March 2011 Archives

My Community Care colleagues have written some excellent mental health articles over the past day or so:

• Detained patients could be denied access to justice under government plans to axe a key watchdog
• There are too many delays when patients appeal to a tribunal against their detention
• The government has launched a £5m pilot to divert offenders with mental health problems from prison
• Patients are being held unclothed in seclusion units and denies access to toilets in overcrowded wards, inspectors have found

It seems lots of social workers joined their public sector colleagues, unionists and other on the 26 March demo. You can see a few pics here.

And now for something completely different - a quiz to test your knowledge of psychologicial defence mechanisms.

Two items caught my eye today (my colleagues are still processing the budget).

Neil Morrissey speaks to the Guardian about a new TV programme revisiting his experience as a child in care. A particularly strong message is the low expectations people had then, as is often the case now, of children in care.

On a separate note, social workers often seem to complain about bullying bosses. Psychology Today has a piece on tackling the office bully, including some useful tips.

Research suggests poor quality jobs can be worse for your mental health than no job at all.

This quote from the story in Wales Online is particularly significant:

The authors of the research said: "Work-first policies are based on the notion that any job is better than none, as work promotes economic as well as personal well-being. "Psychosocial job quality is a pivotal factor that needs to be considered in the design and delivery of employment and welfare policy."

Of course getting a job can be a massive boost to mental health and is in most cases preferable to being unemployed but if the government is committed to wellbeing it should also consider these "psychosocial factors" in the design of its welfare reform.

US social work academic Brene Brown argues that accepting vulnerability is an important personal step in becoming "wholehearted" and therefore more at ease with ourselves. Check out the video below.

If you're reading this in the afternoon, unplug your computer straight away and go to sleep. For scientists have found that an afternoon nap is linked with a decrease in negative emotions and an increase in positive ones. Ok, it was a tiny study - just 36 people - but it's all the excuse I need. It works in Spain pretty well, after all.

Meanwhile, the Royal College of Psychiatrists has produced a manifesto for the country's forthcoming parliamentary elections (pdf). The call for "robust evaluation of different models of crisis resolution and home treatment" looks particularly interesting.

(Pic: JunCTionS on flickr)

I was trawling around flickr and found this picture which purports to be of Eric Pickles. I've not met the communities secretary but I'm not convinced this is actually him. I'd appreciate if anyone could give me a definitive answer.

Pic taken by poppet with a camera on flickr.

Ok, these two topics aren't really connected, well, hopefully not anyway. Firstly Providentia has a fascinating look at an 1861 guide to melancholy.

And of course don't forget that it's World Social Work Day tomorrow - surely an excuse for an extra biscuit/piece of cake at the very least.

Meanwhile, my colleagues at the Adult Care Blog have posted on poor attitudes to mental health in South Asian communities and the launch of a mental health helpline for combat veterans.

(Pic: lisa cee on Flickr)

Ok, things haven't quite got as a far as a general strike in the UK yet but I really like this striking image produced by Industrial Workers of the World principally in response to events in Wisconsin where the governor is attempting to introduce anti-union laws.

However, in this week's Community Care social workers are urged to get involved in protests to oppose the public sector cuts threatening jobs and frontline services.

And campaigners are hoping loads of people will march for an alternative to the cuts on 26 March. 

It seems Israeli social workers could show their colleagues here in the UK a thing or two about radical industrial relations.

According to Haaretz, social workers in Israel are planning an indefinite strike with the aim of winning a 35-40% pay rise and the inclusion of privately employed social workers in the collective bargaining unit. As far as I can tell, inflation in Israel is currently about 3%.

And they're not pulling their punches in terms of impact on services:

Municipal welfare offices will not give assistance to at-risk children and teens, probation officers will not submit evaluations to the courts, and centers that supervise meetings between divorced parents and their children will be closed

The union is blaming any repercussions squarely on the government for its intransigence in the negotiations.

I don't know enough about the situation over there to know about the merits of their case but they're not messing about.

If you are interested in social work stuff and like listening to things on the internet then you'll love the new Community Care podcast. Be gentle with us - it is our first attempt - but in this episode we discuss the glass ceiling facing black and Asian social workers, forced marriages involving people with learning disabilities, the best phone for social workers and much more.

You can listen using the player below, or if that doesn't work go to our podcast page.

The podcast will be weekly and you can subscribe via RSS feed or in iTunes by going to our podcast page and checking out the options at the bottom of the right hand column.

As always, comments and suggestions are welcome.