: How winter cost of living pressures continue to impact older people and what more needs to happen to support them.
Age UK; 2024.
(This report highlights concerns about the ongoing impact of the cost-of-living crisis on older people who are not receiving support from the benefits system. Many of these people are likely to be eligible for support but will still be missing out for a variety of reasons. Government figures show that an estimated 800,000 pensioners are eligible for Pension Credit but are missing out on this much-needed support.)
Reducing the harm from illegal drugs.
House of Commons Committee of Public Accounts; 2024.
(In response to Dame Carol Black’s review in December 2021, the From Harm to Hope strategy was launched. Two years on from when this strategy’s implementation began, overall progress has been mixed. This report outlines progress made and gives recommendations on next steps for the cross-departmental Joint Combating Drugs Unit in implementing this strategy.)
What patients want: a vision for the NHS in 2030.
Healthwatch England; 2024.
(Using experiences of care from more than 10 million people collected over the past 10 years, Healthwatch sets out where they think the NHS should be in six years and how it can get there.)
Smoking profile: March 2024 update.
Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID); 2024.
(An overview of the extent of smoking, smoking-related harm and the measures being taken to reduce this harm at a local level in England.)
Health hubs: A community-centred prevention initiative to address health inequalities.
NHS Providers; 2024.
(Prevention is a crucial part of the NHS’s approach to improving population health and tackling health inequalities. One community-centred prevention initiative to address health inequalities is the creation of health hubs. This long read explores what health hubs are, how they can improve access for groups facing health inequalities, their broader social and economic benefits, and the role of trust leaders in their development.)
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Public Health
Current Awareness
Girls’ Attitudes Survey 2022.
Girlguiding; 2022.
https://www.girlguiding.org.uk/girls-making-change/girls-attitudes-survey/
(This 2022 survey asks girls and young women how they feel about their daily lives and society after the pandemic, their safety, their experiences of sexism and stereotypes, their involvement in social and community action and their mental health. To delve deeper into these findings, we’ve reported on a regional basis for the first time.)
Tracking the price of the lowest-cost grocery items, UK, experimental analysis: April 2021 to September 2022.
Office for National Statistics (ONS); 2022.
https://www.ons.gov.uk/economy/inflationandpriceindices/articles/trackingthelowestcostgroceryitemsukexperimentalanalysis/april2021toseptember2022
(How the prices of the lowest-cost products for 30 everyday items have changed since April 2021. The figures highlight how poorer families are bearing the brunt of the cost of living crisis, with prices for some budget grocery items soaring far ahead of the official 10.1% rate of inflation, which is at a 40-year high. Pasta prices rose 60%, tea jumped 65% and chips went up 39%. There were also large price increases for other everyday low-cost items including milk, biscuits and bread.)
BReATHE interventions (Beating Regional Asthma Through Health Education):an innovative approach to children’s asthma care in the North East and North Cumbria, UK: an interventional study.
Townshend J. Archives of Disease in Childhood 2022;107(5):500-504.
(BReATHE (Beating Regional Asthma Through Health Education) is a new, innovative approach to improving asthma care and outcomes for CYP (children and young people) across the North East and North Cumbria, co-designed with patients, families, local authorities and health professionals and guided by the NRAD recommendations. The impact on the unplanned hospital admission rates in children due to asthma in Newcastle-upon-Tyne hospitals is highlighted.) Accessible with Open Athens
People with complex emotional needs and their views of community mental health services.
The Mental Elf; 2022.
https://www.nationalelfservice.net/mental-health/personality-disorder/complex-emotional-needs-community-mental-health/
(Emmeline Lagunes Cordoba summarises a co-produced qualitative interview study on service user perspectives of community mental health services for people with complex emotional needs.)
Cannabis use in college: genetic predispositions less influential than social environment.
The Mental Elf; 2022.
https://www.nationalelfservice.net/mental-health/substance-misuse/cannabis-use-in-college/
(Sally Turner reviews a recent study exploring cannabis use in college, which provides useful evidence relating to how universities could promote a sense of community, belonging and support to students who use cannabis.)
Library Newsletter
October 2022
The October edition of the Library Newsletter is now available to view here.
Please feel free to download and share with your colleagues and/or department.
If you would like to see any additional features on our newsletter or have any queries regarding information featured in this month’s newsletter, please get in touch by emailing: academic.library@lscft.nhs.uk
Public Health
Current Awareness Updates
ASH brief for local authorities on youth vaping.
Action on Smoking and Health (ASH); 2022.
(This short briefing is to help local authorities respond to growing concerns about youth vaping in their communities. It is primarily for public health officials and trading standards officers, but also sets out important information for councillors, schools, parents and retailers. Links to further information are also provided.)
Quantifying health inequalities in England.
The Health Foundation; 2022.
(Results show health inequalities starting at a very early age and continuing to develop through adulthood. The early ages and changing structure of health inequalities reinforces the notion that nothing short of a joined-up policy approach can address the wide and complex health inequalities we see in England. We believe this new presentation of health inequalities shows powerfully that investing in the circumstances in which people live will help people stay healthier for longer.)
Advertising ban was linked to lower purchases of unhealthy food and drink.
NIHR Evidence; 2022.
(This is the first study to look at the implementation of the TfL advertising ban. It found that advertising restrictions are feasible, and could have a meaningful impact on population health. The findings could encourage governments and local authorities to consider similar policies to prevent obesity. The TfL restrictions were part of a childhood obesity strategy, but they could influence the whole population.)
Commission on Young Lives,
Centre for Mental Health; 2022.
(Alongside the Children & Young People’s Mental Health Coalition, Centre for Mental Health have co-authored the fourth report from the Commission on Young Lives on rethinking mental health services for vulnerable young people. It reviews the latest data with a focus on those who are at higher risk, including those from racialised communities, lower socioeconomic backgrounds, young people with SEND, those in contact with the criminal justice and care systems, as well as LGBTQI+ communities.)
Domestic abuse and mental health: the amplified risks created during the pandemic.
Hisham I N. BJPsych Advances 2022;28(5):316-327.
[This article focuses on how COVID-19 and its anticipated aftermath exacerbate the risk factors for domestic abuse in the general population and discusses clinical implications for mental health practitioners in the UK. It aims to provide a point of learning based on previous disease outbreaks and recessions, with a focus on specific factors, such as unemployment and alcohol misuse, and how these contribute to increasing incidence and severity of abuse and how to mitigate these for patients…] Open Athens account required.
Public Health
Current Awareness Updates
Tackling mental health disparities.
Centre for Mental Health; 2022.
(The pandemic is accompanied by a rise in demand for mental health services. Even before the pandemic, mental ill health was one of the most prevalent forms of illness. Inequalities mean that while it is true that anyone can experience mental illness, the risks are much higher for certain groups who experience structural discrimination and disadvantage. Tackling mental health disparities shares ten evidence-based actions that the Government could take in the forthcoming white paper.)
Grassroots participation in sport and physical activity.
National Audit Office (NAO); 2022.
(This report examines how far the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport and Sport England have achieved value for money in their spending on grassroots sport and physical activity amongst those aged 16 and over, and have supported value for money in the system-wide spending across government. We consider the decade since the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, with a particular focus on the period since 2015, when government launched its Sporting Future strategy.)
Menopause and the workplace: how to enable fulfilling working lives: government response Department for work and pensions; July 2022 This report lays out the government’s response to the recommendations made in the independent report Menopause and the workplace, published in November 2021. This report aimed to bring about comprehensive change and support for those experiencing the menopause, in key areas of government policy, employer practice, and wider societal and financial change.
The rollout of the Covid-19 vaccine programme in England House of Commons Comittee of Public Accounts; July 2022 This report calls for efforts to be redoubled to reach those not vaccinated or fully vaccinated as it warns that nearly three million adults in England are unvaccinated against Covid-19. It finds that comparatively low vaccination rates persist in many vulnerable groups and have even dropped further for some. It calls for NHS England and UKHSA to urgently evaluate which methods are most effective for increasing uptake, including fresh approaches to tackle the persistent low uptake observed in some ethnic groups.
Creating a smoke-free South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw integrated care system NHS Confederation; June 2022 This case study details a smoking cessation programme in South Yorkshire and Bassetlaw that aims to saves lives, decrease health inequalities and reduce hospital re-admissions by making effective treatment for tobacco addiction part of the routine care offered in hospitals.
Public Health
Current Awareness Updates
Online support for family carers of people with dementia: what works for their mental health?
The Mental Elf; 2022.
https://www.nationalelfservice.net/populations-and-settings/family-carers/online-support-family-carers-dementia/
(Clarissa Giebel reflects on a recent systematic review which investigates online support for family carers of people with dementia.)
The Khan review: making smoking obsolete.
Office for Health Improvement & Disparities (OHID); 2022.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-khan-review-making-smoking-obsolete
(Independent review by Dr Javed Khan into the government’s ambition to make England smokefree by 2030. The review makes 15 recommendations for government to achieve a smokefree society.)
Safer by Design: How can collaboration help design safer gambling?
Demos; 2022.
https://demos.co.uk/project/safer-by-design-how-can-collaboration-help-design-safer-gambling/ (Demos and Playtech hosted two roundtables that brought together those in the industry with gambling experts from academia, charities and policy. The first looked at the role policy and regulation can play, and sought ideas and input on how the gambling sector could learn from other areas. The second looked at gambling as a health issue, and how stakeholders might draw on progress made in other areas such as digital resilience and wellbeing.)
State of the Nation: A comprehensive, retrospective view of NHS data.
Wilmington Healthcare; 2022.
https://wilmingtonhealthcare.com/state-of-the-nation/
(This report looks at key data trends over the course of the pandemic, establishing how new trends in health care activity, patient numbers, disease burden, NHS operational practice, prescribing and regional variation have emerged. The report groups the data into six key areas: hospital episode statistics; demographic segmentation; therapy area analysis; referral to treatment; prescribing insights; and regional insights.)
Mental health and loneliness: the relationship across life stages.
Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport; 2022.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/mental-health-and-loneliness-the-relationship-across-life-stages
(This report presents the findings from a qualitative study exploring the experiences of loneliness among those who had experienced a mental health condition. Previous research has shown there is a link between experiences of loneliness and poor mental health. The DCMS commissioned the National Centre for Social Research (NatCen) to explore this issue across four key life stages as part of developing the evidence base for work on tackling loneliness.)
Public Health
Current Awareness Updates
Monkeypox cases reported in the WHO European Region.
World Health Organization (WHO); 2022.
(Links to 2 reports: Monkeypox – United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; and Monkeypox – Key facts. While the number of cases in the Region is still relatively small, what is concerning is that some of the cases appear to have been acquired in the Region without a link to travel to countries where monkeypox is known to be endemic. Many cases have been detected in clinics specialized in sexually transmitted infections.)
Mental Health Awareness Week 2022: Loneliness.
House of Commons Library; 2022.
(How does loneliness affect our mental health and what the Government has done to address the issue?)
Vaccine uptake in the general population.
National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE); 2022.
(This guideline aims to increase the uptake of all vaccines provided on the NHS routine UK immunisation schedule by everyone who is eligible. It supports the aims of the NHS Long Term Plan, which includes actions to improve immunisation coverage by GPs (including the changes to vaccinations and immunisations detailed in the 2021/2022 and 2022/23 GP contracts) and support a narrowing of health inequalities.)
The over-representation of Black people as restricted patients in secure hospitals. Nuffield Trust chart of the week.
Nuffield Trust; 2022.
(People with severe mental health problems who are in contact with the criminal justice system can be held as restricted patients in hospitals if they have been assessed as needing treatment. Miranda Davies takes a closer look at new data that shows that 16% of restricted patients in hospital are Black or Black British, despite only making up 3% of the general population.)
Smoking bans in prisons improve health and reduce medications.
NIHR Evidence; 2022.
(This study found that the smoking ban did not affect dispensing for mental health conditions which suggests that it did not increase levels of depression. However, the researchers caution that there may have been an impact on mental health since, in the interviews, some prisoners reported raised anxiety levels. Improvements in respiratory health were especially marked. Removing second-hand smoke from prisons also improved working conditions for staff.)