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This article builds on methodological literature addressing ways in which qualitative research interviewing can utilise principles derived from psychoanalysis and psychoanalytic psychotherapy, focussing on the sharing of interpretations and formulations with research participants. We review the accounts of different researchers who have considered the sharing of formulations and more formalised quasi-dynamic interpretative comments in this type of psychoanalytically informed interview research. Via this review and considering our experience as practitioner researchers, we suggest that careful reflection is required. The notion of interpretative work in psychoanalytic psychotherapy is potentially easily misapprehended because the term interpretation can refer to a range of (at times, very different) practices. Moreover, the terms of reference for dialogue in research and psychotherapy are fundamentally different for those engaged in them; an interpretation or feedback will not likely be received in the same fashion in a research interview as it would be in a psychotherapy session. Therefore, would-be research participants should be informed about the type of interview being used, with questions asked about their expectations. Furthermore, they should be encouraged to speak about what they may anticipate will be related to them of findings/analyses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Why you should read this article: • To enhance your understanding of young people's use of digital technology • To learn how digital technology can be used to provide mental health services for young people • To recognise the importance of considering young people's abilities and preferences when implementing digital interventions Background: Digital technology affords opportunities to expand mental healthcare beyond the clinic setting, supporting sustainable delivery. A pilot qualitative study was undertaken with a view to using the experience gained from it to develop a substantive project in this area. Aim: To identify and better understand the perceived barriers and benefits to using digital technologies when delivering mental healthcare to young people. Method: In-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with three young people under the care of a child and adolescent mental health service (CAMHS) team. The interview data were analysed thematically. Findings: Three main themes were identified from the interviews: digital identity and digital literacy; trusting and accessing digital health resources; and therapeutic relationships, choice and convenience. Conclusion: The findings of this pilot study reinforce the importance of avoiding a 'one-size-fits-all' approach to integrating digital technology in CAMHS. It was also identified that it is important to carefully consider the involvement of parents when conducting mental health research with children and young people. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a recent contribution to this journal, Cummings (2023) reports findings from a preliminary qualitative study of practitioner viewpoints regarding digitally delivered mental health support to care-experienced young people. Cummings' study highlights the need to engage with professional experiences of using digital methods with this group, both during and outside of the COVID-19 pandemic. A response to - and commentary on – Cummings' contribution is provided, to advance discussion of issues identified by the research. We reflect on our experience as practitioners and researchers working in and alongside specialist child and adolescent mental health service teams serving care-experienced children and young people. We focus on workspaces in remote working, therapeutic technique in online and telephone-based care, and virtues and challenges of remote care delivery. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Why you should read this article: • To identify the benefits that group-based psychoeducation intervention may bring to inpatient care settings for older people with mental health issues • To better understand how group-based interventions are experienced by older people with mental health issues • To reflect on some of the challenges involved in introducing group-based interventions in inpatient care settings This article reports on a service evaluation of a group-based psychoeducation programme for older people in an inpatient mental healthcare setting. It sought to explore how the programme was experienced by patients and staff, as well as its acceptability and the feasibility for implementation in the longer term. Via questionnaires, views were gathered from patients and staff. A focus group interview with staff facilitating the group sessions was also undertaken, and patient attendance records for sessions were collected and compared with demographic data relating to the two wards housed in the unit where the programme took place. The programme was generally viewed as a positive addition to care delivery by staff and patient respondents in offering an adjunct to pharmacological treatment, increasing familiarity with psychology staff, encouraging patients to develop a greater degree of mastery regarding their health and fostering mutual support among the patient community. The role of the ward environment in supporting access to group-based intervention is also considered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article focuses on mental health service research, trauma-informed care (TIC), and the use of freedom of information (FoI) requests for data collection. Topics include the limited availability of TIC training for NHS professionals, the role of FoI requests in gathering data, and criticisms of TIC implementation including concerns about TIC potentially obscuring broader social issues related to trauma.

Freedom of information (FoI) legislation has been represented as a valuable but underused means of generating otherwise unavailable data from public authorities in health and social care research. This article complements extant literature on the use of FoI requests for research intended to inform health and social care policy and improve the quality of practice. Reflections are provided on challenges and ethical considerations, drawing on relevant literature and the authors' experience undertaking studies addressing different topics in mental health and child welfare using FoI requests as the primary means of data collection. The recommendations are practically orientated. They are aimed primarily at social work and mental health researchers who may have limited knowledge of how FoI requests might be used in their work but be curious about the application of this approach. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article stages a discussion on the role of social psychiatry in present-day child and adolescent mental health care. Taking a broad perspective, it considers the growing demand for mental health services for children and young people and how social psychiatry can be situated in the current framework of psychiatry as a medical specialty as well as within child and adolescent mental health care provision more widely. Avenues available to expand social psychiatry's reach and impact in the field of child and adolescent mental health are also addressed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article describes an innovative initiative based on principles of traumainformed care which involves clinicians from a specialist child and adolescent mental health service (CAMHS) team providing input to youth justice services. At a local level, the project seeks to help address recognised gaps in service provision whereby children and young people involved with the criminal justice system are afforded inconsistent access to care and treatment yet recognised as being at increased risk for having experienced early adversity and suffering mental health difficulties. The article takes stock of the project's development via reference to three interlinked strands of work it incorporates: work supporting staff; direct work with children and young people; and training workshops for professionals. Reference is also made to the findings of an evaluation of the project. In so doing, the article adds further support to arguments for a senior clinician role in CAMHS provision linked to youth justice services, and the necessity of staff training to embed this role and support the recognition of trauma. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The topic of professional self-disclosure has been subject to uneven levels of attention in the social work literature. Although many writers and researchers have addressed the topic in the context of clinical social work, there has been limited dedicated attention to its use and role in routine practice in child protection and child welfare settings. This article is concerned with a specific type of self-disclosure: what social workers say to the parents they work with about whether they themselves are parents or not. Drawing on interview material from a research study concerned with how children's services professionals experience the suffering of parents, it explores the psycho-social dynamics of social workers investing in different positions about making or refusing to make disclosures about their parental status. This allows for differentiated insight into the contexts that surround parental status disclosure and highlights how decision making around whether and what to disclose can be led more by anxieties and concerns about the maintenance of a particular professional identity than deliberation about potential benefits to parents and the working relationship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Social work has a vital role to play in supporting Autistic people of all ages. Whether in facilitating access to other services, such as housing, enhancing quality of life, or in a safeguarding capacity, social workers have a legal and moral responsibility to ensure their practice ensures full, equitable involvement of Autistic people. Regrettably, research evidence indicates practice is not always inclusive and can fall short in responding effectively to Autistic people’s needs. This article adds to recent UK practice guidance and social work scholarship concerning social work and autism. It does so by introducing a framework developed by Autistic doctors for meeting Autistic people’s needs in medical settings known as ‘Autistic SPACE’ and exploring how it could be used for social work contexts. The five core autistic needs recognised in the SPACE framework are addressed, i.e. Sensory, Predictability, Acceptance, Communication and Empathy. How a practice-near social work perspective may aid in developing the framework further is also considered, extending the acronym from SPACE to SPACES to highlight the significance of Social Safety and Support. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Children and young people in foster and adoptive families are considered more vulnerable to a high level of mental health need when compared to peers who are not care-experienced or adopted. Acceptance of this view amongst clinical providers and policy makers has necessitated the development of specialist provision and dedicated care pathways within child and adolescent mental health services. In this provision, practitioner-initiated quality improvement projects help in appraising the effectiveness of clinical interventions in local contexts, as well as identifying areas for service learning and practice reflection. This article reports on the evaluation of a mentalisation-based psychoeducation group intervention for adoptive parents and foster carers. The evaluation activity took place in a single child and adolescent mental health service setting, starting during the COVID-19 pandemic, with the intervention being implemented online via videoconferencing. In the article, after introducing the intervention (based on the Family Minds model), an analysis of clinical data collected pre- and post-intervention is reported. Few results of the analysis regarding the two pre- and post-measures reached statistical significance, indicating only changes in the magnitude of stress in the parent/carer-child system. A series of reflections are posed that consider what this finding means in developing fit-for-purpose support for adoptive parents and foster carers in child and adolescent mental health service contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: This article focuses on approaches to qualitative research interviewing that draw direct inspiration from psychoanalytic therapy. The reflective discussion piece provides a critical spotlight on this method to promote reflection and ethical application., Aim: To provide clarity regarding the meaning of psychoanalytically informed, psycho-social research and the interpretive nature of qualitative interviews and of therapy, and to reflect on nurse researchers' partiality for using quasi-dynamic interpretative comments and the sharing of formulations in interviews., Discussion: The authors review relevant literature, and comment on the apprehension and uncertainty researchers may experience with this type of research approach., Conclusion: Researchers should consider how they conduct themselves as interviewers and what to share of the analysis of participants' accounts based on the specifics of the research, including their or their team's experience of conducting psychotherapy and their and participants' expectations about what may be therapeutic about interviews., Implications for Practice: Psychoanalytically informed research interviewing should be used in a reflective way by nurse researchers with attention paid to the limitations and possibilities of parallels between psychotherapeutic and research interview dialogue., Competing Interests: None declared, (© 2022 RCN Publishing Company Ltd. All rights reserved. Not to be copied, transmitted or recorded in any way, in whole or part, without prior permission of the publishers.)