Niamh McNamara

Transition from child and adolescent to adult mental health services in the Republic of Ireland: an investigation of process and operational practice

Ensuring a seamless transition from child to adult mental health services poses challenges for services worldwide. This is an important process in the ongoing care of young people with mental illness; therefore, it is incumbent on all countries to probe their individual structures to assess the quality of mental health service delivery to this vulnerable cohort. To date, there have been no published studies on the transition from Child to Adult Mental Health Services in the Republic of Ireland. To this end, a nationwide survey of transition policies of community mental health teams in both services was conducted in order to compare best practice guidelines for transition with current process and experience in clinical practice.

The impact of self-reported pubertal status and pubertal timing on disordered eating in Irish adolescents.

This paper considers the impact of pubertal status and pubertal timing on disordered eating in Irish adolescents. 1190 boys and 1841 girls completed the Eating Attitudes Test-26, the Eating Disorder Inventory-III and self-report measures of pubertal status and pubertal timing. Regarding pubertal status, greater maturity in girls was associated with increased overall eating concerns, higher drive for thinness and higher levels of body dissatisfaction. In boys, greater maturity was associated with lower drive for thinness and lower body dissatisfaction. Regarding pubertal timing, early-maturing girls showed the most eating concerns, the highest drive for thinness, scored highest on bulimic symptoms and were the most dissatisfied with their bodies. In contrast, late-maturing boys had more bulimic symptoms and more dissatisfaction with their bodies than on-time peers. The findings suggest that puberty itself is a risk factor for disordered eating for girls rather than boys; however, pubertal timing is a risk factor for both.

'Everyone here wants everyone else to get better': The role of social identity in eating disorder recovery.

Retention of a positively valued illness identity contributes to poor outcomes for individuals with eating disorders (EDs). Consequently, dis-identification from the illness identity and the adoption of a recovery identity are vital for successful recovery. While social identity processes have been shown to influence ED maintenance, their role in recovery is rarely considered. This study explores how a sense of shared identity helps individuals with EDs manage their condition and promotes recovery. Transcripts from 18 online support sessions involving 75 participants were thematically analysed. Our findings suggest that the illness identity initially operates as a social identity that forms the basis for connections with similar others. For those wishing to recover, identity-based support is then perceived to be more effective than that found outside the group. Online interactions also facilitate construction of a new shared recovery identity which promotes a shift from the illness identity as a primary source of definition and endorses group norms of illness disclosure and treatment engagement. While in the clinical literature, ED identity is seen as problematic and interventions are targeted at challenging an individuals self-concept, we suggest that interventions could instead harness identity resources to support a transition to a recovery identity.

Survey examining the views of Adult Psychiatry Consultants and Senior Registrars regarding ADHD

OBJECTIVES Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) persists into adulthood in ∼2/3 of patients, yet services for adults are lacking in Ireland. This may involve negative attitudes and beliefs as to the validity of ADHD or lack of knowledge and training in its treatment. The objectives of this study are to explore the views of Adult Psychiatrists regarding ADHD knowledge and the treatment options available and pursued in Ireland. METHODS A questionnaire was constructed based on the stated aims of the study, and was either posted, emailed or handed to 400 Consultants and Senior Registrars throughout the Republic of Ireland between February and December 2011. A total of 92 questionnaires were returned (23%); one was excluded from analysis due to insufficient information entered by the respondent. RESULTS Seventy-five per cent of respondents correctly estimated the prevalence rates of adult ADHD to be under 3%, but stated it is currently under-diagnosed (77%). Seventy-four per cent indicated that Adult ADHD should be a diagnostic category in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, 5th Edition (DSM V). Sixty-six per cent of respondents were willing to accept referrals of childhood ADHD for ongoing care and a similar number for new ADHD assessments (61%). Less than half (42%) surveyed had actually diagnosed ADHD and of these, only 33% felt confident in managing ADHD in their patients. CONCLUSIONS Although there is a general willingness to offer services for new and existing ADHD cases and a recognition that Adult ADHD is valid and under-diagnosed, the low confidence levels when treating ADHD and the perception of under-diagnosis suggests a role for further training and links between child and adult services.

The Psychometric Approach to User Satisfaction Measurement

Measuring user satisfaction is an important activity for Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) professionals and there exists a plethora of instruments for this purpose. The aim of this paper is to propose three criteria that practitioners can use when evaluating questionnaire quality prior to selecting an instrument for use in an evaluation. These criteria are: (1) the presence of a clear conceptualization of satisfaction based on a sound theoretical framework, (2) the use of the psychometric method in the questionnaire development process and (3) the extent to which the questionnaire developers have considered the usefulness of the final instrument in an evaluation setting. Two recently published satisfaction questionnaire are discussed in light of these three criteria.

Transitioning from child and adolescent mental health services with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder in Ireland: Case note review

In a context of international concern about early adult mental health service provision, this study identifies characteristics and service outcomes of young people with attention‐deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) reaching the child and adolescent mental health service (CAMHS) transition boundary (TB) in Ireland. The iTRACK study invited all 60 CAMHS teams in Ireland to participate; 8 teams retrospectively identified clinical case files for 62 eligible young people reaching the CAMHS TB in all 4 Health Service Executive Regions. A secondary case note analysis identified characteristics, co‐morbidities, referral and service outcomes for iTRACK cases with ADHD (n = 20). Two‐thirds of young people with ADHD were on psychotropic medication and half had mental health co‐morbidities, yet none was directly transferred to public adult mental health services (AMHS) at the TB. Nearly half were retained in CAMHS, for an average of over a year; most either disengaged from services (40%) and/or actively refused transfer to AMHS (35%) at or after the TB. There was a perception by CAMHS clinicians that adult services did not accept ADHD cases or lacked relevant service/expertise. Despite high rates of medication use and co‐morbid mental health difficulties, there appears to be a complete absence of referral to publicly available AMHS for ADHD youth transitioning from CAMHS in Ireland. More understanding of obstacles and optimum service configuration is essential to ensure that care is both available and accessible to young people with ADHD.

Eating disorder literacy and stigmatising attitudes towards anorexia, bulimia and binge eating disorder among adolescents

ABSTRACT Little research has investigated adolescents’ understanding of eating disorders (EDs) or attitudes towards people affected by EDs. This impedes the development of targeted health promotion interventions. In the current study, 290 adolescents viewed a vignette depicting a target with either anorexia nervosa, bulimia nervosa, binge eating disorder, Depression or Type 1 Diabetes. Subsequent questionnaires assessed understanding of and attitudes towards the disorder described. Adolescents recognised the symptoms of depression significantly more frequently than any ED. Relative to depression and Type 1 diabetes, participants held targets with EDs more personally responsible for their illness and ascribed them more negative personality characteristics. The data revealed a particularly unfavourable view of binge eating disorder, which was conceptualised as a failure of self-discipline rather than a medical condition. The results confirm previous findings that EDs are more stigmatised than other mental or physical health conditions and extend the findings to an adolescent cohort.

The importance of social identities in the management of and recovery from ‘Diabulimia’: a qualitative exploration

Introduction A significant barrier to recovery for individuals with co-morbid eating disorders and type 1 diabetes is the way in which group members self-categorise. Nonetheless, identity issues are neglected during the recovery process. The aim of this paper is to explore how group memberships (and the associated identities) both contribute to and hinder recovery in this cohort. Method Transcripts from five online focus groups with 13 members of an online support group for individuals with ‘Diabulimia’ were thematically analysed. Results Findings suggested that those with whom one shares a recovery identity can be well placed to provide psychological resources necessary for successful recovery although such connections can be damaging if group norms are not managed. Members recognised that other important relationships (including family and friends and health professionals) are also key to recovery; these other group memberships (and the associated identities) can be facilitated through the recovery identity group membership, which allows for external validation of the recovery identity, provides encouragement to disclose the illness to supportive others, and provides information to facilitate positive service interactions. Conclusions While clinical interventions typically focus on eliminating disordered behaviours, we suggest that these should also include strengthening important group memberships that promote recovery.