The British journal of psychiatry : the journal of mental science
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The Chief Medical Officer's report for 2013 was the first of its kind to highlight the public's mental rather than physical health and thus represents a very important landmark for public health in the UK. Written primarily from the perspective of psychiatrists, the report has created confusion in public health circles by failing to adequately address the public health perspective. David Foreman's editorial in this issue, calling as it does for more training in public health for psychiatrists, is therefore very welcome and timely.
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Electronic monitoring has been used in criminal justice and some health settings for three decades. Technological interventions are becoming more common in psychiatry, but may be a cause for ethical concerns and controversy. We discuss electronic monitoring as an aid to security and public safety in a forensic setting.
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In response to the Sandy Hook shooting in December 2012, the White House published an action plan to reduce gun violence that, among other things, calls for research into the relationship with violence in digital games or other media images. We acknowledge the administration's efforts to reduce violent crime in society and their obligation to dedicate resources to matters of public interest, such as media effects. ⋯ Current initiatives could be an opportunity to restore credibility to the field and to engage in a responsible dialogue on media effects. In order to inform public policy, we need to close gaps, both in empirical research and the academic debate, while being alert for potential political and social influences.
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Multimorbidity--the co-occurrence of two or more long-term conditions in an individual - is highly relevant to psychiatry. Changes to training and a more integrated model of psychiatric and physical healthcare are needed in the future if we are to improve the long-term health of our patients.
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Pregnant women and their fetuses are increasingly likely to be exposed to antipsychotics. However, safety data remain limited. This editorial suggests that, in future, well-designed observational pharmaco-epidemiology is our best chance of illuminating risk for exposed populations and of informing decision-making for women and clinicians.