Early career psychiatrists' perceptions of and training experience in electroconvulsive therapy: A cross-sectional survey across Europe.

Background: Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is a safe and effective treatment for several major psychiatric conditions, including treatment-resistant depression, mania, and schizophrenia; nevertheless, its use remains controversial. Despite its availability in some European countries, ECT is still rarely used in others. This study aims to investigate the experiences and attitudes of early career psychiatrists (ECPs) across Europe towards ECT and to examine how their exposure to ECT influences their perceptions.

Attitudes towards mental health professionals in social media: infodemiology study.

Background: Negative perceptions of mental health professionals can deter individuals from seeking mental healthcare. Given the high burden of mental health globally, it is essential to understand attitudes towards mental health professionals. Social media platforms like Twitter/X provide valuable insights into the views of the general population.

Volunteering across contexts: comparing attitudes toward volunteering with prisoners and people with mental illness.

Introduction: Volunteering represents an opportunity for social transformation and social cohesion. Portugal is one of the European countries with fewer volunteering initiatives. Generally, society distances itself from individuals with mental illness and prison inmates, therefore, stigma becomes one of the barriers to social reintegration.

Breaking barriers in the career development of women in academic psychiatry.

Academic psychiatry is essential for advancing mental health understanding and treatments. However, women encounter more obstacles hindering their progress in academia than men. This Editorial aims to highlight these obstacles and propose strategies to address them, advocating for a more supportive environment for women psychiatrists' ongoing growth and development.

Evaluating a volunteer 'Health Champions' intervention supporting people with severe mental illness to manage their physical health: feasibility hybrid randomised controlled trial.

Background: People with severe mental illness (SMI) have worse physical health than the general population. There is evidence that support from volunteers can help the mental health of people with SMI, but little evidence regarding the support they can give for physical health.

Aims: To evaluate the feasibility of an intervention where volunteer 'Health Champions' support people with SMI in managing their physical health.

Public perception of psychiatry, psychology and mental health professionals: a 15-year analysis.

Background: X (previously known as "Twitter") serves as a platform for open discussions on mental health, providing an avenue for scrutinizing public perspectives regarding psychiatry, psychology and their associated professionals.

Objective: To analyze the conversations happening on X about psychiatrists, psychologists, and their respective disciplines to understand how the public perception of these professionals and specialties has evolved over the last 15 years.

Methods: We collected and analyzed all tweets posted in English or Spanish between 2007 and 2023 referring to psychiatry, psychology, neurology, mental health, psychiatrist, psychologist, or neurologist using advance topic modelling and sentiment analysis.

Psychotherapy training in postgraduate psychiatry training in Nigeria - Are we doing enough?

Introduction: Nigeria, with an estimated 40 million people living with mental disorders, faces a critical shortage of psychiatrists to address the significant burden. Despite psychotherapy being integral to psychiatric training, it lacks structure, consistency and adequate supervision. This is alarming, particularly given the substantial demand for specialized psychotherapeutic support among those with mental illness.

Barriers and facilitators of the reporting by family doctors of cases of domestic violence - a qualitative study across Portugal.

Background: Domestic violence (DV) is a serious and prevalent public health problem with devastating consequences for the victims and their families. Whilst the number of cases reported to the authorities has risen in recent years, many victims still chose not to present a complaint. In Portugal, to address this, DV became a public crime.

Workforce migration and brain drain - A nationwide cross-sectional survey of early career psychiatrists in Nigeria.

Background: Nigeria's shortage of psychiatrists is exacerbated due to health worker migration.

Aim: This study explores migration experiences and tendencies among early-career psychiatrists in Nigeria.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey covering Nigeria's six geopolitical zones, using a 61-item online questionnaire assessing short-term mobility, long-term migration experiences and migration attitudes.

Breaking down barriers: promoting journals beyond the page with open access journal clubs.

In 2020, during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, the () established a series of free online teaching sessions called Journal Clubs. Their educational purpose is two-fold: (a) to provide junior psychiatrists with a friendly but large-scale platform to evaluate and critically appraise recent articles published in the and (b) to present new research findings in an open and accessible manner. In this paper, we discuss our framework, the challenges we encountered, how the original model is evolving based on feedback from trainees, and tips for success when delivering international online journal clubs.

The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the well-being, work conditions, and education of early career psychiatrists in the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region: study protocol.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic placed great strain on healthcare professionals, leading to a substantial impact and a redistribution of the workforce. Despite the active involvement of the Eastern Mediterranean Region Office (EMRO) and the World Health Organization in managing mental health crises, there is a knowledge gap concerning the working conditions and training opportunities available for early career psychiatrists (ECPs) during the pandemic period.

Objectives: This study aims to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on ECPs and how it affected their well-being, employment, and educational opportunities.

A cross-sectional investigation on remote working, loneliness, workplace isolation, well-being and perceived social support in healthcare workers.

Background: Following the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare trusts began to implement remote working arrangements, with little knowledge of their impact on staff well-being.

Aims: To investigate how remote working of healthcare workers during the pandemic may have been associated with stress, productivity and work satisfaction at that time, and associations between loneliness, workplace isolation, perceived social support and well-being.

Method: A questionnaire was developed to explore remote working and productivity, stress and work satisfaction during time spent working remotely.

Non-binary gender, vulnerable populations and mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic: Data from the COVID-19 MEntal health inTernational for the general population (COMET-G) study.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has brought significant mental health challenges, particularly for vulnerable populations, including non-binary gender individuals. The COMET international study aimed to investigate specific risk factors for clinical depression or distress during the pandemic, also in these special populations.

Methods: Chi-square tests were used for initial screening to select only those variables which would show an initial significance.

Analysis of the hikikomori phenomenon - an international infodemiology study of Twitter data in Portuguese.

Background: Hikikomori refers to the extreme isolation of individuals in their own homes, lasting at least six months. In recent years social isolation has become an important clinical, social, and public health problem, with increased awareness of hikikomori around the globe. Portuguese is one of the six most spoken languages in the world, but no studies have analysed the content regarding this phenomenon expressed in Portuguese.

Somatic multicomorbidity and disability in patients with psychiatric disorders in comparison to the general population: a quasi-epidemiological investigation in 54,826 subjects from 40 countries (COMET-G study).

Background: The prevalence of medical illnesses is high among patients with psychiatric disorders. The current study aimed to investigate multi-comorbidity in patients with psychiatric disorders in comparison to the general population. Secondary aims were to investigate factors associated with metabolic syndrome and treatment appropriateness of mental disorders.

A Phone Pal to overcome social isolation in patients with psychosis-Findings from a feasibility trial.

People with psychosis often experience social isolation due to stigma. Several volunteering programmes that exist in the community to support patients expect in-person meetings, requiring greater availability and commitment. This study investigated the acceptability and feasibility of remote volunteering over a smartphone for people with psychosis over 12 weeks, exploring its potential impact on both patients and volunteers.

Compulsory treatment in Portuguese-speaking countries: An analysis and comparison of the legal framework.

Background: Compulsory treatment involves the hospital admission of individuals with mental disorders in appropriate facilities through judicial decisions. However, limited information is available regarding the similarities and differences in compulsory treatment legislation in Portuguese-speaking countries.

Aims: To analyse the commonalities and differences in compulsory treatment legislation in Portuguese-speaking countries, where Portuguese is the primary official language, including Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, East Timor, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Portugal, and São Tomé and Príncipe.