In a comparison of assessment methods of severity of depressive illness, the Montgomery-Asberg Scale had, broadly, a performance equal to the Hamilton Scale. The Beck Depression Inventory, it subscale, and the Wakefield Inventory all had overall poor performances and should now be abandoned in research. The two-patient-rated scales were, overall, similar and fairly satisfactory measures. The comparisons were at points in severity of illness and not on change of severity.

The findings were discussed within the transgenerational trauma context.

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To estimate and examine hospitalisation costs of Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes in an Irish public hospital.Methods: A retrospective audit of hospital inpatient admissions over a 5-year period was undertaken, and a wide range of admission-related data were collected for a sample of 7,548 admissions. Hospitalisations were costed using the diagnosis-related group methodology. A series of descriptive, univariate and multivariate regression analyses were undertaken. Results:The mean hospitalisation cost for Type 1 diabetes was €4,027 and for Type 2 diabetes was €5,026 per admission. Sex, admission type and length of stay were significantly associated with hospitalisation costs for admissions with a primary diagnosis of Type 1 diabetes. Age, admission type, diagnosis status, complications status, discharge destination, length of stay and year were significantly associated with hospitalisation costs for admissions with a primary diagnosis of Type 2 diabetes. Length of stay was associated with higher mean costs, with each additional day increasing Type 1 diabetes costs by €260 (p = 0.001) and Type 2 diabetes by €216 (p < 0.001). Unscheduled admissions were associated with significantly lower costs than elective admissions; €1,578 (p = 0.035) lower for Type 1 diabetes and €2,108 (p < 0.001) lower for Type 2 diabetes. Conclusions:This study presents estimates of the costs of diabetes care in the Irish public hospital system and identifies the factors which influence costs for Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes. These findings may be of interest to patients, the public, researchers and those with influence over diabetes policy and practice in Ireland and internationally.

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The primary objective of this study was to examine the effects of a bespoke and innovative six-week online Mindfulness-based Social Work and Self-Care (MBSWSC) programme on the stress, feelings of burnout, anxiety, depression, and well-being of a sample of social workers. This secondary objective was to examine the effectiveness of MBSWSC at improving a number of potentially important mindfulness-based programme mechanisms of action, including mindfulness, attention regulation (decentering), acceptance, self-compassion, non-attachment, aversion, worry and rumination. A randomised controlled trial with repeated measures (pre-post intervention) was conducted to evaluate the effects of MBSWSC against an active control. The active control was a modified mindfulness-based programme which focussed on supporting increases in mindfulness and self-compassion in social workers with a view to improving the same primary study outcomes. Sixty-two participants were randomly allocated to MBSWSC (n = 33) or the active control (n = 29). When compared to the active control group, the MBSWSC programme was found to be significantly superior at improving stress, emotional exhaustion, anxiety, and depression. MBSWSC was also superior to the active control at improving acceptance, mindfulness, non-attachment, attention regulation (decentering) and worry of the social workers in this study. The results suggest that MBSWSC is a very useful therapeutic programme, which has the capacity to improve a range of important mental health and well-being outcomes for social workers. The results also indicate that the MBSWSC programme has the capacity to improve a range of important mindfulness-based mechanisms of action. Trial registration URL: https://www.clinicaltrials.gov; Unique identifier: NCT05519267 (retrospectively registered).

Diabetes education aims to equip people with diabetes with positive self‐care behaviours and management strategies to improve glycaemic control. The preferred outcome measure of education effectiveness is often HbA1c reduction. However, the move towards person‐centred education has led to renewed calls to capture associated behavioural and psychosocial change. The aim of this study was to review indicators of diabetes education efficacy in light of the growing emphasis on person‐centric care. A systematic search of MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, CINAHL and Scopus databases, from January 2006 to December 2016, was conducted. Studies meeting the inclusion criteria, focusing on diabetes education effectiveness primarily measured using HbA1c, were selected. Twenty‐three studies were included, comprising 6747 participants. They yielded mixed results, with 13 studies reporting significant reductions in HbA1c following intervention. Thirteen studies assessed multiple behavioural and psychosocial measures as secondary outcomes with significant, positive changes in these outcomes following intervention. Studies utilising diabetes‐specific measures yielded positive results. It was concluded successful diabetes education involves changing participant cognitions and behaviours. Changes in behavioural and psychosocial aspects should inform education effectiveness. Development of effective diabetes education programmes requires better understanding of how they affect behavioural and psychosocial change, facilitating glycaemic control. Copyright © 2019 John Wiley & Sons.

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