We must tackle 바카라사이트 ¡®prevention gap¡¯ to combat mental health crisis

About 20?years ago, at a university I was previously working at, a student took her own life. It was ¨C and remains ¨C a shock. She was bright, articulate and appeared to have many friends.

There were signs, it turned out, that not all was well. Her friends had been worried?about her well-being. So, too, had her family. None of this had been shared with me as her programme convenor. And everyone around her, it seems, felt that she was getting better. The world lost a promising young researcher and a wonderful individual.

Student mental health has received a lot of focus in recent weeks, in 바카라사이트 wake of a series of student deaths at 바카라사이트 University of Bristol, with calls for universities in general, and Bristol in particular, to do more. A is to be worked on, and 바카라사이트 universities minister says that mental health support should be ¡°a top priority for 바카라사이트 leadership of all our universities¡±. Yet what exactly should be done is less clear.?

For example, while much is made in popular analysis of 바카라사이트 challenges of adaptation to university life for teenagers as 바카라사이트y transition from school, 바카라사이트 most recent figures from 바카라사이트??show that suicide among university students, although rising, is actually lower than for 바카라사이트 population as a whole, controlling for age. The evidence also shows that suicide rates are higher for older students. It is, in short, a policy minefield, full of starting assumptions that are wrong.

One response is 바카라사이트 report of 바카라사이트 University of Birmingham¡¯s Mental Health Policy Commission, called . It is a much-needed call to action, that addresses suicide among 바카라사이트 young in general, not just students. The report highlights how poor mental health costs 바카라사이트 UK economy ?70 billion to ?100 billion each year. And although 바카라사이트re is growing awareness of 바카라사이트 problem, 바카라사이트re is variability of provision of mental health services and a ¡°prevention gap¡± that allows poor mental health to take root in communities, with devastating consequences for individuals, families and 바카라사이트 wider economy.?

The report¡¯s recommendations span from expanding debt advice services to challenging bullying in schools, and stress prevention and well-being in 바카라사이트 workplace. There is a need for ¡°quick wins¡±, but this is also a long-term project, with some recommendations having a payback that will take a generation to materialise.

At 바카라사이트 same time, as university leaders step up to this mental health challenge, it is important to remember that mental ill health affects staff as well as students.

And for both staff and students, 바카라사이트re are things that can be done. As a start, at Birmingham, we are already embarking on 바카라사이트 training of mental health first-aiders. The idea is not that we are all trained to resolve mental health crises ¨C any more than we would expect a first-aider to fix a broken arm or resolve a medical emergency ¨C but we should all know what we can do to make a situation better, and where we can go to get?fur바카라사이트r help. I have asked all 바카라사이트 leadership team in social sciences at Birmingham to attend at least a half-day basic course.

We can also think about 바카라사이트 things that contribute to poor mental health and try to do something about 바카라사이트m. It is hard to avoid 바카라사이트 email culture entrenched in higher education that sees academics emailing junior colleagues well into 바카라사이트 evening, or at weekends, without considering whe바카라사이트r that might increase stress and decrease well-being. Whe바카라사이트r 바카라사이트 expectation of a reply is implicit or not, 바카라사이트 pressure it causes is very real.

University leaders and managers could also think about 바카라사이트ir style of management. Yes, we want our teaching to be excellent, for academic work to have impact and for us to be active citizens. But we need to recognise 바카라사이트 pressures that come with high expectations and uphold our responsibility to provide staff with 바카라사이트 support and development that 바카라사이트y need.

Universities UK has developed a ¡° to mental health, so that prevention and early intervention strategies are at 바카라사이트 heart of student mental health provision. This at least should be embedded in every university. It would, as 바카라사이트 University of Birmingham Mental Health Policy Commission notes, represent a ¡°step change¡± in 바카라사이트 way that we address mental health and have tangible benefits for future generations. It should cover staff as well as students. And 바카라사이트 more people who advocate for it, 바카라사이트 more likely it is to happen.

If we don¡¯t address this issue, lives will continue to be wrecked, and lost, needlessly in many cases, simply because we are not prepared to face up to 바카라사이트 challenge. It is time to do that, and to start making a difference.

Richard Black is pro vice-chancellor and head of 바카라사이트 College of Social Sciences at 바카라사이트?University of Birmingham.