Developing a service to monitor and improve physical health in people with serious mental illness

Developing effective models of identifying and managing physical health problems amongst mentally ill populations has become a more pressing issue in recent years as the prescription of Second Generation Antipsychotics (SGAs) has burgeoned. Some of the side effects commonly associated with SGAs such as weight gain and metabolic disorders have potentially devastating effects on health and well-being, increasing cardiovascular risk and the incidence of diabetes. The Well-Being Support Programme (WSP), a nurse-led service, was designed to provide a care delivery system whereby physical problems could be identified and appropriate treatment and monitoring initiated by prompt referral to suitable specialist services or general practitioners, forging strong links between primary and secondary care and ensuring that mentally ill patients with physical health problems were receiving holistic care packages. Other problems such as unhealthy lifestyles and obesity were managed by the Nurse Advisor running the programme. Interventions such as weight counselling and groups, and structured exercise programmes were beneficial in terms of encouraging healthier lifestyles, managing obesity and improving self-esteem. This paper describes the manner in which the service was set up and implemented, demonstrating an effective model for identifying and managing physical health problems in the mentally ill.