Our aim was to investigate the extent and impact of poor audio quality during remote ward rounds using Microsoft Teams. We intended to compare attendees' audio quality experience with our expectation that a cardioid polar microphone would make it difficult for attendees to hear all members of the multidisciplinary team. We also hypothesized that switching to an omnidirectional recording system would improve perceived audio quality, communication, and patient care.

This study is a continuation of a previous quality improvement project carried out on a general adult ward within the same Trust. This iteration involved individuals who participated remotely in ward rounds at a dementia specialist ward over a four-month period in 2022/2023. Participants of the study included staff from the ward team, community care coordinators and patient family members, who completed a digital feedback questionnaire about the audio quality. Due to the nature of their illness, no patients completed the questionnaire.

There were no exclusion criteria. Data from Likert scale questions were analysed. Little demographic data were collected, and qualitative data were analysed by identifying themes and grouping responses based on thematic frequency.

In the pre-implementation survey, 12 responses were received from patient family members, 9 ward team members and 2 community mental health workers. Before the intervention, 3/12 participants rated the sound quality as "bad" and the same number were "dissatisfied" with the sound quality during ward rounds (modal response "neutral" for both, 6/10). Only 3/12 attendees reported being able to hear and understand everyone present in the ward round all the time, and one person reported only rarely hearing and understanding a single person in the room when they spoke.

All respondents agreed that the sound quality impacted their experience of the ward round. The three most common issues reported were people speaking too far from the microphone, voices sounding muffled, and poor internet connection causing gaps in speech.

Common themes identified in the qualitative data included: frustration, disengagement, and damage to patient care.

In summary, our findings indicate that when using a built-in laptop microphone with unidirectional pick-up, remote ward round attendees were not satisfied with the audio quality. However, this may be improved through the use of an omnidirectional system. Potential benefits from this technology may be optimised through the use of automatic transcription for individuals who may be hearing impaired, and ensuring optimal positioning for adequate sound detection.

Thriving on the pressure of “publish or perish” experienced by academicians, the industry of predatory publishers with dubious quality has mushroomed and gained their notoriety. The battle of uncovering predatory publishers, including Beall's list, has proven to be tough given the huge monetary gain generated by the predatory publishers. It may be difficult for an inexperienced junior researcher to identify those predatory publishers’ soliciting emails, which may disguise as a reputable journal's article-commissioning process. To date, there is a limited systematic approach to identify such emails. Hence, this research is aimed to describe the common features of soliciting emails from publishers which appeared to be predatory.

This self-study involved reviewing the content of emails in the spam folder of authors, a team of junior researchers in psychiatry, for a month. Emails included in this study were soliciting emails relevant to publications and the following were reviewed: types of solicitation, sentences used, strategies used, and information available in the public domain of their webpages. Informative types of emails were excluded.

The solicitation could include: 1) request for a manuscript to be published a journal article, 2) request for a thesis to be published as a book, 3) request to write for a book chapter, 4) invitation to be an editorial member or a reviewer with the offer of free publishing, 5) invitation to be a speaker for a conference, and 6) proofreading services. The publisher may cite a published article of the author from another journal, which was the source where they identified the author's email. Common strategies used for solicitation included: 1) promising a fast-tracked and guaranteed publication, 2) using compliments that appeared to be inappropriate, 3) repetitive emails, and 4) using argumentum ad passiones to induce guilt. The common features of the webpages of those publishers included: 1) open access publishing as the only option, 2) extensive list of indexing services excluding well-established indexing agencies, and 3) the publisher has a huge collection of journals in different disciplines.

It is hoped that these findings will help junior researchers in psychiatry to stay vigilant to avoid falling into the trap of predatory publishers, which may result in financial loss and loss of work to plagiarism. Total eradication of those predatory soliciting emails is unlikely despite the advancement of spam filtering technology, which necessitates a more united effort from different stakeholders to come out with a probable solution.

To examine the effects of a peer-supported recovery-focused self-management of Psychosis (PRSP) modified from the Crisis-resolution-team Optimisation and RElapse Prevention (CORE) programme (Johnson et al. 2018) for psychotic patients’ recovery, mental state, problem solving ability and other patient outcomes over 18 months follow-up, compared with either a psychoeducation/treatment-as-usual group.

A assessor-blinded, three-arm multicentre RCT was conducted. A list of 198 Chinese patients with recent-onset psychosis randomly selected from four Community Centers for Mental Wellness in Hong Kong (2021–2022) and randomly assigned into one of the three study groups (PRSP, psychoeducation or treatment-as-usual group) by matching with computerized random numbers. After four-month interventions, the patient outcomes were measured at immediately, 9 months and 18 months post-intervention, and analysed on intention-to-treat basis using Generalised Estimating Equation test.

Significant interaction (Group × Time) treatment effects of the PRSP were found on six outcomes (recovery, psychotic symptoms, functioning, problem-solving, and service satisfaction) between three groups at post-test, Wald χ2 = 7.05–21.87, p = 0.02-0.001, with moderate to large effect sizes (η2) of 0.12–0.24, compared to treatment-as-usual. Level of recovery, problem-solving and service satisfaction of the PRSP were also significantly greater improved than psychoeducation group at 9 and 18 months follow-ups with moderate effect sizes (0.07–0.10).

The findings can provide evidence about the long-term effectiveness of the peer-facilitated, recovery-based self-management programme in early psychosis on improving patients’ recovery and mental condition, functioning, and service satisfaction. Self-learning of illness management through effective problem-solving strategies, together with peer-support, are increasingly useful in recovery-focused intervention for early psychosis in views of inadequate healthcare resources/staffs.

Surrey and Borders NHS Foundation Trust's AVATr (Augmented Virtual-reality Avatar in Training) is a unique ground-breaking Virtual Patient Simulation System, which uses the Xenodu platform to train learners in essential clinical and complex communication skills. Over 30 patient scenarios have been developed after identifying learner-specific development needs, including exploration of overt psychosis, assessment of capacity, sharing bad news, and neglect in care home residents. Actors are filmed responding to several domains of clinical questions, further categorised into three narrative-modes of being ‘Engaged, Neutral or Disengaged’, to build a bank of scenarios. During the session, the trainee is projected on to a large screen, using a camera and video special effects, which results in a life-like interaction with the Virtual Patient. Trainees can view themselves interacting with the Virtual Patient in real-time, from a unique ‘out-of-body' perspective, immersed in a custom-designed interactive virtual environment. The simulation facilitator engages with the learner and determines the appropriate choices of responses for the Virtual Patient and if needed, can prompt with explorative cues to continue the narrative-linked conversation. AVATr model pioneered in United Kingdom the use of an innovative ‘self-observational approach’ in Psychiatry training. This is different to a first-person perspective used in virtual or augmented-reality systems in several clinical specialties. The use of Facilitated-Debrief and Peer-Debrief in sessions, render another layer to the simulation experience.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, we evolved the AVATr model to remote or hybrid sessions, where simulations were digitally enhanced, and have been run through Microsoft Teams. The simulation facilitator is connected to a multi-user video call, enabling the Virtual Patient to be projected as an attendee using Microsoft Teams.

The hybrid model of AVATr has received tremendous feedback, as it now simulates video-consultations that a vast majority of Psychiatry trainees, especially community-based, undertake due to COVID-19 restrictions. The format of AVATr simulation sessions has remained unchanged, and the remote delivery has been particularly successful as it allows trainees to log in from different remote locations to come together for an interactive training session, without any physical restrictions.

Since 2015, our simulation platform has been utilised for Post-Graduate Medical Education, to enhance essential professional skills and stimulate professional growth. Currently the hybrid model of AVATr is being expanded to Nursing, Psychology and Allied Health Professional (AHP) clinical training streams, along with Undergraduate Medical Education, to address identified gaps in face-to-face training amidst COVID-19 pandemic.

Neuropsychiatric symptoms including depression, apathy and psychosis are experienced by the majority of patients with Parkinson's disease. A subgroup of patients develop cognitive impairment, which may increase the risk of falls due to reduced attention. Acetylcholine deficit is thought to contribute to neuropsychiatric symptoms in Parkinson's disease. The acetylcholinesterase inhibitor rivastigmine is beneficial in Parkinson's disease dementia (PDD), but the consensus for the use of rivastigmine earlier in the disease course is unclear. This systematic review aims to assess the evidence for rivastigmine in the treatment of neuropsychiatric symptoms in Parkinson's disease without dementia.

EMBASE, MEDLINE, PsychINFO, Cochrane CENTRAL, NGLC, NICE Evidence and medRxiv.org were searched for studies with terms relating to Population (Parkinson's disease) and intervention (rivastigmine).

1922 references were identified, of which 358 were duplications.

Inclusion criteria were: diagnosis of Parkinson's disease, rivastigmine intervention and the presence of neuropsychiatric symptoms or falls. Articles were excluded if they only related to patients with dementia.

Following title and abstract review, 1331 articles were excluded.

After full text review, 9 articles remained, which underwent a risk of bias analysis.

Outcomes were heterogenous, so were not suitable for meta-analysis. Therefore, the results are presented in narrative form. The articles included 6 Randomised Controlled Trials (RCTs), 2 open-label trials and 1 case-series.

Three of the studies focused on psychosis. Two of these studies indicated a benefit of rivastigmine on psychotic symptoms in Parkinson's disease. However, these studies were an open label trial and a case series, and the results were not reproduced during RCT.

One RCT indicated benefit of rivastigmine in rapid eye movement behaviour disorder (RBD).

One RCT showed improvements in apathy after treatment with rivastigmine.

Two RCTs demonstrated a reduction in falls with rivastigmine treatment compared to placebo.

One RCT showed a significant improvement on a performance-based measure of cognitive ability.

One study identified brain areas that were hypoactive in hallucinating Parkinson's patients, and the reduced activity could be restored with rivastigmine. This restoration of activity was associated with improved attention compared to baseline.

There is evidence that rivastigmine is beneficial for RBD and apathy in Parkinson's disease, independently from the presence of dementia. There is high level evidence that rivastigmine reduces falls, which may be due to improved attention. The impact of rivastigmine on psychotic symptoms is less clear, but is supported by current theoretical models which involve acetylcholine dysfunction in the generation of visual hallucinations in Parkinson's disease.

Good medical practice encompasses teaching students which is a core competency for trainee doctors. The aim of this project was to assess and improve junior doctor participation in undergraduate psychiatry teaching.

2 surveys were conducted: 1) Psychiatry-related trainee doctors working in Severn Deanery were emailed a questionnaire to assess their involvement in undergraduate teaching, including barriers and motivators for teaching; 2) doctors with a formal role in teaching were sent a questionnaire to explore their views on recruiting trainee doctors to teach. Questionnaires consisted of multiple answer questions, matrix questions and qualitative free text answer questions. Trainees were then delivered a presentation advertising teaching opportunities. The impact of this on recruitment into psychiatry undergraduate teaching was reassessed by questionnaire.

44 responses were received to the first survey; 13 to the second. The most common answer trainees gave for factors that prevented involvement with teaching students was “unaware of teaching opportunities,” and “lack of overall availability due to clinical commitments.” The most common factor chosen as a motivator for involvement was “notification of session date/timing early in placement” and “protected teaching time in job-plan.” The results highlighted difficulties recruiting trainee doctors to teach, resulting in tutors reducing, cancelling or adapting sessions due to lack of support.

This project identifies barriers and motivators of trainee doctor involvement in undergraduate medical education. To ensure lasting participation of trainees in medical education, support is needed for protected time to teach in clinical roles.

To improve the clerking proforma and physical healthcare for General Adult Psychiatric inpatients in Heddfan Psychiatric Unit, Wrexham by 100% within 18 months period with a long term goal of continuous improvement.

We started the project with a baseline audit which showed the incompleteness of vital data when clerking a patient in adult psychiatric inpatient unit. This was compared with various standards from Core competencies for a trainee in Psychiatry, NICE guidelines and Local trust policy from our own trust BCUHB for physical health monitoring and Department of Health Guideline for VTE.

With the findings obtained, we went ahead to create a proforma encompassing all the details.

The use of various Quality improvement tools such as Fishbone diagram, Drivers diagram and PDSA cycles gave as overwhelming results

The baseline audit, repeat audits and PDSA cycles have shown tremendous and overwhelming results in terms of completion of the proforma. This has resulted in mandatory details being inputted sufficiently in the patient's notes.

Many of the important details such as medication details, allergy status, legal and forensic status, mental state examination, risk assessment, VTE assessment, investigation details and documentation have shown to have improved during this 1 year

This QIP has been patient centred as this is the main goal. Following the PDSA cycle, we have identified that it has been efficient and effective. It has been safe and also reduced the chances of patient neglect. The structure of the proforma used does not discriminate or show any inequalities and is timesaving too.

The SWOT analysis has been completed, which has shown that the teamwork and support from the Consultants and other stakeholders have been a major strength. There are a few weaknesses such as unavailability of ECG machine, missing documentation of investigations despite completing them but however with timely education to the junior doctors, we are hoping for improvement further. This QIP has opened up doors for various opportunities, such as including nursing and pharmacy admission forms into this proforma. Though there are few threats in achieving 100% success, we are hoping for the best

To re-audit seclusion practices within a Tier 4 Adolescent PICU provision in London, originally audited in 2018. To ensure restrictive practices are only used in exceptional circumstances for short term risk management. To evaluate whether practice has improved following introduction of incidence reduction strategies and identify any further areas of development.

This Tier 4 Adolescent PICU provides treatment of up to 16 high risk and unwell adolescents with severe and enduring mental health illnesses. Seclusion should be a short term risk management strategy with subsequent review of the care plan and treatment. It should be used for the shortest time possible. Following the audit in 2018, three strategies were implemented to reduce restrictive practice: (1) daily nursing safety huddles, (2) weekly Incidence Reduction meetings, and (3) ongoing QI project on restrictive practice.

Data were collected from all patients requiring seclusion between January and December 2019 (n = 18), which included 46 incidents. Data were collected from RiO computer records, extracting details of patient demographics, reasons and context of seclusion, risk reduction steps prior, length of seclusion, monitoring, and modifications to care plans.

Average length of stay in seclusion was 20h, reduced from 30h previously. Over half of patients requiring seclusion had symptoms of psychosis, consistent with the original audit. Majority of incidents involved assault to staff (80.4%) as indication for seclusion, compared to 50% previously. In 58.7% of cases, verbal de-escalation was followed by further risk reduction with oral medication. Overall, rapid tranquillisation was required in 45.7% of incidents. Restraint was used in 84.8% of incidents, always in combination with at least one other management strategy.

Just under half of seclusions were monitored and documented in line with Trust guidelines, however, there was significant improvement in documentation of consultant reviews within 24h from under 70% to over 90%. Care plan modification rates improved from 63% to over 95%.

Majority of seclusion incidents were due to violent acts by young people presenting with psychotic features/disorder. This reflects the complex nature of psychosis and the substantial need for research to reduce restrictive practice in such cases.

Ongoing review of data relating to seclusion will continue to inform and improve practice. This re-audit demonstrates improvement in various areas after implementation of strategies to reduce restrictive practice – importantly, average time in seclusion, documentation of 24 hour consultant reviews and focus on non-pharmacological risk reduction approaches in care plan modifications.

Acute Inpatient Psychiatric Wards present the challenge of a high turnover of patients who have multiple physical health comorbidities that both contribute to patients’ overall morbidity and may exacerbate any mental illness. Furthermore, there are a number of physical health parameters which must be checked and monitored in the initiation of psychiatric treatments. It is therefore important that patients receive physical examination, blood tests and Electrocardiograms (ECGs). The busy environment of inpatient units and the acute presentation of patients, who often decline interventions, lack capacity or cannot communicate their physical health problems, mean these assessments are often missed when offered in an ad hoc fashion. This Quality Improvement Project looked at implementing a Physical Health Clinic to look at whether this structured environment would provide better coverage of these physical health assessments.

The number of physical examinations, blood tests and ECGs both offered but declined and successfully obtained was measured on an Inpatient Ward with 20 patients and 2 junior doctors over 2 weeks with assessments being offered in an ad hoc fashion. Following this, a structured clinic run by a doctor and nurse with three 20 minute appointments three times a week was implemented and the same data collected over 2 weeks. A paired T-test was used to evaluate the results.

There was a statistically significant increase in the number of successfully obtained physical examinations, bloods tests and ECGs when the Physical Health Clinic was implemented (Mean difference = 7.33, Two tailed P value = 0.0480,95% confidence interval 0.16–14.50, t = 4.4, df = 2, standard error of difference = 1.667). However, there was no difference between the number of bloods, examinations and ECGs offered but declined (Mean difference = 4.83, Two tailed P value = 0.2495, 95% confidence interval −3.92–8.58, t = 1.6059, df = 2, standard error of difference = 1.453).

The clinic led to a statistically significant increase in the number of examinations, blood tests and ECGs successfully obtained. The reasons for this are hypothesized that having a structured clinic prepares the patient to have a physical assessment and ensures their availability, provides motivation for staff and increases the efficiency of assessments with appropriate teamwork between doctors and nurses. Issues with the Clinic are limited availability of junior doctor and nursing staff and emergencies disrupting the functioning of the clinic. Implementing the clinic on a wider scale is required to assess its effectiveness.

In March 2020, COVID-19 and its associated restrictions forced a halt to in-person teaching and assessment. To try and mitigate this disruption, the psychiatry undergraduate teaching faculty developed a knowledge based remote curriculum. However, it became clear that our students sorely missed clinical and consultation experience. Prior to the pandemic we had delivered a mock Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) to those undertaking their psychiatry block. In Somerset Academy, we wanted to deliver a distanced alternative: the remote mock OSCE (ReMO). We hoped to demonstrate this would be a feasible and valuable learning experience.

In keeping with other OSCEs, ReMO had active stations (4) and a rest station. Four simultaneous Skype meetings were set up as clinical stations, each with an examiner and actor. To test the technology, students and facilitators were emailed links to each meeting in advance, and invited to sign in. Students were given individualised timings to rotate between stations. Stations involved history taking, risk assessment, and management discussions of common psychiatric presentations.

The students then rotated again, receiving personalised feedback about their performance, enabling immediate reflection and consideration of areas for development. This was followed up with written feedback, using examiner completed mark schemes.

After ReMO we invited feedback from medical students and facilitators. 7 out of the 8 medical students that participated completed a post-ReMO survey. 100% of students found ReMO “useful”, with 71% (5/7) rating it an “extremely valuable” experience and 29% (2/7) rating it “fairly valuable”. Students felt it was well organised, realistic, and increased their confidence in remote consultations and OSCE practice. 6 out of 8 facilitators completed feedback on ReMO. 100% felt that ReMO was reproducible and 83% (5/6) rated it as “fairly realistic” when compared to the face-to-face standard.

Firstly, ReMO was feasible. However, it was logistically difficult, requiring extensive organisation to ensure this relatively small group were in the right place at the right time. In future, we would consider alternative platforms such as Zoom, or specific consultation software, such as Attend Anywhere, to reduce the logistics burden and utilise features such as ‘breakout rooms’. We would recommend an allocated co-ordinator to troubleshoot any problems in real time via a group messaging service.

In conclusion, ReMO is achievable and a valuable student learning experience. Since the pilot it has become an integral part of our curriculum. We recommend that all undergraduate Psychiatry faculties consider adding it to their programme.

The objectives of this study were to investigate burnout in a sample of Irish Hospital Consultants and its association with psychopathology (symptoms of depression and anxiety). We examined the effect of personality factors on the development of psychopathology in response to burnout and in relation to work-related stress among the participants.

This is a cross-sectional survey, utilising validated psychometric measures. Self-reported online questionnaires were distributed to all hospital consultants registered with the Irish Hospital Consultants Association distribution list and were completed between September to December 2016. Questionnaires sought to determine demographic information; work-related characteristics; burnout related phenomena: emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and a reduced sense of personal effectiveness (Maslach Burnout Inventory [MBI-GS]); symptoms of depression and anxiety (Depressive Anxiety Stress Scale [DASS]; and personality characteristics (Big Five Inventory [BFI-10]).

A total of 477 hospital consultants (Male = 56.6%) from hospitals in Ireland took part in the study. Of those studied, 42% reported high levels of burnout. The Depression and Anxiety Stress Scale revealed that Consultants were experiencing high levels of stress symptoms but comparatively low levels of anxiety symptoms. The study population scored highest on the conscientiousness and agreeableness subscales and lowest on the neuroticism subscale. Those who scored higher in the neuroticism subtype appeared to be at an increased risk of burnout.

The prevalence of work-related burnout in consultants is of concern. The psychological burden of burnout is reflected in reported symptoms of stress and depression. Personality, particularly conscientiousness and agreeableness appears to impact the development of physician burnout. Strategies that modulate the relationship between personality and burnout may be beneficial for optimal health care delivery. Further research is needed to identify appropriate short and long-term strategies to ensure physician wellbeing and optimal delivery of patient care.

To describe the case of olanzapine-associated rhabdomyolysis in a 20-year-old patient with a suspected diagnosis of paranoid schizophrenia.

A 20-year-old male Caucasian patient was admitted to the Psychiatric Department with a one-month history of irrational behavior, talking to himself, persecutory delusions, and poor sleep. He was prescribed oral olanzapine at a dose of 10 mg per day. After two days of olanzapine monotherapy, the patient experienced muscle jerks in the legs. Four days after the initiation of olanzapine treatment, he complained about fatigue and weakness in the lower extremities along with myalgia. Physical examination revealed decreased muscle power with no extrapyramidal symptoms. Blood chemistry showed serum creatine kinase (CK) and serum lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) of 9,725 U/L and 843 U/L, respectively, on day four of the therapy. The Naranjo algorithm score of 6 suggested that olanzapine was the probable cause of rhabdomyolysis. A diagnosis of drug-induced rhabdomyolysis was established from the background of blood tests (increased serum CK and LDH levels), clinical presentation (fatigue and weakness in the lower extremities, muscle jerks, and myalgia), and Naranjo algorithm score of 6 for olanzapine. On suspicion of its contribution to rhabdomyolysis, olanzapine was immediately withdrawn. The patient was referred to the intensive care unit. To prevent acute renal failure, high-volume alkaline diuresis was initiated. After consulting a clinical pharmacologist, the patient's primary physician decided to perform a pharmacogenetic test to develop an individualized treatment regimen. Pharmacogenetic test results were interpreted using the PGX2 software (Meditsina LLC, Moscow, Russia). The test revealed that the patient was a homozygous mutant for CYP2D6*4, which corresponds to CYP2D6 PM phenotype. With this in mind, trifluoperazine was prescribed at a daily dose of 10 mg instead of olanzapine as recent data indicate that trifluoperazine is metabolized by CYP1A2 and UGT1A4 instead of CYP2D6. Subsequently, the patient recovered well and was discharged without any nephrological sequelae.

Recent research demonstrates that CYP2D6 is one of the most important isoenzymes implicated in drug metabolism because the CYP2D6 gene is highly polymorphic. Few reports on the association between olanzapine use and rhabdomyolysis have been published to date, and the present case report draws attention to pharmacogenetic testing which allowed the psychiatrist to prescribe another antipsychotic with no risk of rhabdomyolysis.

The presented case demonstrates that pharmacogenetic-guided personalization of treatment may allow selecting the best medication and determining the right dosage, resulting in the reduced risk of adverse drug reactions and pharmacoresistance.

The COVID pandemic has had both a massive impact on clinical service delivery and the way that training and education is provided. CNWL is a large NHS provider and has approximately 7000 staff working across 150 locations, providing mental health and community health services. In response to the need to share learning across the organisation, a trustwide “Safety Conversation Day” took place to spotlight the work being done to promote safety and to act as a platform to share ideas and learning across the trust. This was the first ever virtual conference organised by the trust.

The one-day conference included virtual posters and an all-day open access virtual conversation delivered via zoom. The day was divided into 6 safety themes: Safety tools; Safer Environments; Supporting and Involving Staff; Safer use of Medicines; See Think Act and Relational Security; and Prevention is Better than Cure. Frontline staff delivered 5-6 short presentations each hour highlighting new ways of working, quality improvement, local research etc.

Staff were also encouraged to submit posters for the event, with webinars held on how to write a poster held prior to the safety conversation to promote engagement. Prizes were awarded for best posters in the different categories.

A mentimeter survey was running throughout the day to get feedback from participants.

This was the largest event of this kind held by the trust. 430 unique viewers logged in during the day to watch the presentations.

Feedback was very positive on the mentimeter survey. 3 questions were asked on a likert scale of: Strongly Disagree – Strongly Agree (rated out of 5):

• – ‘I found the posters really useful': 4.5/5

• – ‘I found the presentations very useful': 4.6/5

• – ‘I will share what I've learnt about safety': 4.6/5

174 posters were presented with good representation from all services and staff groups across the trust (18 on safer use of medicines, 15 on co-production, 52 on quality improvement, 50 on COVID and non-COVID safety, 16 on use of technology, 23 on supporting and involving staff). These posters have since been downloaded 4062 times.

The first CNWL safety conference proved an excellent opportunity to celebrate achievements in patient safety in a very difficult year. It was very well-received and well-attended by staff, promoting maximal learning across the organisation.

To explore the phenomenon of non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) in adolescent patients and to assess adolescent-parent attachment and childhood trauma in relation to NSSI behaviour through a case control comparison between adolescents with and without NSSI.

NSSI group included 30 adolescent patients presenting to psychiatry outpatient clinic with history of NSSI. Controls were 30 non-psychiatric adolescent patients recruited from other specialties outpatient clinics. Tools applied were: Semi-structured Psychiatric Interview, Structured Clinical Interview for Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM IV-TR) Axis I and II Disorders (SCID-I and II), Brief Non-Suicidal Self-Injury Assessment tool (BNSSI-AT), Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment (IPPA)-Parent form, Parental Bonding Instrument (PBI) and Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ). Patient-rated tools were translated into Arabic language.

Self-cutting was the primary method of NSSI in 86.7% followed by interference with wound healing in 73.3%. Of NSSI group, 60% met the criteria for diagnosis of borderline personality disorder (BPD) while 16.7% showed only traits. Moreover, 40% were diagnosed with depressive disorders. While 93.3% used NSSI to deal with anger, 80% used it to cope with uncomfortable feelings or to relieve stress and pressure. In addition, 73.3% reported self-injuring because of their self-hatred. The main motivation for initial NSSI was negative feelings such as being upset (90%), being angry at oneself (73.3%) or at someone else (53.3%). Also, 36.7% reported seeing it in media or reading about it while 40% of the motivations were found related to peer pressure. NSSI group scored significantly lower than controls in their attachment to parents (particularly to mothers). A positive correlation was found between perceived parental care and attachment to parents (mainly trust and communication). A statistically significant difference was found between both groups regarding severity of childhood trauma experiences. In NSSI group, emotional neglect was reported in 80%, emotional abuse in 63.3%, sexual abuse in 50% and physical abuse in 46.7%. Perceived emotional neglect was positively correlated with sense of alienation from fathers and negatively correlated with trust in mothers.

Females constituted 80% of the NSSI group, primarily with the diagnosis of BPD. The most common method of NSSI was “self-cutting”. A significantly high percentage of adolescents with NSSI described their attachment to parents as insecure. The majority of NSSI patients perceived their relationship to both parents as “affectionless control”. A significant correlation was found between perceived parental care and security of attachment. Results also suggest that different types of child maltreatment might predict later NSSI.

The primary aim of the project was to improve attitudes towards the COVID-19 vaccine in forensic mental health staff at a large regional tertiary forensic psychiatry unit. The main variable examined was attitudes towards safety of the vaccine. Secondary aims included decreasing misinformation about the vaccine and improving vaccine uptake.

Paper questionnaires were distributed to willing staff members across 6 forensic inpatient wards within the North London Forensic Service. Participants included a range of allied health professionals including nurses, health care assistants, ward managers, occupational therapists, assistant therapists and administrative staff. Questionnaires used a mixture of Likert scale for agreement/disagreement with statements and yes/no questions.

Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) methodology was utilised in implementing changes, and repeat questionnaires used to measure changes in attitude and behaviour. Change ideas implemented included the creation of ‘mythbusters’ posters which target vaccine misinformation, the creation and distribution of posters of staff members who had already taken their vaccine, the creation of vaccine champions to aid engagement in conversation about the vaccine, vaccine information packs being distributed to all wards and the opportunity for staff to ‘drop-in’ to clinics for information about the vaccine.

Vaccine uptake improved from 7% before interventions to 69% after interventions.

The proportion of people very unlikely or unlikely to get the vaccine reduced from 25% to just 9%. The proportion of those feeling neutral reduced from 32% to 6%. The proportion of those either likely or very likely to get the vaccine increased from 34% to 85%.

Before interventions only 20% felt that the vaccine was either safe or very safe. This improved to 63% after interventions

Before interventions, only 27% of respondents felt they had received enough information by the trust to make an informed decision. After interventions, 80% said they had received enough information.

The project was successful in reducing misinformation in every domain. Particularly reassuring was the reduction to zero of some of the most harmful misinformation claims, such as the presence of a tracking chip in the vaccine and the belief that COVID does not exist.

71% of respondents indicated the interventions we set out changed their view on the COVID-19 vaccine.

The changes implemented lead to clear improvements in all domains measured, suggesting targeted information is an effective strategy in improving uptake and attitudes around the vaccination program.

Neutropenia associated with clozapine affects up to 3% of patients. For the purpose of clozapine treatment, absolute neutrophil count (ANC) between 1.5–2.0 × 109/L is considered as amber result; requiring twice-weekly blood sampling until when it returns to normal. Interestingly, some patients on clozapine may develop transient neutropenia also known as Morning Pseudoneutropenia (MPN), or pseudoneutropenia. It is a phenomenon where normal diurnal variation of circulating white blood cells (WBC) and in particular ANC become more accentuated. In these patients, blood samples taken in the morning would tend to have amber results, while blood samples taken on the same day in the afternoon will have normal ANC. A case is reported where a patient with severe emotionally unstable personality disorder (EUPD) developed MPN 38 days after clozapine initiation.

AA is a 19-year-old white lady with a diagnosis of severe EUPD. Prior to starting clozapine, AA had tried several oral and depot antipsychotics, antidepressants and lithium without success. AA was started on clozapine. Her initial pre-clozapine blood count taken in the morning was WBC-5.8 x109/L and her ANC was 2.7 x109/L. AA improved quickly on clozapine. However, five weeks later, her first amber report was received. AA went on to have another six amber results before MPN was suspected. AA blood sampling was moved to the afternoon. There were no more amber results thereafter.

To my knowledge, this is the first published case of a patient with EUPD treated with clozapine who went on to develop MPN. Recurrent amber results with samples taken before mid-day should alert clinicians of this phenomenon. Of course, other causes of neutropenia need to be excluded.

It is noteworthy that most reported cases in literature though few, involves patients with treatment resistant schizophrenia. Being aware of this phenomenon may raise our suspicion index and hopefully reduce the need for frequent repeated blood tests and the need to stop clozapine given the risk of relapse and its implications.

Few cases have also been reported in patients with physical health problems such as Grave's disease, systemic lupus erythematosus, and lymphangioleiomyomatosis. Medications that have been implicated to potentiate ANC diurnal variation including clozapine, risperidone, prednisolone, methimazole, and sirolimus.

Morning pseudoneutropenia is an accentuated normal diurnal variation of WBC. Early detection by collecting samples in the afternoon when there are recurring amber results can reduce unnecessary repeated blood tests and can prevent premature discontinuation of clozapine.

To monitor the quality of physical health monitoring of patients prescribed depot antipsychotic medication in the North West Edinburgh Community Mental Health Team (CMHT). We also evaluated the completeness of prescriptions and Mental Health Act (Scotland) (Act) 2003 paperwork where relevant.

Antipsychotic medications are medicines for treating conditions such as Schizophrenia, but some may be associated with an increased risk of Metabolic Syndrome. Moreover, evidence indicates that patients with major mental disorder have a reduced life expectancy in comparison to those without such diagnoses. These two factors illustrate the importance of the physical health of this patient cohort being monitored on a regular basis. This project will evaluate how a local CMHT is performing, with the possibility of enacting service improvements if required.

The records of the 60 patients prescribed depot antipsychotic medication administered by this CMHT were reviewed. A check-list was created consisting of 14 categories analysing the quality of physical health monitoring, as well as compliance with prescription standards and, where relevant, Mental Health Act (Scotland) (Act) 2003 paperwork. We compared patient records against our checklist for the calendar year of 2019. The Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) 131 (Management of Schizophrenia) section 5.2 was used as the gold standard for physical health monitoring against which the data we collected was compared.

We identified a wide range of flaws with the current system and implementation of monitoring, and difficulty in locating the required information. There was no consistent monitoring of physical observations on electronic record, nor an accepted alternative way in which this was documented. Furthermore, blood tests were not consistently obtained either by the service or GP practices in a reproducible manner. This led to discussions within the CMHT regarding creation of a new pathway for the monitoring of this patient cohort using a Quality Improvement model, with the ultimate goal to establish a regular physical health clinic.

There is significant evidence that patients with major mental disorder do not access healthcare as consistently as those without, leading to a disparity in life expectancy. In light of the fact that antipsychotic medications can be associated with Metabolic Syndrome, we have an even greater responsibility to tackle this marked health inequality by appropriately monitoring our patients. This was not done well in this particular CMHT, but this project will lead to improvements in the service and ultimately patient care.