Supporting physical activity through co-production in people with severe mental ill health (SPACES): protocol for a randomised controlled feasibility trial.

Background: Severe mental ill health (SMI) includes schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and schizoaffective disorder and is associated with premature deaths when compared to people without SMI. Over 70% of those deaths are attributed to preventable health conditions, which have the potential to be positively affected by the adoption of healthy behaviours, such as physical activity. People with SMI are generally less active than those without and face unique barriers to being physically active.

Towards the standardization of physical activity programs for severe mental ill health: A survey of current practice across 54 mental health trusts in England.

Aims: While physical activity (PA) is recommended in the treatment of severe mental illness (SMI), there are no standardized processes for implementing PA in mental healthcare, and the extent to which PA programs have been implemented is unknown. Therefore, we sought to describe usual care in terms of the provision of PA in the National Health Service (NHS) mental health trusts in England for people with SMI.

Methods: We invited all NHS Mental Health Trusts across England to participate in a bespoke survey.

Physical activity interventions for inpatients in secure mental health settings: what works, for whom, in what circumstances and why? A protocol for a realist synthesis.

Introduction: The physical health of individuals with severe mental illness (SMI) is a cause for concern. While the purpose of inpatient mental health settings is rehabilitation and treatment, the physical health of hospitalised patients commonly deteriorates. Physical activity (PA) has been identified as an appropriate intervention to help improve the psychological and physical health of inpatients.

Evaluation of the uptake, retention and effectiveness of exercise referral schemes for the management of mental health conditions in primary care: a systematic review.

Background: Exercise is a recognised element of health-care management of mental-health conditions. In primary health care, it has been delivered through exercise referral schemes (ERS). The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has highlighted uncertainty regarding the effectiveness of ERS in improving exercise participation and health outcomes among those referred for mental-health reasons.

Integrating physical activity into the treatment of depression in adults: A qualitative enquiry.

Around 246 million people globally suffer from depression. Physical activity (PA) can reduce the risk of depression by 30% and is recognised as an effective treatment for mild-to-moderate depression (MMD). However, a high proportion of patients with MMD are currently inactive and the implementation of PA as an adherent treatment for MMD is not well understood.

Understanding the experience of initiating community-based group physical activity by people with serious mental illness: A systematic review using a meta-ethnographic approach.

Background: People living with serious mental illness (SMI) experience debilitating symptoms that worsen their physical health and quality of life. Regular physical activity (PA) may bring symptomatic improvements and enhance wellbeing. When undertaken in community-based group settings, PA may yield additional benefits such as reduced isolation.

A scoping study of interventions to increase the uptake of physical activity (PA) amongst individuals with mild-to-moderate depression (MMD).

Background: Depression is the largest contributor to disease burden globally. The evidence favouring physical activity as a treatment for mild-to-moderate depression is extensive and relatively uncontested. It is unclear, however, how to increase an uptake of physical activity amongst individuals experiencing mild-to-moderate depression.

Realism and Pragmatism in a mixed methods study.

Aim: A discussion of how adopting a Realist rather than Pragmatist methodology affects the conduct of mixed methods research.

Background: Mixed methods approaches are now extensively employed in nursing and other healthcare research. At the same time, realist methodology is increasingly used as philosophical underpinning of research in these areas.

Family planning decisions for parents of children with a rare genetic condition: A scoping review.

Expansion of newborn screening programmes increases the complexity around reproductive choices, both in terms of the increased number of parents faced with making reproductive decisions from the earliest days of their affected child's life, and the number of conditions for which such decisions have to be made. We conducted a scoping review to explore: (i) reproductive decision-making among parents of children with recessive genetic conditions; and, (ii) the involvement of healthcare services in facilitating and supporting those decisions. Systematic search processes involved seven bibliographic databases, citation, and grey literature searches.

Parental Experiences of Raising a Child With Medium Chain Acyl-CoA Dehydrogenase Deficiency.

Newborn screening enabling early diagnosis of medium chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency (MCADD) has dramatically improved health outcomes in children with MCADD. Achieving those outcomes depends on effective management by parents. Understanding parental management strategies and associated anxieties and concerns is needed to inform provision of appropriate care and support.

Financial capability, health and disability.

Background: It has been suggested that improving people's ability to deal with their finances, their financial capability, will directly improve their wellbeing and indirectly their health. To this end, financial capability initiatives have been funded by statutory and charitable health bodies, sometimes as part of a practice termed 'social prescribing'.

Discussion: This paper examines financial capability from the perspective of the Capability Approach to welfare and justice.

Developing a model to estimate the potential impact of municipal investment on city health.

This article summarizes a process which exemplifies the potential impact of municipal investment on the burden of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in city populations. We report on Developing an evidence-based approach to city public health planning and investment in Europe (DECiPHEr), a project part funded by the European Union. It had twin objectives: first, to develop and validate a vocational educational training package for policy makers and political decision takers; second, to use this opportunity to iterate a robust and user-friendly investment tool for maximizing the public health impact of 'mainstream' municipal policies, programs and investments.