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Introduction: Little is known about the lifetime prevalence of different indicators of suicidality in the Irish general population; whether suicidality has increased during the COVID-19 pandemic; and what factors associated with belonging to different points on a continuum of suicidality risk., Methods: A nationally representative sample of Irish adults (N = 1,032) completed self-report measures in May 2020 and a follow-up in August 2020 (n = 715)., Results: Lifetime prevalence rates were 29.5% for suicidal ideation, 12.9% for non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI), and 11.2% for attempted suicide. There were no changes in past two-week rates of NSSI and attempted suicide during the pandemic. Correlations between the indicators of suicidality supported a progression from ideation to NSSI to attempted suicide. Suicidal ideation alone was associated with being male, unemployed, higher loneliness, and lower religiosity. NSSI (with no co-occurring attempted suicide) was associated with a history of mental health treatment. Attempted suicide was associated with ethnic minority status, lower education, lower income, PTSD, depression, and history of mental health treatment., Conclusion: Suicidal ideation, NSSI, and attempted suicide are relatively common phenomena in the general adult Irish population, and each has unique psychosocial correlates. These findings highlight important targets for prevention and intervention efforts., (© 2021 The Authors. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of American Association of Suicidology.)

The knowledge, attitudes, skills, and training of professionals regarding complicated grief influence their practice. We conducted 30 semi-structured interviews with psychiatrists, psychologists, and counselor/psychotherapists; the preliminary findings were contextualized via interviews with three experts in complicated grief research/practice. Findings suggest that professionals did not substantially rely on research evidence, favoring instead personal and professional knowledge. They expressed concern regarding the possible pathologization of normal grief that might arise from having a diagnosis of complicated grief. Deficits in professional training were evident. A need for an improved culture of collaboration between researchers and practitioners was identified.

Background: Research indicates that adults with intellectual disabilities are living longer. However, there is limited research on how this affects health and care needs., Objective: The present study aimed to examine the health and social care needs of older adults with intellectual disabilities in Ireland using multiple informants., Methods: Data were gathered from a sample of 20 adults aged 50 years or older (Mean = 59.1, SD = 5.9, range = 50-72; 11 female). The sample included individuals with mild (n = 7), moderate (n = 10) and severe/profound (n = 3) intellectual disabilities. Additional data from keyworkers (n = 19) and family carers (n = 15) provided a more complete understanding of needs., Results: Results revealed some areas of agreement and difference between adults with intellectual disability and their carers regarding the social care, employment, retirement, physical and mental health needs of this population., Conclusions: The findings of this study have potential implications for the provision of high-quality services for older adults with intellectual disabilities., (© 2021 The Authors. Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Objective: To systematically review evidence for the association between trauma experienced in childhood or adolescence, and the subsequent experience of affective or psychotic mental disorders in adulthood., Methods: Electronic databases (Scopus, Medline (for Ovid), EMBASE and PsychINFO) were searched for peer-reviewed, longitudinal cohort studies in the English language examining child or adolescent exposure to trauma, and adult-diagnosed depression, anxiety, psychotic disorder or bipolar disorder. A total of 23 manuscripts were retained., Results: Results revealed a significant association between the following childhood exposures and adult mental disorder: bullying (victimhood, perpetration and frequency); emotional abuse; physical neglect; parental loss; and general maltreatment (unspecified and/or multiple trauma exposure). There was some evidence of a dose-response relationship with those exposed to multiple forms of maltreatment having more than three times the odds of developing a mental disorder (Odds ratio = 3.11, 95% CI = 1.36-7.14). There was no significant association found between physical or sexual abuse and adult mental disorder; however, this is likely an artefact of how these adversities were assessed., Conclusion: There is strong evidence of an association between childhood trauma and later mental illness. This association is particularly evident for exposure to bullying, emotional abuse, maltreatment and parental loss. The evidence suggests that childhood and adolescence are an important time for risk for later mental illness, and an important period in which to focus intervention strategies., (© 2020 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Background Respite care has traditionally been conceptualised as a short residential break which allows families a break from caring responsibilities. In recent years, alternative respite services have been developed which promote greater social integration and normalisation for people with intellectual and other disabilities. Specific aim: The present study sought to explore the views of service managers and families on the definitions, aims, outcomes and general experiences of these programmes among a sample of adults with intellectual disabilities (ID) using a range of alternative respite services. Method Participants were managers of respite services for people with ID (n = 6) and family members (predominantly parents, n = 32) of adults receiving respite services from these organisations. All participants were provided with appropriate information on the study and gave consent. Semi-structured interviews were used to explore participants' perspectives on alternative respite provision for adults with ID. Data were analysed using thematic analysis, with multiple analysts involved to allow for reflection on the interpretation of data. Findings Managers and families showed diversity in the conceptualisations of respite services, with themes highlighting the importance of the break for both people with ID and families, as well as a clear focus on the needs of and developmental outcomes for the person with ID. As such respite was viewed as both a model of service and an outcome for families and individuals with ID. These differing views appeared to have implications for views on who was the target beneficiary of respite. Discussion The present study reflects alternative respite as a diverse experience for people with ID, their family members and the service providers supporting them. Nevertheless, views were generally positive. Further consideration of the nature of respite services beyond the traditional conceptualisation is warranted., Competing Interests: No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors., (© 2019 The British Society of Developmental Disabilities.)

Background: Complicated grief encompasses various presentations where aspects of grief do not become integrated into the bereaved person's life. Professionals' attitudes to complicated grief may impact how they engage with bereaved patients/clients. The aim of this study was to empirically examine the attitudes of mental health professionals, specifically psychologists, psychiatrists and counselor/psychotherapists, regarding complicated grief and to investigate any between profession-differences., Method: Psychiatrists, counselor/psychotherapists and psychologists were recruited using publicly available databases managed by professional bodies. A total of 185 professionals (71.8% female), returned a questionnaire containing usable data (23.8% response rate)., Results: Over two-thirds of the professionals (68.5%) supported the inclusion of complicated grief in diagnostic manuals while only a quarter (25.1%) thought that recognition of complicated grief might lead to the pathologization of 'normal' grief. The majority of respondents (83.0%) thought that diagnosing complicated grief would increase the likelihood of clients accessing support and there was no significant difference between the groups., Limitations: Although the response rate compares favorably with other studies it is nonetheless somewhat lower than optimum, and it is possible that those who responded were more interested in bereavement and consequently, that the attitudes held by participants are different from those who did not participate., Conclusion: The attitude to a diagnosis of complicated grief was more positive than the specialist literature suggests, with the benefits of having a diagnosis of complicated grief outweighing the risks of pathologization., (Copyright © 2019. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Background: Health disparities and disparities in the provision of healthcare to people with disabilities remains a topic of concern. Research demonstrates that attitudes of healthcare providers contribute to this disparity. The approach to disability education and training in medical school warrants evaluation., Objectives: This study sought to investigate the efficacy of an educational intervention in cultivating positive attitudes towards disability in medical students, and determine the specific impact of an interaction-based hospital visit to patients undergoing neurological rehabilitation., Methods: Web-based questionnaires were distributed to medical students undertaking a 12-week 'Understanding Disability' module. Measures of anxiety, attitude, competency and empathy were obtained from 65 students at the beginning (T1), middle (T2) and end (T3) of the module. At T2, approximately half of the students had completed a hospital visit and half had not., Results: Scores changed significantly across all constructs between the beginning and end of the module suggesting a positive overall module effect. Findings confirmed a significant difference in anxiety and empathy levels between the group of students who had completed the visit to the rehabilitation hospital by the middle survey wave and those who had not, indicating a specific placement effect., Conclusions: Our findings suggest that interpersonal contact with individuals with disabilities has a distinct impact on the affective variables of anxiety and empathy. Previous research suggests that this contributes towards improved attitudes to disability. Overall, we provide strong evidence for the inclusion of contact-based educational interventions in medical school to enhance students' attitudes to disability., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Objective: A systematic review and qualitative synthesis was undertaken to deduce the knowledge, attitudes, skills and training of mental health professionals regarding complicated grief (CG)., Methods: PsychInfo, Embase, Medline, CINAHL, PBSC, Web of Science and ERIC databases were used to identify relevant literature. Searches were executed from inception to September 2014., Results: The electronic search yielded 305 results. Forty-one papers were selected for full text review, 20 were included for analysis. 6 examined primary data, the remaining 14 being reviews, opinion or guideline pieces., Conclusions: Despite the lack of consensus on terminology, criteria and diagnosis, it appears that there is more than sufficient agreement within the CG research community regarding the knowledge and skills required to assist someone presenting with CG. A palpable fear of medicalising grief exists, but this would seem to be based on a conflation of normal grief and CG. This review highlights the mainly unidirectional nature of current research, the voice of the practitioner being largely unheard. A need for and an interest in training in CG was expressed., Practice Implications: There is an urgent need to translate research findings into clinical practice. Training must take account of attitudinal barriers to implementation, balancing evidence and stories., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Research suggests that shortcomings exist in the provision of palliative care to people with intellectual disabilities. This mixed-methods study aimed to describe the experience, confidence and attitudes of staff to the provision of palliative care to people with intellectual disabilities. The sample was drawn from the population of one Health Service Executive area in Ireland. Staff from intellectual disability and palliative care services completed surveys and participated in focus group discussions. Three hundred and eighty-nine questionnaires were distributed and 16 focus groups were held. Fifty-nine per cent of palliative care staff and 67% of intellectual disability services staff had cared for someone with intellectual disability who had died but level of experience was low. Both palliative care and intellectual disability services staff lacked confidence in their ability to provide palliative care. Staff were challenged by perceived 'differences' and 'difficulties' in the provision of care. They endorsed a partnership approach to care but focus group discussions revealed that a shared desire to cooperate was insufficient to guarantee effective collaboration.

Current research indicates that older persons with intellectual disabilities (ID) are a growing population with very specific needs. There are few existing studies that identify and characterise these needs. This study aimed to assess the health and social care needs of a group of older persons with ID in a community-based service in Ireland. The Camberwell Assessment of Need for Adults with Intellectual Disabilities-Short form (CANDID-S) was used to identify the health and social needs of 75 older persons with ID in a community-based service who were over the age of 50. The mean age of the sample was 57.6 years (SD=5.4, range 50-72) and 37.3% had mild ID, 46.7% had moderate ID and 16% had severe or profound ID. The most common 'unmet needs' reported were basic education and money budgeting (the ability to independently manage one's own finances). The top-rated 'met needs' were food and daytime activities. Participants with severe or profound ID reported significantly more 'unmet needs' than those with mild or moderate ID. The current study identified education and financial skills as unmet needs for older persons with ID, implying that continuing lifelong learning programmes might be a valuable and appropriate addition to service provision and retirement options. Further research should be carried out to inform a comprehensive evidence base of the health and social care needs of this group., (Copyright 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

This study describes a national data audit of the National Intellectual Disability Database (NIDD). The NIDD is a national information system for intellectual disability (ID) for Ireland. The purpose of this audit was to assess the overall accuracy of information contained on the NIDD, as well as collecting qualitative information to support the improvement in the quality of data contained on the NIDD. A nationally representative sample was generated from the NIDD. Twenty-five auditors were recruited from senior staff within statutory and voluntary intellectual disability services and trained by the authors. They carried out 250 clinical interviews with individuals with ID, their families and/or paid carers, using structured questionnaires. The data collected were analysed using frequency analyses and compared with the existing NIDD data set to assess accuracy. Qualitative information was also collected. Overall, the results from the audit indicate that almost three quarters (72.2%) of all the data recorded on the NIDD are accurate, with 19.3% inaccurate, and 8.5% of the sought audit data not returned. The audit found that the NIDD significantly overestimated the need for enhanced residential care services. The study highlights the need for clinician and service user involvement in specialist service data collection, in order to both conduct valid research and to best plan for ID service development., (Copyright 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Given the research evidence that people with intellectual disability (ID) do grieve following bereavement, the present study aimed to describe and gather preliminary psychometric data for a version of the Inventory of Complicated Grief [Prigerson, H. G., Maciejewski, P. K., Reynolds, C. F., Bierhals, A. J., Newsom, J. T., Fasiczka, A., et al. (1995). Inventory of Complicated Grief: A scale to measure maladaptive symptoms of loss. Psychiatry Research, 59, 65-79] adapted for use with this population. Carers completed the Complicated Grief Questionnaire for People with ID (CGQ-ID) for 76 individuals with ID, half of whom had experienced a parental bereavement within the last 2 years. The final scale and subscales (Separation Distress and Traumatic Grief) showed very good internal and inter-rater reliability and distinguished between the two groups. While the findings suggest that the CGQ-ID is suitable for identifying complicated grief-type symptoms among adults with ID, further research must be conducted to ascertain whether the findings can be replicated.

The Attention-Distraction, Inhibition-Excitation Classroom Assessment Scale (ADIECAS) [Evans, P. L. C. (1975). Inhibition and stimulus generalization in the discrimination learning of ESN(S) and ESN(M) children. Unpublished Ph.D. thesis. Manchester, UK: University of Manchester] assesses attention-related difficulties in children with intellectual disabilities (ID). The present study explored the psychometric properties of the ADIECAS with a sample of 84 children with moderate and severe ID whose teachers completed the ADIECAS and the Conners' Teachers Rating Scale [Goyette, C. H, Conners, C. K., & Ulrich, R. F. (1978). Normative data on revised Conners' parent and teachers rating scales. Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology, 6, 221-236]. Following factor analysis the Evans and Hogg [Evans, P. L. C., & Hogg, J. (1984). A classroom rating scale for use with mentally retarded children. British Journal of Clinical Psychology, 23, 187-194] structure was the most appropriate for use with this sample. Moderate to strong positive relationships were found between the ADIECAS and the Conners', and the ADIECAS factors were significant predictors of the Conners' subscales. This study provides further support for the ADIECAS as a reliable and valid measure of ADHD-related symptoms among children with moderate and severe ID.