Mental health improvement in Scotland: supporting evidence into and from practice
| Pages | 29-36 |
| Published date | 01 September 2004 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/17465729200400017 |
| Date | 01 September 2004 |
| Author | Emma Hogg |
| Subject Matter | Health & social care |
ABSTRACT
This article briefly outlines some of the debates and discussions currently taking place in public health with regards to what ‘counts’ as
evidence, as well as evidence use. This provides the context for describing a new programme of work currently being developed in Scotland
by the national health improvement agency, as one of several support functions for the implementation of the Scottish Executive National
Programme for Improving Mental Health and Well-Being. This programme of work is aiming to support evidence into practice and practice
into evidence in mental health improvement in Scotland.
Emma Hogg
Research specialist, mental health improvement
NHS Health Scotland
journal of mental health promotion •volume 3•issue 3 •september 2004 © Pavilion Publishing (Brighton) Ltd 29
Mental health improvement in Scotland:
supporting evidence into and from practice
In the year 2000 Scottish Executive policy outlined a
commitment to mental health as an integral part of the
wider agenda for public health and health improvement
in Scotland (Scottish Executive, 2000). Subsequently,
in October 2001, the Scottish Executive announced a
new National Programme for Improving Mental
Health and Well-Being (Henderson et al, 2002;
www.wellontheweb.net). For the first time in Scotland,
national policy and related resources have been
dedicated to advancing mental health improvement.
These developments have signalled a significant and
welcomed shift in policy focus. In addition to issues of
treatment, mental health policy now includes raising
awareness of mental health issues, promoting mental
well-being and preventing mental health problems, as
well as encouraging and supporting early identification,
early intervention and recovery.
Since its announcement, the National Programme
has established sound mechanisms for engaging and
consulting with a wide range of organisations and
professional groups across Scotland. A key forum is the
National Advisory Group, chaired by the Deputy
Minister for Health and Community Care, which
advises Scottish ministers on the programme’s strategic
direction and implementation. Group membership
includes a wide range of interests and experience, from
mental health and community development sectors
through to voluntary agencies, employers, trade
unionists, people working in education, the health
service, local authorities and housing, and others. A
range of Scottish Executive departments – education,
health, social inclusion, employment and life-long
learning and justice – are also represented.
In September 2003 the National Programme
published its Action Plan (Scottish Executive, 2003a).
This plan sets out the key aims and priority areas for
action, both nationally and locally, between 2003-2006
(figure 1). Taking forward work on these key aims and
priority areas will depend on reliable and up-to-date
mental health improvement evidence. With this in
mind, the Action Plan identified a variety of activities
necessary to support implementation, including:
•collecting and disseminating the evidence base for
mental health improvement and supporting local
practice
•developing and commissioning a programme of
national research
•supporting and commissioning an evaluation of the
National Programme and its key components
•developing a core set of public mental health
indicators to measure and track progress
•establishing and supporting learning networks and
other opportunities to foster the exchange of
experience, skills and ideas.
Responsibility for these support functions lies jointly
with NHS Health Scotland1and the National
Programme’s mental health research team (table 1).
The rest of this paper describes in more detail the
programme of work being taken forward by NHS
1NHS Health Scotland is the national health improvement agency in Scotland and is a key implementation body for the National Programme.
Policy
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