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Public Mental Health

Module description

This module is a focused introduction to public mental health, taking a population based approach to the understanding of mental health, including prevention of mental ill-health, promotion of good mental health and treatment of mental health disorders.

This module will cover key areas relevant to global public mental health, including what causes and maintains mental health problems, things that put individuals at risk for mental ill-health, specific mental health challenges or disorders relevant to public health, and approaches to prevention, promotion, intervention and treatment. We will cover key mental health challenges at different parts of the life course, how to create and maintain mental-health promoting systems and environments, and discuss future challenges and opportunities in public mental health.

Delivery will be a combination of recorded lectures and focused examples, with self-directed learning tasks, as well as synchronous sessions to problem solve and consolidate knowledge.

Module aims - intentions of the module

In this module you will initially cover what public mental health is, why it is important, the current challenges in global public mental health and key cross-cultural risks and mental-health inequalities. We will go on to explore why systems approaches to mental health are relevant, rather than those solely focussing on the individual. We will cover key mental health challenges in early life (childhood and adolescence), as well as in adulthood and later life. Later in the module we will cover approaches to prevention, promotion, intervention and treatment, how to establish and maintain mentally-healthy systems, and finally identify future challenges and opportunities in public mental health. The global context of public mental health, and factors that influence vulnerability and mental health inequality will be woven throughout the content of the module.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. Describe key individual and societal risk and protective factors relevant to the prevention, intervention and treatment of mental ill-health and disorder
• 2. Outline cross-cultural differences in conceptualisations and definitions of mental ill-health

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 3. Explain why mental health is important in the field of public health
• 4. Demonstrate an understanding of the benefits and limitations of the medicalisation of mental health

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 5. Appraise varied sources of evidence and their relevance and application to public health practice
• 6. Explain how health outcomes are determined through complex interactions between an individual and their environment
• 7. Engage with colleagues in discussion of key concepts and topic-related challenges

Syllabus plan

The precise content of the module may vary from year to year. Some key concepts will be woven throughout the module across all topics (e.g. inequalities, impacts on minoritised groups, global contexts, adversity and trauma, research evidence and evaluation) An example of the overall structure is:

1. An introduction to the basic concepts in the module- what is mental ill-health and disorder, why is it important, links between physical and mental health, the role of nature vs nurture in mental health disorder and the importance of intergenerational transmission of factors that put individuals at risk of- or protect from- mental ill-health
2. Systems approaches to understanding mental health: understanding the contexts around an individual (physical and psychological) that could create conditions that exacerbate mental ill-health, and therefore identifying points for public health prevention
3. Key public mental health challenges in childhood and adolescence (e.g. Foetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, neurodevelopmental disorders, anxiety), and their prevention or treatment.
4. Key public mental health challenges in adulthood and later life (e.g. dementia, substance misuse, schizophrenia)
5. Mental health emergencies and serious mental ill-health
6. Individual and societal risk factors and inequalities in relation to an individual or group’s risk of mental-ill health, and public health prevention. Supporting and maintaining mentally-healthy systems (individual, community, cultural and societal understanding and response to mental ill-health).
7. Future challenges and opportunities in public mental health research and practice

Typically, each topic above would be delivered in the form of 60 minutes of recorded lecture content, followed by a self-directed consolidation activity where the student would apply the lecture content to their own context and practice. In the synchronous session that follows each lecture, students may hear from experts in research or practice on a focus topic, or work in small groups to contrast their consolidation activity findings with those with a range of different experiences in other professional roles, cultures and contexts.

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Formative assessment

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

• Public mental health (2^nd Edition, 2019). Eaton, William W., editor.;Fallin, M. Daniele (Margaret Daniele), editor

Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources

• ELE – https://ele.exeter.ac.uk/

Key words search

Mental health, public health, public mental health, psychiatry, psychology, health promotion, treatment, psychological disorder, mental disorder, systems