A programme theory for liaison mental health services in England

Background: Mechanisms by which liaison mental health services (LMHS) may bring about improved patient and organisational outcomes are poorly understood. A small number of logic models have been developed, but they fail to capture the complexity of clinical practice. Method: We synthesised data from a variety of sources including a large national survey, 73 in-depth interviews with acute and liaison staff working in hospitals with different types of liaison mental health services, and relevant local, national and international literature. We generated logic models for two common performance indicators used to assess organisational outcomes for LMHS: response times in the emergency department and hospital length of stay for people with mental health problems. Results: We identified 8 areas of complexity that influence performance, and 6 trade-offs which drove the models in different directions depending upon the balance of the trade-off. The logic models we developed could only be captured by consideration of more than one pass through the system, the complexity in which they operated, and the trade-offs that occurred. Conclusions: Our findings are important for commissioners of liaison services. Reliance on simple target setting may result in services that are unbalanced and not patient-centred. Targets need to be reviewed on a regular basis, together with other data that reflect the wider impact of the service, and any external changes in the system that affect the performance of LMHS, which are beyond their control

Liaison psychiatry—measurement and evaluation of service types, referral patterns and outcomes (LP-MAESTRO): a protocol

Introduction: We describe the protocol for a project that will use linkage of routinely collected NHS data to answer a question about the nature and effectiveness of liaison psychiatry services in acute hospitals in England. Methods and analysis: The project will use three data sources: (1) Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), a database controlled by NHS Digital that contains patient data relating to emergency department (ED), inpatient and outpatient episodes at hospitals in England; (2) ResearchOne, a research database controlled by The Phoenix Partnership (TPP) that contains patient data relating to primary care provided by organisations using the SystmOne clinical information system and (3) clinical databases controlled by mental health trusts that contain patient data relating to care provided by liaison psychiatry services. We will link patient data from these sources to construct care pathways for patients who have been admitted to a particular hospital and determine those patients who have been seen by a liaison psychiatry service during their admission. Patient care pathways will form the basis of a matched cohort design to test the effectiveness of liaison intervention. We will combine healthcare utilisation within care pathways using cost figures from national databases. We will compare the cost of each care pathway and the impact of a broad set of health-related outcomes to obtain preliminary estimates of cost-effectiveness for liaison psychiatry services. We will carry out an exploratory incremental cost-effectiveness analysis from a whole system perspective. Ethics and dissemination: Individual patient consent will not be feasible for this study. Favourable ethical opinion has been obtained from the NHS Research Ethics Committee (North of Scotland) (REF: 16/NS/0025) for Work Stream 2 (phase 1) of the Liaison psychiatry—measurement and evaluation of service types, referral patterns and outcomes study. The Confidentiality Advisory Group at the Health Research Authority determined that Section 251 approval under Regulation 5 of the Health Service (Control of Patient Information) Regulations 2002 was not required for the study ‘on the basis that there is no disclosure of patient identifiable data without consent’ (REF: 16/CAG/0037). Results of the study will be published in academic journals in health services research and mental health. Details of the study methodology will also be published in an academic journal. Discussion papers will be authored for health service commissioners

The nature and activity of liaison mental services in acute hospital settings: a multi-site cross sectional study

Background: To describe the clinical activity patterns and nature of interventions of hospital-based liaison psychiatry services in England. Methods: Multi-site, cross-sectional survey. 18 acute hospitals across England with a liaison psychiatry service. All liaison staff members, at each hospital site, recorded data on each patient they had face to face contact with, over a 7 day period. Data included location of referral, source of referral, main clinical problem, type of liaison intervention employed, staff professional group and grade, referral onto other services, and standard assessment measures. Results: A total of 1475 face to face contacts from 18 hospitals were included in the analysis, of which approximately half were follow-up reviews. There was considerable variation across sites, related to the volume of Emergency Department (ED) attendances, number of hospital admissions, and work hours of the team but not to the size of the hospital (number of beds). The most common clinical problems were co-morbid physical and psychiatric symptoms, self-harm and cognitive impairment. The main types of intervention delivered were diagnosis/formulation, risk management and advice. There were differences in the type of clinical problems seen by the services between EDs and wards, and also differences between the work conducted by doctors and nurses. Almost half of the contacts were for continuing care, rather than assessment. Eight per cent of all referrals were offered follow up with the LP team, and approximately 37% were referred to community or other services. Conclusions: The activity of LP services is related to the flow of patients through an acute hospital. In addition to initial assessments, services provide a wide range of differing interventions, with nurses and doctors carrying out distinctly different roles within the team. The results show the volume and diversity of LP work. While much clinical contact is acute and confined to the inpatient episode, the LP service is not defined solely by an assessment and discharge function; cases are often complex and nearly half were referred for follow up including liaison team follow up

The relationship of the perceived impact of the current Greek recession with increased suicide risk is moderated by mental illness in patients with long-term conditions

Objective: Adverse life events may contribute to the emergence of suicidality. We aimed to test the relationship between the impact of the Greek recession and suicidal risk in people with long-term conditions (LTCs) and to determine whether this relationship is moderated by the presence of a mental disorder. Methods: Suicidal risk (RASS) and crisis parameters were assessed in a cross-sectional survey including 376 patients with LTCs (type-II diabetes mellitus, rheumatological disorders and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) attending the Emergency Department or specialty clinics. A diagnosis of mental disorder was confirmed by the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) interview. Hierarchical regression models were used to quantify moderator effects. Results: Suicidal risk was significantly associated with the perceived impact of the recession (p = 0.028). However, moderation analysis showed that this relationship was significant only in those diagnosed with either major depressive disorder or generalized anxiety disorder. Conclusions: These findings suggest that the perceived impact of the current Greek recession is not correlated with suicidal risk per se, but the recession may act as precipitator in combination with other risk factors, such as the presence of a mental illness, thus supporting the importance of early diagnosis and treatment of mental disorders in vulnerable groups.Journal of Psychosomatic Researc

In people with chronic illnesses, the perceived impact of current crisis is associated with suicide risk only in those with greater depressive symptom burden

Poster presentation awarded with "Best Poster Award"4th Annual Conference of the European Association of Psychosomatic Medicine (EAPM): Transforming Health with Evidence and Empathy, Lulea, Sweden, 16th-18th June 201

Experiences of people seen in an acute hospital setting by a liaison mental health service: responses from an online survey

Background- In recent years the UK has expanded the provision of liaison mental health services (LMHS). Little work has been undertaken to explore first-hand experiences of them. Aims- The aim of this study was to gain insights into the experiences of users of LMHS in both emergency departments and acute inpatient wards in the UK. Methods- This cross-sectional internet survey was initially advertised from May-July 2017 using the social media platform Facebook. Due to a paucity of male respondents, it was re-run from November 2017-February 2018, specifically targeting male respondents. The survey featured a structured questionnaire divided into three categories: the profile of the respondent, perceived professionalism of LMHS and overall opinion of the service. Analysis- Responses to the structured questionnaire were analysed using descriptive statistics and latent class analysis. Free-text responses were transcribed verbatim and interpreted using thematic analysis. Results- 184 people responded to the survey. 147 were service users and 37 were partners, friends or family members of service users. Only 31% of service users and 27% of close others found their overall contact helpful. Latent class analysis identified three clusters − 46% of service users generally disliked their contact, 36% had an overall positive experience, and 18% did not answer most questions about helpfulness or usefulness. Features most frequently identified as important were the provision of a 24/7 service, assessment by a variety of healthcare professionals and national standardisation of services. Respondents indicated that the least important feature was the provision of a separate service for older people. They desired faster assessments following referral from the parent team, clearer communication about next steps and greater knowledge of local services and third sector organisations. Conclusions- This survey identified mixed responses, but overall experiences were more negative than indicated in the limited previous research. The evaluation and adaptation of LMHS along the lines suggested in our survey should be prioritised to enhance their inherent therapeutic value and to improve engagement with treatment and future psychiatric care

Trimodal age distribution of frequent attendance at the emergency department: a descriptive analysis of national, English, secondary care data using a retrospective cohort

Objectives Frequent use of emergency departments (EDs) places a considerable burden on healthcare systems. Although frequent attenders are known to have complex physical, mental health and social needs, national-level evidence on their characteristics and patterns of attendance remains limited. This study aimed to provide a comprehensive, population-level description of frequent ED attendance in England, with a focus on age-based subgroups. Design Retrospective cohort study. Setting EDs in England via the Hospital Episode Statistics and the Emergency Care Dataset data linked with primary care prescribing and mortality data, between March 2016 and March 2021. Participants The dataset received from National Health Service Digital contained approximately 150 million ED attendances by 30 million adult (>18 years) patients over the time period April 2016 to March 2021. A random sample of 5 million people was used for this analysis. Outcome measures The primary outcome was the number of attendances in each financial year by frequent attenders compared with the remaining patients, split by age bands. Patients were classified as frequent attenders if they had ≥5 or ≥10 ED attendances within a rolling 12-month period. Secondary outcomes included demographic, diagnostic and prescribing characteristics, as well as the number of different ED sites visited. Results A Gaussian mixture model was used to identify age-based subgroups. Descriptive statistics were used to summarise key features; 95% CIs were reported where applicable. Among 3.91 million unique adult ED attenders, there were 8.7 million attendances. Of these, 222 160 individuals (5.7%) had ≥5 attendances in a year, accounting for 12.6% of total attendances. A trimodal age distribution was identified, with three distinct peaks corresponding to ages 18–34, 35–64 and 65+. Frequent attenders were more likely to live in deprived areas and have a history of psychotropic or analgesic prescribing. Mental health diagnoses and polypharmacy were particularly common in the younger and middle-aged groups. Multisite attendance was uncommon, with over 80% of frequent attenders using only one ED site annually. Conclusions This national analysis reveals a trimodal age pattern among frequent ED attenders, with differing clinical and socio-demographic profiles across age groups. These findings highlight the need for age-tailored approaches to managing high-intensity ED use and inform targeted service development

Management of diarrhoea in patients with stable ulcerative colitis with low FODMAP diet, amitriptyline, ondansetron or loperamide: the MODULATE RCT.

BackgroundMany patients with ulcerative colitis report ongoing diarrhoea even when their disease is stable and in remission.DesignMODULATE was a pragmatic, multicentre, seamless, adaptive, phase 2/3 open-label, parallel-group, multiarm multistage randomised controlled trial.Setting and participantsPeople aged over 18 years with stable ulcerative colitis who had diarrhoea, recruited from secondary care sites in the United Kingdom.InterventionsThe control arm consisted of modified first-line dietary advice given to all patients with irritable bowel syndrome; the first interventional arm was amitriptyline, a tricyclic antidepressant, which at low doses slows colonic transit; the second intervention was loperamide, an antidiarrhoeal drug also thought to slow colonic transit; the third was ondansetron, an antiemetic thought to slow colonic transit; and the fourth was a diet low in fermentable oligo-, di-, and mono-saccharides and polyols, which is thought to reduce bloating and gas within the small intestine. All patients randomised to an interventional arm were to receive treatment for 6 months.Main outcome measures: primary outcome measuresPhase 2: Improvement in diarrhoea measured using the Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale-irritable bowel syndrome questionnaire at 8 weeks post randomisation: improvement defined as those reporting minor discomfort from diarrhoea or less (scoring ≤ 2 on the diarrhoea subscale).Secondary outcome measuresPhases 2 and 3: Measured at both 8 weeks and 6 months: Improvement in diarrhoea measured using the Gastrointestinal Symptom Rating Scale-irritable bowel syndrome. Blood for C-reactive protein, stool for faecal calprotectin at 6 months only, reviewing case notes for escalation of medical therapy for ulcerative colitis. Anxiety and depression, via the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale.ResultsThe MODULATE trial opened in December 2021 and closed in January 2023. Of the eight secondary care sites that completed contracting, only four opened to recruitment during this time, and one person was randomised. Trial timelines coincided with the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, causing substantial delays and, ultimately, its early closure. During this time, the trial underwent two major redesign phases, enabling a fully remote participant pathway incorporating electronic consent, remote data capture, posted blood and stool sample kits for eligibility screening, delivery of the dietary intervention via telephone or video call platform, postage of trial investigational medicinal products directly to participants' homes and all trial follow-up appointments conducted via telephone. The second phase of redesign pushed the trial towards a fully decentralised model. However, this stage was not implemented due to the decision to close the trial early.LimitationsThe study was unable to recruit the necessary sample size, preventing the trial from progressing. The trial met with several challenges. The Trial Steering Committee's root cause analysis concluded that the pandemic was the leading factor in trial closure, especially regarding our ability to recruit both sites and participants.ConclusionsAlthough the trial closed early and with insufficient participants to proceed with full statistical analysis, lessons were learnt that could potentially inform future remote trial design and decentralised participant pathways.Future workMODULATE was a commissioned call in response to a priority question identified by people living with ulcerative colitis. The question remains important and unanswered; trials to address it are needed. Given the recruitment difficulties we experienced, consideration should be given to conducting these in both primary and secondary care.FundingThis synopsis presents independent research funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Health Technology Assessment programme as award number 17/33/03