Document Type
Journal Article
Publication Title
Issues in Mental Health Nursing
Volume
45
Issue
4
First Page
429
Last Page
435
PubMed ID
38478474
Publisher
Taylor & Francis
School
School of Nursing and Midwifery
RAS ID
65511
Funders
Western Australian Department of Health under Targeted Research Funds 2013
Abstract
Primary care is crucial to the health of people with mental illness. However, there is limited information on their reported engagement in this setting. This study surveyed 100 people with mental illness who had a general practitioner or a general practitioner and a case manager from a tertiary mental health service to determine their engagement level with their GP and what interventions they received to manage their health. Forty-four per cent had their psychotropic medications primarily prescribed by their GP, and 58% reported visiting their GP for physical health problems. Ninety-four point nine percent of participants aged 50 years and over had not received government age-recommended preventive health checks. Only 62% of participants reported being screened by their GP for psychotropic side effects. Primary care plays a crucial role in providing physical and mental health care, but service users report gaps in service. The findings suggest a need to support primary care professionals further to coordinate care across primary and secondary care settings.
DOI
10.1080/01612840.2024.2312180
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.
Comments
Ngune, I., Wynaden, D., & Heslop, K. (2024). Physical health of people with mental illness: A snapshot of consumer engagement in the provision of care in primary care. Issues in Mental Health Nursing, 45(4), 429-435. https://doi.org/10.1080/01612840.2024.2312180