Physical health care and staff training : An exploration of the experiences of mental health nurses, managers of mental health nurses and trainers

Jabbie, Lamin and Walshe, Catherine and Ahmed, Faraz (2026) Physical health care and staff training : An exploration of the experiences of mental health nurses, managers of mental health nurses and trainers. PhD thesis, Lancaster University.

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Abstract

Background: It is known that people with serious mental illness have higher mortality and morbidity rates compared with the general population and the reasons for this are multifaceted. Mental health nurses are in a pivotal position to address physical health inequalities experienced by this population group, but research indicates that they may lack the skills, knowledge, and confidence to provide patient centred and integrated care. It is important to understand the views and experiences of mental health nurses and other key stakeholders regarding physical health care provided to this population group and training to improve physical health care. An initial systematic review with narrative synthesis explored the views and perceptions of key stakeholders (mental health nurses, managers of mental health nurses and trainers) in relation to physical health care training needs of mental health nurses and the effectiveness of training. The results from the review informed the research questions and qualitative design of this empirical study Aim: The aim of the study is to explore the views and experiences of mental health nurses and other key stakeholders about (a) the care given to people with serious mental illness who have physical healthcare needs in acute in-patient mental health settings(b) the training provided to mental health nurses to enable them to provide care to people with serious mental illness who have physical healthcare needs. Methods: The design of the empirical research is a qualitative interview-based study using reflexive thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke 2019) underpinned by hermeneutical-phenomenological epistemology. In total, eighteen in depth interviews were conducted with inpatient mental health staff (nine mental health nurses, four managers of mental health nurses and five trainers in physical health care) from a single NHS Foundation Trust in England. The analysis of qualitative data was informed by Braun & Clarke (2019) reflexive thematic analysis. Findings: Four themes were developed under the following headings: (1) Culture of care and sense of competence: “Oh yeah, they asked me to do blood sugar. I told them I'm not there for the physical health, I’m there for the mental health” (2) Promoting professional autonomy: “Training went to waste” (3) The influence of mental state: “They tell you that, “I don’t need it; I don’t think anything is wrong” (4) Training success: what does it mean to me? Conclusion: As an original contribution to knowledge, this thesis concludes with discussion which highlights that adequate pre-registration education and post registration training, existence of supportive conditions and culture of care that equally prioritises mental and physical health care shape the delivery of optimal physical health care.