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Affiliation
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Loughborough University School of Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences, Health Psychology, NCSEM 2.24, LE11 3TU. |
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Abstract
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INTRODUCTION: Literature describes self-harm as functional and meaningful. This creates difficulties for service-users detained in an inpatient environment where self-harm is prevented.
AIM: Mental-healthcare staff were interviewed to build on existing evidence of issues with the prevention approach and explore, from a staff perspective, how self-harm prevention impacts on service-users, how they manage distress and how this impacts on staff approach to care.
METHODS: Qualitative methods were used to allow unexpected themes to arise. Ten semi-structured interviews were carried out with mental-healthcare staff and thematically analysed.
FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION: The findings provide new evidence on the benefits and limitations of the inpatient environment for individuals who self-harm.
FINDINGS indicate that being unable to self-harm can lead to a continuation of distress and subsequent potentially-harmful attempts to manage distress. Staff described experiencing a struggle for control in preventing self-harm, leading to increasingly harmful methods of self-harm. Alternatively some staff were able to support service-users with distress management. We discuss factors influencing which of these 'paths' service-users followed. IMPLICATIONS: Considerations for care planning including understanding self-harm, using individualised care-planning and attending to barriers are outlined with the ultimate aim of reducing distress and the impact of prevention of self-harm. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
Language: en |