Under COVID-19 lockdown, mostly all organizations in non-productive sphere had to implement distant work forms. The personnel obligatory and rapidly switched to unknown work conditions and faced new stressors: COVID-19 fears, unstable internet connections, tensed communications, permanent noise, work hours extension. In order to cope with increased daily stress, the new version of self-regulation training program (Leonova, Kuznetsova, 2019) was implemented in distant format in order to train people: to evaluate the impact of distant work stressors; to measure stress manifestations during work hours; to choose self-regulation skills, effective for distant stress reduction.

In order to verify the distant training program, the empirical study was conducted, targeted to estimate effectiveness of self-regulation means during COVID-19 pandemic period.

The program included progressive relaxation exercises as means for anxiety reduction and negative emotions control, and autogenic exercises for achievement an optimal for different work situations mental state. The empirical data were obtained by diagnostic methods for self-assessment of the main distant stress manifestations: anxiety and high fatigue (Spielberger, 1994, Leonova, 2012).

The program verification was conducted in employees of municipal administration offices (n = 214). The empirical data revealed high effectiveness of relaxation and autogenic means in decrease of anxiety (t=8,64; p<0,001) and fatigue (t=9,18; p<0,001).

The first variant of distant program could be recommended for stress-management under pandemic lockdown. At the same time, advanced evaluating procedures are necessary to measure the coping effect of such programs, and to prove stress-reduction capacities of specialized distant training modules.

Isolation, life changes and increased stress lead to widespread concerns about the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on psychiatric patients. The rise in depressive disorders is one of the negative effects associated directly and indirectly to the pandemic.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the prevalence of depressive disorders among the patients admitted to our hospital. The state of pandemia was declared on the 11th of March but it had already become a main stream media subject in our country at the beginning of the month with real life changes for our citizens.

A retrospective study was performed at the Psychiatric Hospital ‘Elisabeta Doamna’ Galati, using the exact same period, between 01.03 and 30.09, in 2019 and 2020. ICD-10 criteria were used and pacients with either F32.x,F33.x or F38.x as discharge diagnosis were included.

In total, 7638 cases were admitted during the period in 2019, of which 751 (9,83%) had depressive disorders. In comparison with 2020 where out of 4050 admitted patients, the number had risen to 1034 (25,53%) a net increase in total number of cases by 37.6%.

Analysis of the data shows a 2.5 times increase in the percentage of depressive disorders among our patients. Even taking in account the lower admition rates, we have seen a clear shift in the psychiatric profile of the average pacient and this has to be taken into consideration in the long and short term treatment of any psychiatric patient.

With the growing recognition of overweightness and obesity as significant, international public health concerns, the body of research investigating the relationship between body mass index (BMI), sexual health and sexual functioning in sexual minority men is still scarce.

The purpose of this study is to assess sexual health determinants (sexual behavior and sexual functioning) in relation to normal weight, overweightness and obesity among gay and bisexual men.

The survey included four categories of questions/measurements, encompassing sociodemographic information, protected/unprotected sexual behaviors, sexual functioning, and BMI. The survey was conducted online, and recruitment consisted of online notifications (emails and electronic messages), and advertisements sent to LGBT community organizations, mailing lists, and social networks.

The study sample was composed of 741 gay and bisexual men, ranging in age from 21 to 75 years old (Mage=43.30, SDage=11.37), 62.5% of men self-identified as gay and 37.5% as bisexual. Prevalence of normal weight was 50.3%, of overweight 33.3% and of obesity 16.4%. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis to assess the effects of BMI on sexual health showed that being younger in age, self-identifying as gay, being in a relationship, having longer penises, adopting insertive position in sex and being normal weight were significant predictors of anal receptive sex without condoms, explaining 24.2% of the total variance. Yet, BMI was not predictive of sexual functioning.

These findings highlight the importance of including BMI in sexual behavior models of sexual minority men to better understand BMI’s role in influencing sexual risk.

The Addictions Recovery Community Hillingdon (ARCH) is a specialist addictions treatment service, providing a range of inteventions for substance use disorders. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic required healthcare services to rapidly adapt clinical care in order to safeguard patients and staff from contracting the virus whilst managing clinical risk. Key changes were made to treatment pathways at ARCH.

1. Reduce face-to-face contact between patients and staff (including community pharmacists) 2. To get feedback from patients and staff about changes implemented

To reduce face-to-face contact, we aimed to decrease the number of patients having supervised consumption of Opiate Substitute Treatment (OST). Furthermore, telephone consultations were encouraged for keyworking and reviews. Patients were randomly selected and interviewed about their experiences and focus groups were be completed with staff.

Supervised consumption of OST was reduced from 41.5% to 6%. Face-to-face appointments were significantly reduced and telephone consultations were introduced as standard. Telephone reviews became the standard method of contact for keyworking sessions and medical reviews. 53% of services whose interval between instalment collection of OST at community pharmacies was extended found it ‘easy’ or ‘very easy’ to adapt to. 61% of service users who had access virtual platforms finding it ‘easy’ or ‘very easy’ to access support. Focus groups of staff members revealed that stafff felt the changes in instalment collection of OST was positive for patients.

ARCH implemented a number of changes to treatment pathways and inteventions to minimise the risk of virus transmission amongst patients and staff whilst managing clinical risk.

Sexual minority individuals consistently report higher rates of mental disorders and suicidal behavior than heterosexuals. However, much of this research is limited to Anglo-Saxon studies and no information on Portuguese reality is available.

The purpose of this study is to compare levels of mental functioning and suicidal behavior among heterosexual, bisexual, and homosexual individuals in Portugal.

Using online surveys, 1140 individuals (62.40% women, Mage = 36.83, SDage = 13.39, 76.4% heterosexual, 9.4% bisexual, and 14.2% gay or lesbian) completed the BSI subscales for depression and anxiety symptoms, as well as the Suicide Behaviors Questionnaire-Revised.

Self-identified bisexual participants presented higher levels of depressive and anxiety symptoms and higher levels of suicidal ideation and likelihood of suicidal behavior than homosexual and heterosexual participants (who scored the lowest); yet, homosexual participants showed higher levels of suicide attempts. Also, depression and anxiety symptoms were strongly and positively correlated with all dimensions of suicidal behavior. Finally, hierarchical multiple regression analysis showed that higher levels of depression and non-heterosexual sexual orientations were significant predictors of suicidal ideation and the likelihood of suicidal behavior.

The present study adds to the evidence that sexual minority individuals are at risk of increased mental health problems and suicidal behavior, compared to heterosexuals, and reiterates the need for local political and legislative efforts to normalize LGB identities, fighting continued institutional heterosexism, interpersonal intolerance. Mental health providers and mental health policymakers need to consider these results if they want to address inequalities in mental health and in suicidality among these minority groups.

Health care professionals are particularly concerned with burnout

This study aimed to evaluate the the factors predisposing to occupational burnout

This was a cross sectional study including health care professionals in medical oncology working in public hospitals in Tunisia. It was carried out from 15 January 2019 to 15 June 2019. Health profeessionals were asked to answer the Maslach –Burnout Inventory Test.

The mean age was 34 ± 6.7 years [23 - 57]. The sex ratio was 0.22. Our study population included 37 doctors (53%) and 33 nurses (47%). The inappropriate working conditions mentioned by the participants were as follows: The requirementss of patients and their families (91.5%), the lack of resources (87%), overwork found (83%), unsatisfactory effort- salary ratio (83%) and the reduced number of staff (77%). Several Burn-out factors mentioned by the participants were significantly associated with a high emotional exhaustion syndrome: overwork, poor service organization, lack of resources, lack of time, lack of recognition, conflicts with colleagues, lack of communication, unsatisfactory salary - effort ratio, assaults by patients. Several factors were positively and significantly associated with a high depersonalization score: overwork, poor service organization, small number of staff, lack of resources, lack of respect, lack of recognition. The global burnout associating the achievement of the three dimensions was significantly associated with overwork, lack of recognition, conflicts with colleagues and assault by patients.

Burnout has become a major issue in Tunisian medicine. If left untreated, burnout epidemic may continue to worsen, to the detriment of patients and doctors

Recovery is much broader than experiencing remission of symptoms. It is understood as the experience of a subjectively significant and satisfying life, even if some symptoms of mental illness persist. The recovery process from borderline personality disorder (BPD) is complex and includes recognizing the need for change and developing greater self-acceptance.

Provide an overview of personal recovery from BPD.

The authors did a non-systematic review in pubmed with the words: “borderline personality disorder” and “Recovery”.

BPD is a serious mental disorder characterized by a pattern of instability in interpersonal relationships, self-image and affections, marked by impulsiveness and (para) suicidal behaviors. Unemployment and difficulties in obtaining and maintaining employment are highly prevalent on BPD and add social exclusion and deterioration of physical and mental health. Recent long-term follow-up studies offer a optimistic scenario, indicating high rates of clinical remission (not equivalent to full recovery). Most psychotherapies, such as dialectical behavioral therapy (DBT) or mentalization-based therapy, have proven their effectiveness in treating emotional dysregulation, impulsivity and interpersonal difficulties. Teams working with people with BPD should develop comprehensive multidisciplinary care plans. The care plan should identify long-term goals that should be realistic, and linked to the short-term treatment aims and develop a crisis plan that identifies potential triggers that could lead to a crisis.

Cognitive rehabilitation and psychoeducational interventions can be effective in individuals with BPD. These interventions can be easily implemented in mental health settings and offer benefits for improving overall functioning, which often remains affected after clinical remission in long-term follow-up.

Covid-19 pandemic represents o very stressfull period for many individuals. Intimate partner violence is typically experienced by women but can also be experienced by men. During quarantine due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the risk for domestic violence increased.

The aim of this study was to compare domestic violence durind two different periods - 14.03.2019-30.09.2019 and the same period of the year 2020.

We analyzed the data base of the Legal Institut from Cluj-napoca and we selected the cases with domestic violence.

The violent behaviour incresed durind 2020. Due to the feelings of frustration and agitation, agression arises with possible trasgenerational transmission of trauma and violence.

Taking into consideration that Covid19 pandemic is a very stressfull period for all individuals, a need of programms aimed to prevent acts of domestic violence and to achieve accurate assessment of multiple domains of abuse (psychological, physical, sexual) provided by psychologists, psychiatrists, social and legal services emerged.

Stress can be described as a dynamic and reciprocal relationship between the person and the environment. Nursing is considered as an occupation with a constellation of circumstances leading to stress.

This study aims to assess perceived stress among staff nurses in Hedi Chaker and Habib bourguiba Hospital from Sfax city, Tunisia

Nurses from Hedi Chaker and Habib bourguiba University hospitals in Sfax- Tunisia were invited to complete a structured self-report questionnaire. The questionnaire consists of the following parts: Perceived Stress Scale (10-item form), personal data and information relevant to types of work shifts and years of experience.

A total of 146 (males = 49; females = 97) nurses participated in this study. The mean age was 37 years. Nearly 82 % of the participants considered themselves in very good health. Rotating shifts work was noted in 72.50% of cases. The average length of working experience was 7.96 years. The stress in most of nurses was in severe level (74.65%), followed by mild (23.28%) and moderate (2.05%) levels. High level of perceived stress was significantly associated with general health problems (P= 0.032). No significant association was found between level of perceived stress, types of work shifts and years of experience.

The results show a significantly high level of stress among staff nurses. Hence, nurses need support and subsequent interventions to cope with stress. Actions in this direction may contribute to the improvement of health, well-being and quality of life of the professionals.

No significant relationships.

Age-related vascular changes have long been documented as an etiopathogenic factor of some geriatric depressive syndromes. More recently, it has emerged the concept of “Vascular Depression” recognizing that cardiovascular disease may predispose, precipitate or perpetuate late life depression. This condition was defined by an episode of major depressive disorder within the preceding 12 months in elderly with cardiovascular/cerebrovascular disease, or major cardiovascular risk factors. Vascular Depression isn`t described in DSM-V, and that difficults clinical recognition and affects clinically informed systematic studies.

Regarding a clinical case, we enphasize the clinical impact of Vascular Depression`s hypothesis.

We present a qualitative review of this topic using the Pubmed Central database.

74 years old male patient, with major depressive disorder about ten years. Depressive and cognitive symptoms didn`t respond to antidepressive treatment and his functional state has gradually declined.

Vascular depression develops after the 60 – 65 years in the absence of personal and family history of affective disorder. The key symptoms are low energy, anhedonia, deficits in selfinitiation, psychomotor retardation, reduced processing speed and lack of insight into mood symptoms. Clinical assessment includes a review of history of vascular risk factors or/and disease, but also an imagiological evidence demonstrating subcortical white matter abnormalities. Insidious and chronic course tends to delay its recognition and management. This becomes critical because Vascular Depression is associated with poor response to antidepressant treatment and persistent depressive symptoms. It`s also associated with poor selfmanagement of comorbidities and impairment in daily function. Increased mortality from all causes is widely documented.

Widespread outbreaks of infectious disease, such as COVID-19, are associated with psychological distress and symptoms of mental illness especially for patients with suggestive symptoms.

Predict the prevalence of perceived stress and study associated factors among patients with suspected COVID-19 infection.

A cross sectional study was conducted between April and May 2020. Patients consulting the sorting box at the Hedi Chaker Hospital of Sfax and declared suspect to be infected by COVID-19 were invited to participate in our study after given their cosent. Perceived Stress Scale-10 was used to evaluate prevalence of perceived stress.

In total, 149 participants participated. The mean age was 38.8±15.39 years. Medical or surgical history and psychiatric history were identified respectively in 30,2% and 12.1% of participants. Among all respondents, 74.5% took a nasopharyngeal swab to look for COVID-19 and only 6.4% had a positive test. Close contact with someone with a positive COVID-19 infection was found in 8.05%. Several participants (79,2%) expressed fear of transmitting the disease to their family members. The mean of the PSS-10 score was 11.97±9.83. Moderate to severe perceived stress was found in 44.3% of patients. Significantly higher scores were observed among participants with a positive pharyngeal swab for COVID-19 as well as those who perceived worry of transmetting the disease. No significant differences in perceived stress’ scores according to socio-demographic data.

Perceived stress was high among patients with suspected COVID-19 infection. Perceiving worry of transmetting the disease and having a positive pharyngeal swab for COVID-19 were the principal risk factors.

No significant relationships.

Bipolar disorder (BD) is associated with premature death and ischemic heart disease is the main cause of excess mortality. The predictive power of heart rate variability (HRV) for mortality has been confirmed in patients with or without cardiovascular disease. While several studies have analyzed the association between HRV and BD, their results are incongruent; and none has analyzed the effect of the clinical factors characterizing illness burden on HRV.

To assess the association between HRV and the following factors characterizing illness burden: illness duration, number and type of previous episode(s), duration of the most severe depressive or hypomanic/manic episode, severity of episodes, co-morbid psychiatric disorders, family history of BD or suicide, and duration and polarity of current episode in participants experiencing one.

We used a wearable device in 53 BD participants to assess the association between HRV using 4 measures (RMSSD, SDANN, SDNN and RR Triangular Index) and the abovementioned clinical factors characterizing illness burden. For each of the 4 HRV measures we ran 11 models, one for each burden of illness clinical factor as an independent variable.

Longer illness duration, higher number of depressive episodes, and family history of suicide were negatively correlated with HRV; in the 14 participants experiencing a depressive episode, the MADRS score was negatively correlated with HRV

Our study analyzed the association between burden of illness and HRV in BD, while controlling for functional cardiovascular status, age, sex, BMI, education, and treatment. Our results showed that high illness burden is associated with reduced HRV.

No significant relationships.

The coronavirus pandemic has challenged the world with an unprecedented situation. Social distancing, self or quarantine isolation, personal hand hygiene, self-protection, and the fear of becoming infected with the virus, come with a psychological fallout. The COVID-19 pandemic has affected students around the world, in terms of their education and lifestyle.

To investigate the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the students’ mental health and well-being at the University of Patras, in Western Greece.

An online questionnaire was prepared to collect responses from students during April 2020. Socio-demographic data, academic status, opinions about distance learning, changes in daily routine during the lockdown and anxiety and depression scores, according to the Greek version of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), were gathered.

The total number of responders was 2009, of which 67.3% women. During lockdown, the 68% of the students returned to their family home. Anxiety and depression scores were higher in students with a low income, poor self-rated health, not informed about COVID-19, not satisfied with distance learning and being annoyed at staying home. Prevalence of anxiety and depression was found to be 35.8% and 51.2%, ranging from 26.7% to 48.2% for anxiety and from 36.3% to 60.5% for depression in Health Sciences and Humanities and Social Sciences, respectively.

Depression rates among university students in Greece were alarmingly high, denoting the impact of lockdown and changes in students’ life, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The field of psychiatry extends from diagnosis to treatment, including prevention and various cognitive behavioral and emotional disorders.

To study the activity of Mahdia’s psychiatric department in order to improve its outcomes.

This study was retrospective based on reporting data of the inpatients during 3 years (2016-2018) and then analyzing them.

This study involved 395 patients with an average age 36.6 years. The sex ratio M/F was 1.58. The prevalence of the disorders was more marked with the low socio-economic level, school failure and unemployment. 37% had a family psychiatry history and schizophrenia was the most common. 75.5% had a personal psychiatric history and 16.8% had a history of suicide attempt. Schizophrenia (28%), Bipolar Disorder (22.1%) and Depression (14.7%) were the main conditions. The majority 79.2% had irregular medical follow-up, 44% had poor therapeutic adherence. The majority 86.6% were hospitalized without consent. The most common reason was aggression and the average length of stay was 19.47 days. The mean duration of parenteral therapy was 4.38 days. Electro-convulsive therapy was indicated for only 16 patients. Typical antipsychotics were the most prescribed 37.4%. The exit treatment was monotherapy in 14.3% and polytherapy in 83.4%. The exit destination was home in 98% and the obligation follow-up was only indicated in 2.8% (11patients).

This study is at the heart of psychiatric news with many questions around these coercive practices at legal and ethical level, particularly respect for freedom, legitimacy of these measures, patients’ safety and the quality of the treatments.

Media multitasking (MMT) begins to play an increasingly important role in terms of the digitalization of everyday life. At the same time, the effect of MMT on efficiency is still poorly highlighted, especially among the younger generation (May, Elder, 2018; Patterson, 2017; Peifer, Zipp, 2019).

The aim is to identify types of MMT in children and compare them by productivity and time of task performance.

Quasi-experimental research, which included the performance of tasks on a computer and a smartphone, was conducted among children in three groups aged 7-10 years, 11-13 years, 14-16 years (N=154).

Based on a number of criteria, several types of behavior are identified in the MMT environment: two subgroups of “single-taskers” (23%), “light” (19%), “medium” (54%) and “heavy” (4%) MMT. Comparative analysis (p=0.027) reveals high scores for proper task performance of the subgroup “single-taskers1”, as well as “heavy” and “light” MMT. The other subgroup “single-taskers2” and “medium” MMT show, on the contrary, low productivity results. MMT groups also differ in terms of task performance time (p=0.006). The “light” and “heavy” MMT cope the fastest. The second place by the speed of task performance is held by “medium” MMTs and “single-taskers1”, and the slowest are “single-taskers2”.

The results show that both linear and nonlinear behavioral strategies can lead to a certain level of performance. Most children try to operate in the MMT mode and it is becoming the dominant and ubiquitous modus vivendi for the younger generation. The reported study was funded by RFBR, project No. 19-29-14181.

The reported study was funded by RFBR, project No. 19-29-14181.

There are wide-spread fears and expectations about radiotherapy in people referred to it that are not only unrealistic (Shaverdian et al., 2018) but also lead to poorer compliance with doctors and poorer satisfaction with treatment (Dong et al., 2014).

The aim was to reveal relationship between different aspects of subjective perception of radiotherapy in patients and their well-being.

34 patients first referred to radiotherapy, 23-70 years old (mostly females with breast cancer) filled modified version of Beliefs about Medication Questionnaire including items about radiotherapy (Horne et al., 1996), Satisfaction With Life Scale (Diener et al., 1985), Scale of Positive And Negative Experience (Diener et al., 2009).

Six scales were revealed by factor analysis in the structure of beliefs about radiotherapy (Cronbach’s alphas .74-.85): confidence in the effectiveness of radiation therapy, subjective need for it, lack of understanding of it, concern and general negative attitudes towards radiotherapy, doubts about the effectiveness of radiation therapy. Elder patients reported higher need for radiotherapy but also higher concerns about it (r=.35-.37). Concerns about radiotherapy were related to lower satisfaction with life and positive emotions (r=-.44 - -.34) while subjective need of radiotherapy was related to higher health anxiety (r=.71) and lower positive emotions (r=-.41).

Subjective concerns of patients regarding radiotherapy are related to poorer well-being and could be addressed in psychotherapy.

Smoking rates are quite high among overweight and obese individuals. Many smokers with excess weight are at increased risk for health complications and report that concern about post-cessation weight gain is a barrier to quitting. It is necessary to perform studies to assess the efficacy of interventions for smoking cessation among individuals with excess weight.

To describe in-treatment behaviors, in terms of smoking and weight, in an integrated intervention for smoking cessation and weight gain management.

A total of 16 smokers (37.5% females, Mage=52.31, SD=9.58) were randomly assigned to one of the two following 8-week smoking cessation conditions: 1) Cognitive-Behavioral Treatment (CBT) for gradual smoking cessation + a Weight Gain Prevention (WGP) module for weight stability (n=7); 2) the same treatment alongside Contingency Management (CM) for smoking abstinence (n=9). Smoking behavior (cigarettes per day, carbon monoxide (CO) in expired air and urine cotinine) and weight were tracked at every visit from baseline through the end of treatment.

Cigarettes per day significantly decreased in both conditions (p≤.028), as well as CO (p≤.018) and cotinine (p≤.043). Regarding body weight gain, participants maintained their body weight (Kg) from baseline to the end of treatment (CBT+WGP: Δkg= .671, CBT+WGP+CM: Δkg= .667, p≥.058) and their BMI (CBT+WGP: 30.56 vs. 30.85, CBT+WGP+CM: 29.74 vs. 29.85, p≥.139).

Preliminary data indicated that a multicomponent intervention to promote gradual smoking cessation and prevent weight gain facilitates in-treatment tobacco reduction and weight stability. CM procedures improved in-treatment smoking behaviors.

No significant relationships.

In the Danish social welfare system, few people are homeless solely for economic reasons. In fact, 38% of homeless people suffer from both substance use and a psychiatric disorder, making diagnostic assessment and treatment difficult. This patient group, with dual diagnoses, often fail to receive effective treatment, and the consequences are far reaching and detrimental. A more comprehensive grasp of the history and patterns of substance use in these patients may contribute to improve their treatment.

To identify the role and patterns of substance use in mentally ill, homeless people.

50 homeless, mentally ill patients are examined in comprehensive interviews, exploring the relationship between substance use, homelessness, and suffering from a mental disorder. The data are analyzed quantitatively as well as qualitatively using thematic analysis.

Preliminary results indicate that substance use in mentally ill homeless patients is a complex phenomenon. On the one hand, substance use seems to contribute to keep the patient homeless and makes it difficult for the patient to get the necessary psychiatric help. On the other hand, substance use also appear to play an important part in coping with life on the streets by offering some kind of social contact and some relief from a desperate situation.

It seems that the triad of substance use, mental illness, and homelessness somehow reinforce each other and simultaneously locks the situation. New approaches for disentangling this locked situation and avoiding this ‘Bermuda triangle’ is needed.

Schoolchildren with ADHD have difficulties in different areas of their lives and sometimes need drug treatment. To comprehensively assess the response to treatment, it is interesting to use quality of life questionnaires where the child’s perspective is assessed.

To evaluate the quality of life in children with ADHD.

Sample of 14 schoolchildren from 11 to 14 years of age who attended a primary care check-up and were diagnosed with ADHD under treatment with long-acting methylphenidate. Parent informed consent. AUQUEI questionnaire Spanish versión

Participants answered the questionnaire before starting treatment, at 3 months and 6 months. Four factors were differentiated with different scores: In the baseline results (before treatment), great difficulties were observed in academic performance in 90% (F4, mean 5), family life in 70% (F1, mean 5) and 30% % in leisure (F2, mean 10). After months of treatment, an improvement was observed in the scores regarding academic performance (F4, mean 13) and family life (F1, mean 9). The female sex presented better total scores in quality of life at six months evaluation.

The AUQUEI is an easy-to-apply questionnaire specific to the child population that provides us with a profile from the child’s point of view and can be very useful in the primary care consultation in the comprehensive assessment of the quality of life of the schoolchild with ADHD and pharmacological approach.

The bi-directional relationship between mental and physical illness is well established. Therefore, in order to lower the already high mortality rates associated with psychiatric disorders, physical health issues must be closely monitored in this population [1,2]. A recent Lancet commission highlights emerging strategies and recommendations for improvement of physical health outcomes in patients with chronic mental disorders. These strategies involve better integration of physical and mental health care, combined with broader implementation of lifestyle interventions to reduce elevated cardiometabolic risk and attenuate medication side-effects [3].

To assess psychiatrists’ confidence levels in physical healthcare competencies; to explore whether confidence was related to learning opportunities.

Physical healthcare learning objectives were extracted from the Irish College of Psychiatrists’ training curriculum. An electronic questionnaire was sent to 50 psychiatrists in one Irish healthcare region with a catchment area of c. 450,000. Participants had to rate confidence levels for each competency on a five-point Likert scale and the availability of learning opportunities for attaining each competency.

66% response rate was achieved. A majority reported confidence in cardiovascular examination, interpreting blood results and evaluating comorbidities. A minority reported confidence in interpreting imaging, electrocardiograms and recognising medical emergencies. This corresponds to a relative paucity of learning opportunities.

Clinical implication Programmes for trainee doctors and CME opportunities for consultant psychiatrists would benefit from an emphasis on physical health examination and modules on interpreting investigations and the recognition of medical emergencies.