Mental Health Practice

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Newsroom

Photo of nurse associate students in training, illustrating story about their introduction in Wales

NMC agrees to regulate nursing associate role in Wales

First nursing associates expected to begin training in autumn 2025

Picture of filing cabinet tabs with FRAUD in red letters and INVESTIGATIONS and LAW in black letters

Two nurses removed from NMC register for test fraud

Regulator found evidence of fraudulent computer-based tests at a centre in Nigeria

A sad-looking young man sits on a park bench alone smoking a cigarette

Physical health and well-being: how you can help service users

People living with severe mental illness often experience poor physical health

Nursing and Midwifery nameplate outside its HQ

Nurse suspended after trying to get selfie with footballer

NMC gives nurse four-month suspension for breaching code and patient privacy

Striking nurses at Daisy Hill Hospital in Newry

Nurses reject pay offer as it falls short of giving them parity

Nurses in Northern Ireland refuse deal that fails to bring them in line with England

Image of four students turning their backs on a beckoning figure standing at a doorway labelled ‘Nursing Careers’

Why are students turning away from nursing courses?

Promises of a rewarding career fail to halt a decline in applicants for nursing courses

Evidence and Practice

Delirium superimposed on dementia: mental health nurses’ experiences of providing care

Delirium superimposed on dementia: mental health nurses’ experiences of providing care

Knowing patients cannot be reduced to a numerical tool and an integrated approach is needed

Exploring the role of social media use in eating disorders in adolescents: a scoping review

Exploring the role of social media in eating disorders in adolescents: a scoping review

Social media use in this age group has been shown to have both protective and adverse effects

Preventing suicide by jumping in public locations: a systematic review of interventions

Preventing suicide by jumping in public locations: a systematic review of interventions

Interventions to restrict access to means of suicide are correlated with reduced suicide...

Epilepsy: understanding its emotional and psychological effects and its relationship with mental illness

Epilepsy: emotional and psychological effects and relationship with mental illness

Epilepsy and mental health services should work together to provide coordinated care

Exploring service users’ experience of transition from inpatient rehabilitation to community settings

Service users’ experience of transition to community settings 

An evaluation of the work of a community enhanced rehabilitation team

Open access
Supporting people with co-occurring mental health issues, alcohol and drug use

Supporting people with co-occurring mental health issues, alcohol and drug use

Enhance your assessment skills when working with such service users

Features

A nurse in scrubs is frowning and hunching her shoulders in a sign of distress

Under excess pressure? The emotional signs of stress and how to deal with them

Tips for identifying worrying signs and supporting yourself and colleagues

Illustration featuring five different NHS uniform tunic colours, from left to right: indigo, green, sea blue, navy blue and light blue

Uniform approach: what we like about our standardised scrubs

Nurses from Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland on the pros of their nations’ uniforms

Illustration shows healthcare staff around a table formed from a clock face to suggest a team approach to rostering

Rostering: could more control over your shift timings transform your work-life balance?

Team-based rostering pilots point to improved staff retention and greater collaboration

An illustration showing a smiling nurse in uniform standing in front of a crowd, represented by several sets of hands raised high and clapping

Daunted by public speaking? Tips to take you from nervous to confident

Nurse experts share their advice on how to prepare well and engage an audience

Mental health nurse Matty Caine is founder of First Person Project

I came close to death – now I’m using my experience to improve mental healthcare

Mental health nurse Matty Caine on his pioneering service First Person Project

Community nurse arrives at man’s front door. The two greet each other, suggesting a they share a warm bond

Bonding with long-term patients: promoting continuity of care within healthy boundaries

Tips on fostering ongoing therapeutic relationships while avoiding undue attachment

Opinion

Close-up image of two hands, as a nurse in uniform sits at the bedside of a dying patient in hospital, holding their hand

When a patient is dying: nurses’ role in the hours before and after death

Recognising when death is near, verifying death and providing compassionate care

A nurse appears apprehensive while being questioned by a senior nurse

Can difficult personal circumstances excuse mistakes at work?

We ask our readers if factors outside of work should be considered relevant

Illustration showing two nursing team members in uniform standing pointing at a huge shift roster, as if discussing filling or swapping shifts

Unsocial shifts and rotas: what’s your breaking point?

Nurses are flexible but there has to be give and take if the NHS is to boost retention

Students

Nursing student Andrew Poole sits at a table in a community hall talking to a parish nursing client while on clinical placement

Community placement: what does working with parish nurses involve?

Parish nursing teams can offer scope to develop communication and health promotion skills

A nursing student smiles as she sits next to a resident in a care home while on placement

How to secure your dream job in your favourite placement setting

Showing a passion for the nursing specialty and telling managers what you want will help

Patient consent

Navigating patient consent: tips for nursing students

Practical advice on the fundamentals of consent and determining capacity

Careers

Three young woman huddle together, all looking at their phones. Social media can effective in advertising nurse vacancies

Social media recruitment: how you can turbo-charge interest in vacancies where you work

TikTok and other platforms are proving to be powerful tools for filling nurse roles

Top half of clock-face, with the word deadline emblazoned on it, the time showing six minutes to midnight. Revalidation deadlines can induce panic in NMC registrants

Help! My revalidation is looming and I’m worried I’ve left it too late to get started

Don’t panic – let our portfolio tool take the strain out of organising your documents

Sexual assault referrals: my work as a forensic nurse examiner

A typical day in this demanding role, and the skills and compassion required

Jobs