Publications by authors named "Eoin Killackey"

Having a job is an important component of recovery from mental illness and a source of economic, social, and health benefits. Most people experiencing severe mental illness (SMI) want to work but are excluded from employment opportunities. Employment specialists (ESs) working in individual placement and support (IPS) teams help persons struggling with SMI obtain competitive employment.

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Article Synopsis
  • The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a notable rise in mental health issues among final-year secondary school students, disrupting their social and educational milestones as they transition to higher education.
  • A study analyzed application data from before and during the pandemic to assess the increase in requests for mental health-related special consideration, revealing a 38% rise in applications during the pandemic.
  • Findings highlighted that the most significant increases were in regions affected by lockdowns and natural disasters, particularly among Year 12 students and those with other special needs, emphasizing the need for a robust mental health support system in higher education.
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  • Adolescents aged 15 to 19 face significant mental health challenges, exacerbated by social exclusion, which makes it harder to access care and support.
  • A study of nearly 18,800 young Australians revealed that although many recognized their need for mental health assistance, only about 58% sought help, with housing issues increasing help-seeking behaviors while relational and employment problems decreased them.
  • Common barriers faced by these adolescents included stigma, cost, and uncertainty about where to find help, with a notable preference for face-to-face support when seeking assistance.
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Aims: Young people with first-episode psychosis (FEP) or at ultra-high risk (UHR) of psychosis often have lower vocational engagement than their peers. This study examines the effect of treatment in early intervention for psychosis services in Australia on engagement in education and employment.

Methods: This is a naturalistic sample of young people aged 12-25 with FEP ( = 1574) and UHR ( = 1515), accessing treatment in the Early Psychosis (hEP) programme.

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Objective: To examine the evidence and practice of antipsychotic dose reduction from the lens of biomedical ethics (specifically principlism) to support evidence-based practice and patient choice and self-determination.

Methods: An overview of the evidence from randomized controlled trials of antipsychotic dose reduction versus maintenance is presented. This is followed by a theoretical examination of the four key biomedical ethical principles of autonomy, nonmaleficence, beneficence, and justice and how they apply in the case of antipsychotic dose reduction.

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Objective: The current guidelines recommend continuation of antipsychotic medication for a minimum of at least 1 year following a first episode of psychosis (FEP). There have been several trials investigating whether early dose reduction or cessation leads to improved functional outcomes. The aim of this study was to explore the experience of consenting to and participating in a randomized controlled trial (RCT) of antipsychotic medication cessation.

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Aim: Educational attainment is consistently highly valued by young people with mental ill health, yet maintenance and completion of education is a challenge. This paper reports on the implementation of a supported education programme for youth mental health.

Methods: Between 10 October 2019 and 10 October 2020, a supported education programme was delivered within primary and tertiary youth mental health services.

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Background: Individual placement and support (IPS) is an evidence-based practice that helps individuals with mental illness gain and retain employment. IPS was implemented for young adults at a municipality level through a cross-sectoral collaboration between specialist mental healthcare, primary mental healthcare, and the government funded employment service (NAV). We investigated whether IPS implementation had a causal effect on employment outcomes for all young adults in receipt of a temporary health-related rehabilitation (work assessment allowance, WAA) welfare benefit, measured at the societal level compared to municipalities that did not implement IPS.

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Article Synopsis
  • - The study tests a new mental health care model called 'highly personalised and measurement-based care' (HP&MBC) for adolescents and young adults with mood disorders, aiming to improve education, employment, and social functioning compared to standard care.
  • - It involves a 24-month trial with 1500 participants aged 15-25 who will be randomly assigned to either HP&MBC or standard care, with social and occupational functioning evaluated after 12 months.
  • - The trial is ethically approved, and results will be shared through various channels while ensuring participant data remains confidential.
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Aim: Vitamin D deficiency is prevalent in people with established psychotic disorders, but less is known about vitamin D levels in people with first-episode psychosis (FEP). This study aimed to determine the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in people with FEP and identify the factors associated with vitamin D status.

Methods: This was a prospective cohort study nested within a randomized controlled trial, which included 37 young people with an FEP with minimal antipsychotic medication exposure.

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Introduction: There is limited research into informal support processes amongst young people supporting a peer through a traumatic event and how this process occurs specifically within a rural setting.

Objective: The aim of this research was to understand how the contextual environment impacts on the personal and interpersonal processes of rural-based young people supporting a peer who experienced a traumatic event.

Design: Qualitative interviews were conducted with 22 young people (aged 14-19), who resided in Gippsland, Victoria, Australia.

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Background: There is limited research on how supporting a peer through a traumatic event is experienced by adolescents. The aim of this research was to understand the personal and interpersonal processes of adolescents supporting a peer who experienced a traumatic event based on youth definitions.

Method: In-depth qualitative interviews were conducted with 22 adolescents aged 14-19, residing in Gippsland, Victoria, Australia.

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Objectives: Compulsory mental health care includes compulsory hospitalisation and outpatient commitment with medication treatment without consent. Uncertain evidence of the effects of compulsory care contributes to large geographical variations and a controversy on its use. Some argue that compulsion can rarely be justified and should be reduced to an absolute minimum, while others claim compulsion can more frequently be justified.

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Background: Digital interventions have potential applications in promoting long-term recovery and improving outcomes in first-episode psychosis (FEP). This study aimed to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of Horyzons, a novel online social therapy to support young people aged 16-27 years following discharge from FEP services, compared with treatment as usual (TAU) from a healthcare sector and a societal perspective.

Study Design: A cost-effectiveness analysis (CEA), based on the change in social functioning, and a cost-utility analysis (CUA) using quality-adjusted life years were undertaken alongside a randomized controlled trial.

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Objectives: The field of early psychosis has undergone considerable expansion over the last few decades and has a strong evidence base of effectiveness. Like all areas of healthcare, however, early psychosis services need to more consistently deliver higher quality care to achieve better outcomes for patients and families. A national clinical research infrastructure is urgently required to enable the sector to deliver the highest quality care and expand and translate evidence more quickly and efficiently.

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Objective: Eating disorders (EDs) have their onset most frequently in adolescence and young adulthood. Treatment for EDs lack efficacy, and we have made little progress in improving outcomes for patients over the course of the last several decades. As with other mental health conditions, early intervention may greatly improve outcomes, yet, little research exists in this area.

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Aim: To describe the implementation and outcomes of a combined individual placement and support (IPS) and vocational peer work program for young people with mental ill-health.

Methods: This uncontrolled pilot study co-located IPS workers and vocational peer workers within two integrated youth mental health services (provided to clients aged 15-25 years old). Employment outcomes included job placements (working 15 hours or more per week in a paid competitive job in the open employment market) and sustained employment (employed for at least 26 weeks).

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Background: Factors that contribute to the early mortality observed in psychotic disorders, specifically obesity, smoking and sedentary behaviour, occur early in the disorder.

Aims: We aimed to determine whether the integration of a physical health nurse in the care of young people with first-episode psychosis could prevent clinically significant weight gain (≥7% body weight). Secondary outcomes included rates of smoking, metabolic syndrome and sedentary behaviour.

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Individual Placement and Support (IPS) is an evidence-based supported employment program that helps people with severe mental illness to achieve steady, meaningful employment in competitive mainstream jobs. The purpose of this study is to investigate the impact of Covid-19 restrictions on IPS service delivery in Northern Norway between March and October 2020. In Norway, IPS is in the early stages of full-scale implementation and is therefore potentially sensitive to external stressors such as the Covid-19 pandemic.

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