BAPO Response to riots
BAPO would like to extend support and solidarity to anyone affected by the current violence that we are seeing reported. BAPO strongly condemns the violent and racist riots and intimidation that have taken place across the country. We value diversity, it is the cornerstone of our profession and of course, the wider NHS and companies that support the profession. During challenging times like these, we need to demonstrate our values of community, inclusion and allyship more than ever. We encourage members to stand together to support any staff, service users or members of the public affected. We understand that current events may create feelings of fear, distress and anxiety, the following collated signposting and support links might be helpful.
Wellbeing support for Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic NHS staff (hee.nhs.uk) provides links for support services offered to NHS colleagues from culture and ethnically diverse backgrounds
Black Minds Matter’s connects Black individuals and families with free mental health services by professional Black therapists to support their mental health.
The Black, African and Asian Therapy Network BAATN is the UK’s largest independent organisation to specialise in working psychologically, informed by an understanding of intersectionality, with people who identify as Black, African, South Asian and Caribbean.
Taraki work with Punjabi communities to improve access to mental health awareness, education, social supports, and research through culturally safe activities to benefit individual and community-level care.
The National Union of Students (NUS) Black students’ network represents students of African, Asian, Arab and Caribbean heritage. The network supports issues affecting Black students on a local, national and international level.
Nafsiyat is a pioneering charity offering intercultural therapy in over 20 languages to people from diverse cultural communities. Nafsiyat offers short-term intercultural therapy to people from diverse backgrounds who live in Islington, Enfield, Camden and Haringey.
Nilaari is a Black, Asian and Ethnically diverse led community-based charity. Their diverse staff team deliver culturally appropriate and responsive social care support and talking therapies. All services are designed to support client’s emotional wellbeing and mental health. Nilaari provides community-based mental health care for people living in Bath and North East Somerset (B&NES), Bristol, North Somerset, South Gloucestershire, Swindon and Wiltshire.
BMHS Wales is a not-for-profit organisation focused on education and advocacy to inspire mentally healthy ethnically diverse communities by providing support appropriate to their mental health and wellbeing.
Saheliya (Edinburgh and Glasgow) Saheliya is a specialist mental health and well-being support organisation for black, minority ethnic, asylum seeker, refugee and migrant women and girls (12+) in the Edinburgh and Glasgow area. Their staff are from a variety of different cultures and ethnic backgrounds and they all have an understanding of how race, gender and culture affects the mental well-being of black and minority ethnic women and girls.
If you have any feedback or need any support from BAPO to further support colleagues and communities affected by this, please email : enquiries@bapo.com
Staying Well is really important and we can all struggle with our physical and mental health at times. This page collates some great resources you can use to help you stay well.
BAPO Signposts
The NHS run a website called Our NHS People which helps support people working within the NHS with a confidential support telephone line and access to guides on everything from sleeping well to managing stress.
IAPT (Improving Access to Psychological Therapies) offer talking therapies for problems like anxiety and depression. If you live in England they accept GP and self-referrals for over 18’s into the service and can be accessed here
NHS Scotland has a campaign called ‘Clear your Head’ with some great resources that can be found here.
When thinking about our patients and mental health, ensure you follow the MECC principles – to find out more about brief interventions click here
For assistance with improving physical health check out One You which is also a great resource to point patients towards.
Other sites for support with mental health include:
A-Z links and information
NHS mental wellbeing toolkit
NHS Audio Guides for Mental Wellbeing
NHS Advice on Mindfulness
The Samaritans
Mind
World Mental Health Day – October 10th
Wellbeing Wheel – helps to understand your mental health
Guide to emotional resilience
Second Victim Support
COVID-19 Specific help sites include:
Guidance on mental health for staff in the NHS not on the frontline
MIND Covid-19 Guidance for staying well
Mental health resources during coronavirus | Acas
AHP’S IN ACTION:
NEURODIVERSITY
By focussing on the communication needs of patients, and in particular those who may have different requirements in terms of communication style, such as patients with mental health conditions, or neurodiversity such as learning difficulties or autism, can impact upon how effectively the patient then engages with the NHS and social support systems.
Simple changes made in clinic can have a great impact on a patient’s experience. Accessible information, that includes simplified language, imagery and symbols can be helpful in aiding communication. Inclusive communication means to recognise and utilise all forms of communication rather than just written and verbal, such as facial expressions, gestures, movements, signs, pictures, and objects.
See the link below for various case studies on AHP’s transforming the health, care, and wellbeing of neurodiverse patients:
ld_autism_case_study_collection_finalv3.pdf (ahpnw.nhs.uk)
MENTAL HEALTH
Mental health can affect a person’s ability to participate in healthy behaviour’s that impact upon physical health. This can increase the likelihood of some chronic diseases linked with physical health. Mental health can also impact a person’s ability to participate in treatment and recovery.
Approximately 30% of people living with a long-term physical health condition also have a mental health issue. People who live with mental health conditions also have significantly higher rates of physical illness.
See the link below for case studies of AHP’s supporting patients’ wellbeing and mental health recovery:
ahp_mental_health_case_studies_finalv2.pdf (ahpnw.nhs.uk)
Burnout is a state of exhaustion, it can be experienced emotionally, physically or mentally due to excessive or chronic stress. Burnout can occur in any occupation but it has a higher prevalence amongst professional people in caring professions such as medicine, nursing, social work, counselling and teaching.
Burnout in Orthotics and Prosthetics article
www.oandplibrary.org/op/1986_02_024.asp
Examining the relationship between burnout and empathy in healthcare professionals: A systematic review
www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2213058617300025
Healthcare Staff Wellbeing, Burnout, and Patient Safety: A Systematic Review
https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0159015
Mindfulness, Self-Compassion, and Empathy among Health Care Professionals: A Review of the Literature
Workforce burnout & resilience report 2021-2022 in NHS and social care
https://committees.parliament.uk/publications/6158/documents/68766/default/
Mental health reports & action plans
WHO evidence for action, investing in mental health 2013
https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/87232/9789241564618_eng.pdf?sequence=1
NHS Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey 2014: Provides England’s National Statistics for the monitoring of mental illness and treatment access in the population
Five year forward plan: Independent mental health task force report to the NHS 2016
https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Mental-Health-Taskforce-FYFV-final.pdf
NHS mental health implementation plan 2019-2024
Mental wellness displays
Having mental wellness displays for staff and patients can encourage people to take some time to consider how they are feeling and thinking. Links below include resources and infographics that can be used as display posters.
https://mhfaengland.org/mhfa-centre/resources/resource/?id=48b51c37-3ca5-e811-8147-e0071b668081
https://mhfaengland.org/mhfa-centre/resources/address-your-stress/
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/frank-posters
https://resources.drinkaware.co.uk/collections/health-professionals
https://www.mind.org.uk/news-campaigns/campaigns/blue-light-programme/blue-light-resources/