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Bates, P. (2012)"Wash and brush up?", Mental Health and Social Inclusion, Vol. 16, Iss. 2, pp. 97-102. http://dx.doi.org/10.1108/20428301211232522 Peter Bates ~ Dirt, Disgust, and Denial In opening a conversation about how to work with people who are dirty and unwashed, it is unsettling to raise the subject of the human disgust response. All our li

‘The degree of civilization in a society can be judged by entering its prisons.’- Fyodor Dostoyevsky Last month, Claudia Hammond from BBC Radio 4’s All in the Mind visited HMP Grendon, the only prison in Europe which is run completely as a therapeutic community (TC).  The focus of the programme was to speak with prisoners, most of whom are serious

The IMH Blog is pleased to reblog the following post from Sarah Dale from her blog, Creating Focus.  You can view the original post on the link below: Tales from the Cheltenham Science Festival 2012 by Sarah DaleRegular readers of my blog and newsletters will know that I am a fan of the Cheltenham Science Festival. True it’s something of a relief t

In this re-post from the JKP blog, Dr Peter Ladd asks some important questions relating to traditional mental health diagnosis, and shares his own thoughts about where he believes it is heading in the future. Does the Semantics found in the DSM IV Create a Problem for Clients?The DSM IV is sophisticated in basing diagnosis in mental health on stati

As reported on the Association for Therapeutic Communities (ATC) website, the organisation and structure of the ATC is changing: ‘Following several years of development work ATC is joining forces with a sister charity The Charterhouse Group (which specialises in supporting therapeutic communities working with children and young people) and we have

Today we have another reblog - this time from Nic Marks, Founder of the New Economics Foundation Centre for Well-being, discussing the recently released figures for the 'Happy Planet Index'. Costa Rica comes out top, while the UK languishes at 41 - how did your country do?We live in challenging times. Our financial markets are under huge stres

When I asked if I could produce this piece I was quite excited as I enjoy writing, although my University tutors may not think so. I am always saying one day I will write a book so let’s hope this will put me further on in the journey towards my goal. I could bore you with the minor details about the fact that I have just become a grandma, which is

This week we have a guest-blog, from the Vice-Chancellor of the University, talking about the opening of the institute.  You can see the original blog, and other posts from the Vice-Chancellor the link below.From the Vice-Chancellor's desk » Opening of The Institute for Mental Health.Last week we opened the new Institute for Mental Health on the Ju

There has been something of a tea-cup storm over publication of findings from the TREAD study in the British Medical Journal on June 9th (Chalder et al 2012). TREAD is an inventive acronym for the NIHR funded TREAtment of Depression with physical activity study which was conducted in Bristol and Exeter between August 2007 and October 2010. The BMJ

The twenty-first century workplace can be a bewildering setting in which to spend most of your waking existence. Those of us in western professional jobs could be considered blessed compared with our ancestors. Few can complain about risks of physical injury or life-threatening injustice.Scratch the surface, however, and there are frequent examples

You may recall back in April of this year, Victoria Tischler posted to the blog, discussing the plans for a scuplture to go outside the new Institute of Mental Health building on the Jubilee Campus (see here and here).  Well, we are pleased to announce that the sculpture maquettes are now on display in the lobby of the new building. The decision to

I’ve been following with some interest the progress of the Mental Capacity Bill currently making its way through the Oireachtas in the Republic of Ireland.  Ireland is currently in the position, as the UK was several years ago, of bringing its mental capacity law up to date, in a modern, workable form.  The result was the Mental Capacity And Guardi

The IMH's editorial blog team had the opportunity to attend today’s unveiling of the new IMH building on the University of Nottingham’s Jubilee Campus/University of Nottingham Innovation Park. Today's ceremony represents the official opening of the recently completed 4-storey building.The IMH is a partnership between The University of Nottingham an

A short way down from the Department of Health building on Whitehall stands the statue of Field Marshall William ‘Bill’ Slim. Much beloved by his troops from the Burmese conflict in World War Two, there are stories that Slim was unusual in getting things done. One tale about setting up a new camp was that he would insist that sappers delayed laying

Care and CustodyRecently, the Prison Reform Trust published an article entitled: Ministers outline steps to keeping ‘care not custody’ promise (http://www.prisonreformtrust.org.uk/PressPolicy/News/vw/1/ItemID/153). This article commences:‘The Health Secretary, Andrew Lansley, and the Justice Minister, Crispin Blunt, have outlined the progress made

Turner (2002) identifies that recovery has been described as an idea, a movement, a philosophy, a set of values, a policy mantra and also a doctrine for change.  It splits opinion between those who view it as simplistic and obvious and others who see its revolutionary and transformatory potential.  Although increasingly fashionable within current m

The NHS can’t afford to fund every new medical treatment. Budgets are limited. Resources are finite. It’s a boring fact of life, from which people like me – economists – benefit. In recent years the UK has championed the provision of cost-effective healthcare. The efficiency of the NHS owes no small thanks to NICE, which evaluates health technologi

“Insanity is the doing the same things over and over again but expecting different results”                - Alcoholics Anonymous I was at an NHS meeting the other day amid a heated discussion about the importance of integrating healthcare needs across the physical/mental health divide. After I made a point about the importance of centring health s

This is an excellent post written by Sam Watson, a blogger on the Academic Health Economists' Blog  posted on 16 February 2012 entitled 'The Ethics of Doing Nothing'.  In the post, Sam reflects about the ethics of non-action in health care provision. Though the arguments put forward mostly relate to physical health care, there are some relevant iss

In her second blog post, Victoria Tischler, the Institute's arts co-ordinator, writes about shortlisted applicants who each have a vision of representing mental health in a sculpture.  She also talks about the annual Koestler awards at Rampton and gives us a description of the inside of the new building!For more information about commissioning an a