Examples of holistic good practices in promoting and protecting mental health in the workplace: current and future challenges

Background: While attention has been paid to physical risks in the work environment and the promotion of individual employee health, mental health protection and promotion have received much less focus. Psychosocial risk management has not yet been fully incorporated in such efforts. This paper presents good practices in promoting mental health in the workplace in line with World Health Organization (WHO) guidance by identifying barriers, opportunities, and the way forward in this area. Methods: Semistructured interviews were conducted with 17 experts who were selected on the basis of their knowledge and expertise in relation to good practice identified tools. Interviewees were asked to evaluate the approaches on the basis of the WHO model for healthy workplaces. Results: The examples of good practice for Workplace Mental Health Promotion (WMHP) are in line with the principles and the five keys of the WHO model. They support the third objective of the WHO comprehensive mental health action plan 2013e2020 for multisectoral implementation of WMHP strategies. Examples of good practice include the engagement of all stakeholders and representatives, science-driven practice, dissemination of good practice, continual improvement, and evaluation. Actions to inform policies/legislation, promote education on psychosocial risks, and provide better evidence were suggested for higher WMHP success. Conclusion: The study identified commonalities in good practice approaches in different countries and stressed the importance of a strong policy and enforcement framework as well as organizational responsibility for WMHP. For progress to be achieved in this area, a holistic and multidisciplinary approach was unanimously suggested as a way to successful implementation

Projected socioeconomic disparities in the prevalence of obesity among Australian adults

Objective: To project prevalence of normal weight, overweight and obesity by educational attainment, assuming a continuation of the observed individual weight change in the 5-year follow-up of the national population survey, the Australian Diabetes, Obesity and Lifestyle study (AusDiab; 2000&ndash;2005).Methods: Age-specific transition probabilities between BMI categories, estimated using logistic regression, were entered into education-level-specific, incidence-based, multi-state life tables. Assuming a continuation of the weight change observed in AusDiab, these life tables estimate the prevalence of normal weight, overweight and obesity for Australian adults with low (secondary), medium (diploma) and high (degree) levels of education between 2005 and 2025.Results: The prevalence of obesity among individuals with secondary level educational attainment is estimated to increase from 23% in 2000 to 44% in 2025. Among individuals with a degree qualification or higher, it will increase from 14% to 30%. If all current educational inequalities in weight change could be eliminated, the projected difference in the prevalence of obesity by 2025 between the highest and lowest educated categories would only be reduced by half (to a 6 percentage point difference from 14 percentage points).Conclusion: We predict that almost half of Australian adults with low educational status will be obese by 2025. Current trends in obesity have the potential to drive an increase in the absolute difference in obesity prevalence between educational categories in future years.Implications: Unless obesity prevention and management strategies focus specifically on narrowing social inequalities in obesity, inequalities in health are likely to widen.<br /

Literature review of nursing practice in managing obesity in primary care: developments in the UK

Aims and objectives. To review empirical studies reporting primary care nursing practice in relation to obesity management for adults in the UK; to place these in the context of policy and professional developments. Background. Obesity is recognized as a public health problem in many parts of the world. The UK has a well-developed system of primary care nursing with experience of initiatives to tackle obesity. Methods. Searches of electronic databases supplemented by hand-searching of identified leads and key journals. Data extracted and analysed following methods for an integrative literature review. Findings. Eleven empirical studies were reviewed. Obesity management developed as part of the role of general practice nurses after 1990. Nurses’ role has been mainly in providing one-to-one support to within surgery or clinic consultations; and to a lesser extent group based support sessions. The interventions could be characterized as general oral advice about nutrition and lifestyle. There was no evidence of positive outcomes for patients from these interventions. In some contexts, oral advice extended to calorie deficit diets and more developed referral options about physical activity. Two studies examined outcomes of practice following attempts to implement evidence-based protocols. The evidence of outcomes from these is mixed. At best, perhaps 10% of patients entering a nurse led support programme may achieve a clinically significant weight loss. Conclusions. There is potential in primary care nursing to help patients manage obesity but caution is needed. Despite practice developments in the UK the outcomes for patients remain unclear. Relevance to clinical practice. It is important to follow a structured programme in supporting patients with weight loss within an holistic assessment of their needs.</p