The Commission for Health Improvement (CHI) ceased to function at the end of March 2004. This provides the opportunity to review its contribution and achievements as a new body, the Commission for Healthcare Audit and Inspection (CHAI), takes over its functions∗. CHI recently published its assessment of mental health services (http://www.chi.nhs.uk/eng/news/2003/dec/11.shtml). The report is based on the 35 clinical governance reviews, in England and Wales, published between July 2001 and October 2003; two investigations into serious service failures; and a report on safeguarding arrangements for children in England and a self-audit of child protection arrangements. CHI concluded that mental health services lag behind acute health services in developing clinical governance systems and processes that promote high-quality care and continuous improvement. It specifically highlighted the shortages of psychiatrists and in-patient nurses, and the reliance on agency nurses and locum staff; the unsuitability of buildings and facilities; the pressures on in-patient beds; the lack of management capacity and poor information systems; and the low priority given to services for children and older people.

The rehabilitation service for West Gloucestershire utilises a range of facilities to accommodate the long-term severely mentally ill. Group homes, supported lodgings, long-stay rehabilitation hostels and an inpatient slow stream rehabilitation ward provide increasing degrees of support according to levels of dependency. The findings of this study support the use of the Clifton Assessment Procedures for the Elderly Behaviour Rating Scale (CAPE BRS) as an aid to assessment of appropriate placement for the long-term severely mentally ill of all age groups in the community, both at the time of placement and to monitor ongoing need.

In Scotland's National Portrait Gallery, there hangs the only portrait of a 20th century Scottish psychiatrist to have been commissioned by this pantheon to the country's great and good. The subject of the painting is, of course, R. D. Laing, who was not only Scotland's most famous psychiatrist, but, for a brief period in the 1960s and early 1970s, the most famous psychiatrist in the world. He was the world's first media psychiatrist, and his books sold in millions and were translated into more than 20 languages.

This paper describes the social and clinical characteristics of patients who attended a mental health promotion drop-in clinic that was set up in a primary care group practice. From consideration of the characteristics of the patients, the problems they presented with and the results of the consultations, we argue that there is a viable role for mental health promotion as a form of primary prevention of mental health problems, distinct from an extended treatment or therapeutic role. It is open to question whether the particular way we delivered the service is necessary to achieve such an objective and we draw attention to some of the constructive criticisms the primary health care team made at the final evaluation of the project.

Professor Lynch was born in Dublin in 1922. From 1953 to 1961 he was Staff Psychiatrist, St Patrick's Hospital, Dublin, and Consultant Psychiatrist to Meath Hospital, Dublin. He was Resident Medical superintendent at St Otteran's Hospital, Waterford from 1961 to 1968. From 1968 to 1990 he was Professor of Psychiatry, Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. He has been Chairman and Clinical Director of the Eastern Health Board, Chairman of the Irish Psychiatric Training Committee and Chairman of the Irish Division of the Royal College of Psychiatrists. He was a member of Council of the Royal College of Psychiatrists from 1980 to 1984, Junior Vice-President of the Royal College of Psychiatrists from 1981 to 1982 and Senior Vice-President from 1982 to 1983. He served on the College's Court of Electors from 1983 to 1988.

In 2005 clinicians were invited to submit proposals for Student Selected Components (SSC) for third and fourth year students at the new Hull and York Medical School. As a consultant psychiatrist with an interest in the arts I proposed a 3-week course in mental health and the arts. I wanted to find ways of promoting psychiatry as an interesting and valid subject for study and practice – as described in a recent Psychiatric Bulletin article (Eagles et al, 2007), medical students' attitudes to psychiatry could be influenced by their undergraduate experience. Eighteen months later, 15 students have completed the course.

Infant mental health is a growing research area, but findings have not generally translated into new service developments. Recognising mental health problems in young infants is relevant for clinicians in all mental health specialties, but it can be a particular challenge to make diagnoses in very young children. Mental health classification systems are fraught with the difficulties of standardising diagnoses for infants, while trying to provide a clinically useful and relevant framework. The diagnostic classification DC:0–3 appears to have strengths, for example, a clear space to consider relationship disorders, and therefore encouraging a broad assessment of the child and family. More information is beginning to gather regarding infant mental health services around the world and assessment of this patient group in clinical practice. This commentary aims to help inform clinicians about this developing field.

Over recent years there have been a number of articles in the Psychiatric Bulletin considering the vexed question of research and trainees in psychiatry, most recently the suggestion of ‘research troikas’ by Sims (1992). Although this might work well in teaching hospitals with a reasonable number of academic staff, we see problems for the more peripheral areas. This article addresses these problems particularly as they affect people working outside the main centres. We are not concerned here with what trainees need to know about research, but rather how conducting research fits into their clinical job. We will do this by posing a number of basic questions.

The community psychiatry service in Bassetlaw District has been developing since 1984 and provision includes hospital hostels, supervised flatlets, nursing and rest homes, group homes, cluster flats and warden assisted accommodation. Close liaison with an enthusiastic Local Authority Housing Department has also led to the development of a new initiative, an unstaffed flat for use in crisis intervention and rehabilitation. Placements in the flat are described over the first 12 months of its existence.

There has been much debate about effective treatments, service configurations and costs within Britain's mental health care system, but it has largely taken place in academic and management circles. We were interested in the views of those providing care. We organised a meeting of community psychiatric nurses, general practitioners and consultant psychiatrists (funded with an educational grant from Zeneca Pharmaceuticals). Participants worked in various parts of Great Britain, including rural and inner city areas. The authors facilitated the discussion, the emphasis of which was on participants' clinical experience.

With the implementation of community care and resettlement programmes, the extent, frequency and the management of emergencies in the mentally handicapped population have attracted a good deal of attention. Among the issues of importance are crisis in the community and unnecessary and repeated hospital admission; inappropriate emergency referrals leading to abuse of services; the need for emergency services and the importance of short term admission facilities (Nolan et al, 1992). While the number of psychiatric emergencies in people with mental handicap is not large, the trend towards living in the community has brought the need to monitor such referrals.

The Royal Society is the oldest scientific society in Great Britain and one of the earliest in Europe. It is usually considered to have been founded in 1660, though a nucleus had been in existence for several years before that date. From Charles II's reign onwards, British Governments have constantly appealed to the Royal Society for advice in connection with scientific undertakings. The Society elects some 32 Fellows annually, who have been proposed by six or more existing Fellows. Foreign Members, not exceeding 50 in all, may be selected by the Council from among “men of the greatest scientific eminence” abroad. From this it can be seen that Fellows of the Royal Society are among the most distinguished scientists in the country. It is not widely known that several psychiatrists have been Fellows of the Royal Society.