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Purpose: This paper aims to present a thematic analysis of student nurses' experiences of an innovative collaboration between a mental health Recovery College and a nursing faculty, where Recovery College trainers' expertise in co-production and peer facilitation were foregrounded. The aim of this study is to understand how nursing students experienced being peer facilitators of well-being workshops for fellow students following training with Recovery College trainers. Design/methodology/approach: Thematic analysis of qualitative data from eight semi-structured interviews and a focus group with 15 participants. Findings: The overarching theme that emerged was "The process of being a student Peer Facilitator". Six themes emerged from the data: "What we brought"; "Conceptualisation"; "Adaptation"; "we're giving them the tools"; "What we gained"; and "Development". Practical implications: Mental health nurse educators could forge collaborative relationships with Recovery College colleagues with a broader remit than service users' "lived experience" of mental distress. Student nurses should be given opportunities to be peer facilitators and draw on their lived experience as student nurses as means of addressing their and their peers' mental health. Originality/value: Original findings were that the student experience of being a peer facilitator was different to their other experiences in education and clinical practice. They drew on their lived experience throughout and found that they learned skills to address their well-being through supporting other students to improve theirs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose: This study aims to explore how student nurses conceptualise their well-being and their views on how to improve student nurses' well-being. Design/methodology/approach: Qualitative inquiry using semi-structured interviews with 17 final year students. Tran-scripts were thematically analysed using Braun and Clark's six-phase approach. Findings: Three themes were identified as follows: "student nurses" "experience of the university", "the meaning of student nurse well-being" and "how the faculty could improve student well-being". The findings are interpreted with reference to notions of social capital and a sense of belonging. Practical implications: University nursing programmes should embed approaches to student well-being. Higher education institutions should ensure that their social and pastoral offer is accessible and relevant to nursing students. Originality/value: The study offers unique insight into student nurses' self-concept as "university students" in the context of their well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The effects of mental health nurses’ own experience of mental illness or being a carer have rarely been researched beyond the workplace setting. This study aimed to explore how the experience of mental illness affects mental health nurses’ lives outside of and inside work. A sample of 26 mental health nurses with personal experience of mental illness took part in semistructured interviews. Data were analysed thematically using a six‐phase approach. The analysis revealed the broad context of nurses’ experiences of mental illness according to three interwoven themes: mental illness as part of family life; experience of accessing services; and life interwoven with mental illness. Participants typically described personal and familial experience of mental illness across their life course, with multiple causes and consequences. The findings suggest that nurses’ lives outside of work should be taken into account when considering the impact of their personal experience of mental illness. Similarly being a nurse influences how mental illness is experienced. Treatment of nurses with mental illness should account for their nursing expertise whilst recognizing that the context for nurses’ mental illness could be much broader than the effect of workplace stress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Accessible summary?: What is known on the subject: Analysis of co‐production in mental health and specifically Recovery Colleges has not previously considered the impact on clinicians and their clinical practice. Co‐production as a concept is open to multiple interpretations. Core components of co‐produced work are as follows: a focus on assets, mutuality, peer support and the use of a facilitative approach. What this paper adds to existing knowledge?: Senior clinicians who have chosen to become Practitioner Trainers describe the experience of collaboration with service users in an educational rather than clinical context. Working together in this educational environment led to some shifts in their perceptions of professional power and authority, in some cases leading to personal disclosures about their mental health. This study suggests the mechanisms by which co‐production may transform professional practice: being in an educational rather than clinical context, the experience of being supported, the challenge of negotiating multiple roles (including that of being a colleague to someone with mental health needs) and experiencing a gradual shift of role emphasis as co‐trainer relationships develop. The practical challenge of holding a simultaneous role as clinician for and co‐trainer with Peer Trainers has been articulated, with the caveat that mental health support may be a feature of collegiate as well as clinical roles. What are the implications for practice?: Being a Practitioner Trainer could be a professionally transformative experience. Ground rules for how to support colleagues’ mental health needs should be established and refined during co‐produced working. Negotiating personal disclosure and professional role identity must be explored further in both co‐production research and practice. Abstract: Introduction: Co‐production between service users and clinicians is a desirable element of recovery‐oriented practice in mental health, but the effect of co‐production on clinicians has not been explored thoroughly. Aim: To explore the meaning of co‐production for clinicians based on their experience of co‐production in a Recovery College. Method: Thematic analysis of eight semi‐structured interviews with clinicians who have co‐produced and co‐delivered workshops with a Recovery College Peer Trainer. Results: The “meaning of co‐production” had four themes: definitions, power dynamics, negotiating roles and influence on practice. Clinicians’ experience of co‐production meant a reassessment of their expert role and power. They said that this altered their clinical practice, particularly the language they used and the personal information they shared. Discussion: Role negotiation between Practitioner and Peer Trainers is an iterative process, whereby clinicians may revise their perspectives on personal disclosure, professional identity and collegiate support. The Peer and Practitioner Trainer relationship is characterized by reciprocity and mutuality, and there is some evidence that Practitioner involvement in a co‐produced activity has the potential to transform service user and provider relationships beyond the Recovery College setting. Implications for practice: Engaging in co‐produced educational workshops can alter clinicians’ perspectives on roles, power and clinical expertise. Findings from this case study must be tested against research on other Recovery Colleges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim The aim of this article is to present selected findings from a doctoral study on the subjective well-being and subjective experience of mental health problems in UK mental health nurses. Here the concept of 'nurses' well-being' is explored. Method Data were drawn from a survey of 237 mental health nurses about their mental health and well-being and from interviews with 27 mental health nurses with personal experience of mental health problems and high subjective well-being. Results While nurses' subjective well-being is relatively low, some use strategies to support their well-being in and outside the workplace. Activities outside work that improved their wellbeing were physical exercise, mindfulness practice, spending time in nature and listening to music. Well-being was associated with clear boundaries between home and work life, regular clinical supervision and translating learning from work with patients to nurses' own lives. Conclusion Healthcare employers' staff health and well-being strategies should be informed by nurses' insights into what works for them. This may mean offering opportunities to take part in well-being activities. There are also opportunities to improve staff well-being through shared initiatives open to nurses and patients, and through an inclusive and empowering approach to staff engagement. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background The Transsexual Voice Questionnaire (TVQMtF) was designed to capture the voice-related perceptions of individuals whose gender identity as female is the opposite of their birth-assigned gender (MtF women). Evaluation of the psychometric properties of the TVQMtF is ongoing. Aims To investigate associations between TVQMtF scores and (1) self-perceptions of voice femininity and (2) acoustic parameters of voice pitch and voice quality in order to evaluate further the validity of the TVQMtF. A strong correlation between TVQMtF scores and self-ratings of voice femininity was predicted, but no association between TVQMtF scores and acoustic measures of voice pitch and quality was proposed. Methods & Procedures Participants were 148 MtF women (mean age 48.14 years) recruited from the La Trobe Communication Clinic and the clinics of three doctors specializing in transgender health. All participants completed the TVQMtF and 34 of these participants also provided a voice sample for acoustic analysis. Pearson product-moment correlation analysis was conducted to examine the associations between TVQMtF scores and (1) self-perceptions of voice femininity and (2) acoustic measures of F0, jitter (%), shimmer (dB) and harmonic-to-noise ratio (HNR). Outcomes & Results Strong negative correlations between the participants' perceptions of their voice femininity and the TVQMtF scores demonstrated that for this group of MtF women a low self-rating of voice femininity was associated with more frequent negative voice-related experiences. This association was strongest with the vocal-functioning component of the TVQMtF. These strong correlations and high levels of shared variance between the TVQMtF and a measure of a related construct provides evidence for the convergent validity of the TVQMtF. The absence of significant correlations between the TVQMtF and the acoustic data is consistent with the equivocal findings of earlier research. This finding indicates that these two measures assess different aspects of the voice-related experience. Conclusions & Implications Evidence supporting the validity of the TVQMtF is strong and indicates that it is a sound measure for capturing the MtF woman's self-perceptions of her vocal functioning and how her voice impacts on her everyday life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of the present study was to measure the subjective well-being of a group of 225 UK registered mental health nurses (MHN) using three survey measures, and to identify whether certain demographic and workplace factors correlated with subjective well-being measure scores. An online survey incorporating the subjective well-being questions used by the Office for National Statistics, the Satisfaction with Life Scale, and the Warwick Edinburgh Mental Well-Being Scale was administered to members of two professional bodies for MHN. There was good consistency between the three subjective well-being measures, each demonstrating that UK MHN had a relatively low subjective well-being. Apart from the Office for National Statistics question, 'Overall, to what extent do you feel the things you do in your life are worthwhile?', demographic and workplace factors did not correlate with subjective well-being measure scores, although the characteristics of being male, living alone, and being aged 40-49 years were associated with lower mean scores on all three measures. The findings of the exploratory study suggest that a similar study should be undertaken with a larger representative population of MHN, and that qualitative research should explore why and how UK MHN have relatively low subjective well-being. The limitations of this study, namely the response rate and sample representativeness, mean that the results of the present study must be tested in further research on the MHN population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nurses' mental health is of paramount importance, both in terms of patient safety and the sustainability of the workforce. Age, years in the profession, in post and personal experience or exposure to mental health problems are relevant to the mental health nursing workforce crisis in the United Kingdom. This study aimed to determine the relationship between age, years in the profession and post and self-reported experience of mental health problems using an online cross-sectional survey of 225 UK mental health nurses. Number of years in post was inversely correlated with overall experience of mental health problems, particularly living with someone else with mental health problems. Those with experience of living with someone with mental health problems had significantly fewer years of professional experience than those without. This article discusses possible explanations for this phenomenon and makes the case for future research on the topic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To summarize and evaluate evidence for the effect of yoga on menstrual disorders. Methods: PubMed, CINAHL/MEDLINE, Web of Science, AMED, and Scopus were searched for English-language literature relevant to the review question. All primary research studies were included. Results: Fifteen studies described in 18 papers were included in the review. A range of yoga interventions were used. Some studies used a combination of Asana, Pranayama, and other yogic relaxation or meditation techniques. All included studies reported some change in their outcome measures, suggesting reduced symptoms of menstrual distress following a yoga intervention; however, the heterogeneity and intensity of the interventions and outcome measures meant that findings have limited generalizability and applicability in practice settings. Conclusions: Further research on the relationship between yoga practice and menstrual disorders is warranted, but there must be both consistency in the methods, measures, and quality of studies and a shift toward research on yoga practices that are replicable outside of the clinical trial setting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aim To discuss the use of Skype as a medium for undertaking semi-structured interviews. Background Internet-based research is becoming increasingly popular, as communication using the internet takes a bigger role in our working and personal lives. Technology such as Skype allows research encounters with people across geographical divides. The semi-structured interview is a social encounter with a set of norms and expectations for both parties (Doody and Noonan 2012). Proceedings must take account of the social context of both semi-structured interviews per se, and that of internet mediated communication. Data sources The findings of the qualitative phase of a mixed-methods study are compared with other reports comparing the use of Skype with face-to-face and telephone interviews. Review methods This paper is a methodological discussion of the use of Skype as an online research methodology. Discussion Choosing Skype as a means of interviewing may affect the characteristics of participants and decisions about consent. Rapport, sensitivity and collaboration may be addressed differently in Skype interviews compared with face-to-face interviews. Conclusion Skype offers researchers the opportunity to reach a geographical spread of participants more safely, cheaply and quickly than face-to-face meetings. Rapport, sensitivity and degrees of collaboration can be achieved using this medium. Implications for research/practice The use of Skype as a medium for semi-structured interview research is better understood. This paper contributes to the growing body of literature on the use of the internet as a medium for research by nurses. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]