Lessons from a crisis: occupational stress in healthcare workers in an acute paediatric teaching hospital in Ireland.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic placed increased pressure on service provision and healthcare worker (HCW) wellness. As the crisis of the pandemic receded, paediatric healthcare staff required an appropriate response to facilitate individual and organisational recovery, to minimise long-term HCW burn-out and to be better equipped for future crisis in paediatric healthcare.

Objective: To explore the experiences of HCWs working during the COVID-19 pandemic in an acute paediatric hospital to determine an appropriate leadership response in the postcrisis work environment.

Research needs of higher specialist trainees in psychiatry in Ireland: mixed methods study.

Aims And Method: Higher specialist trainees (HSTs) in psychiatry in Ireland were recruited to complete a 21-item online questionnaire anonymously. Questions were designed to establish the research experience of HSTs in various years of training, identify perceived barriers to participation and generate potential strategies to overcome these barriers.

Results: Of 165 HSTs surveyed, 50 (30%) responded.

Childhood maltreatment and outcomes following electroconvulsive therapy in adults with depression.

Objective: Childhood maltreatment is associated with less favourable treatment outcomes with pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy for depression. It is unknown whether this increased risk of treatment resistance in maltreated individuals extends to electroconvulsive therapy (ECT).

Methods: This retrospective cohort study included 501 consecutive adult referrals for an acute course of twice-weekly ECT for unipolar or bipolar depression at an academic inpatient centre in Ireland between 2016 and 2024.

Reliable Change Indices and Minimum Detectable Change for the Montreal Cognitive Assessment in Electroconvulsive Therapy for Depression.

Objective: The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) is a commonly used brief cognitive screening tool for monitoring adverse cognitive effects of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT). The aim of this study was to examine three statistical methods for detecting reliable change in the MoCA following ECT.

Methods: In a prospective cohort study, 47 patients (mean age 55.

Does affect mediate the relationship between interpersonal trauma and psychosis? A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Introduction: The relationship between interpersonal trauma and psychosis is well established, and research is now focused on identifying mechanisms that may explain this relationship. Models of trauma and psychosis increasingly emphasize a broad range of affective processes, yet the overall effect of these affective processes is not well understood.

Aim: This review systematically examined the effect of any form of long-term affective dysfunction on the relationship between interpersonal trauma and psychosis.

Study protocol for Ketamine as an adjunctive therapy for major depression (2): a randomised controlled trial (KARMA-Dep [2]).

Background: Depression is a common psychiatric disorder and a leading cause of disability worldwide. Conventional monoaminergic antidepressants have limited efficacy and take weeks to exert a therapeutic effect. Single infusions of subanaesthetic doses of ketamine exhibit rapid antidepressant action but effects are transient and relapse is common.

Clinical pharmacy services in mental health in Europe: a commentary paper of the European Society of Clinical Pharmacy Special Interest Group on Mental Health.

A large proportion of the world's disease burden is attributable to mental illnesses. Although effective interventions are available, many patients still have limited access to evidence-based treatments. Aside from access, treatment gaps, including inappropriate medication selection and monitoring, are also routinely recognised.

Worsening of mental health outcomes in nursing home staff during the COVID-19 pandemic in Ireland.

Background: Mental health issues in nursing home staff during the COVID-19 pandemic have been significant; however, it is not known if these issues persist following widespread vaccination and easing of restrictions.

Objective: To quantify the mental health of nursing home staff at different timepoints during the COVID-19 pandemic in the Republic of Ireland.

Design/methods: Two identical, online, cross-sectional, nationwide, anonymous surveys of Republic of Ireland nursing home staff at two timepoints (survey 1 (S1, n = 390): November 2020 to January 2021; survey 2 (S2, N = 229: November 2021 to February 2022) during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Evaluation of a new Perinatal Mental Health Service in a University Maternity Hospital.

Objectives: Specialist Perinatal Mental Health Services (SPMHS) are a new development in Ireland. This service evaluation examined the impact of the introduction of a SPMHS multidisciplinary team (MDT) on prescribing practices and treatment pathways in an Irish maternity hospital.

Methods: Clinical charts were reviewed to collect data on all referrals, diagnoses, pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions delivered in a SPMHS over a 3-week period in 2019.

PARP1 and OGG1 in Medicated Patients With Depression and the Response to ECT.

Background: Oxidative stress and oxidation-induced DNA damage may contribute to the pathophysiology of depression. Two key mediators of base excision repair (BER) in response to oxidative damage of DNA are OGG1 and PARP1. Few studies have examined changes in OGG1 or PARP1 mRNA in patients with depression or following antidepressant treatment.

Electroconvulsive Stimulation in Rats Induces Alterations in the Hippocampal miRNome: Translational Implications for Depression.

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) may contribute to the development of depression and its treatment. Here, we used the hypothesis-neutral approach of next-generation sequencing (NGS) to gain comprehensive understanding of the effects of a course of electroconvulsive stimulation (ECS), the animal model equivalent of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), on rat hippocampal miRNAs. Significant differential expression (p < 0.

Blood cell ratios in mood and cognitive outcomes following electroconvulsive therapy.

Systemic inflammation is commonly reported in depression, with dysregulation of both the innate and adaptive arms of the immune system documented. Obtaining ratios of neutrophils, platelets, and monocytes to counts of lymphocytes (NLR, PLR, MLR, respectively) represents a low-cost and easily reproducible measure of an individual's inflammatory burden that can be calculated effortlessly from routine clinical full white blood cell counts. Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) remains the most effective acute antidepressant treatment for depression but is often limited by its cognitive side-effects.

Whole blood mitochondrial DNA copy number in depression and response to electroconvulsive therapy.

Mitochondrial dysfunction may play a role in various psychiatric conditions. Mitochondrial DNA copy number (mtDNAcn), the ratio of mitochondrial DNA to nuclear DNA, represents an attractive marker of mitochondrial health that is easily measured from stored DNA samples, and has been shown to be altered in depression. In this study, we measured mtDNAcn in whole blood samples from medicated patients with depression (n = 100) compared to healthy controls (n = 89) and determined the relationship between mtDNAcn and depression severity and the therapeutic response to electroconvulsive therapy (ECT).

Association between polarity of first episode and solar insolation in bipolar I disorder.

Objective: Circadian rhythm disruption is commonly observed in bipolar disorder (BD). Daylight is the most powerful signal to entrain the human circadian clock system. This exploratory study investigated if solar insolation at the onset location was associated with the polarity of the first episode of BD I.

Peripheral blood inflammatory markers in depression: Response to electroconvulsive therapy and relationship with cognitive performance.

The inflammatory response may play a role in depression and the response to antidepressants. Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), the most acutely powerful antidepressant treatment, can also affect the innate immune system. Here, we determined circulating blood concentrations of the inflammatory mediators C-reactive protein (CRP), IL-1β, IL-6, IL-10, and TNF-α in depressed patients compared to healthy controls and assessed the effect of ECT on their concentrations.

Dublin hospital workers' mental health during the peak of Ireland's COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: Hospital-based healthcare workers have experienced significant psychological stressors during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Aim: To evaluate the mental health of hospital workers during the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in Dublin, Ireland.

Methods: Cross-sectional anonymous online survey of hospital workers (n = 377; 181 doctors (48.