How sleep in patients with serious mental illness is recorded and treated, and its impact on service engagement

Stafford, Aviva, Oduola, Sheri and Reeve, Sarah (2024) How sleep in patients with serious mental illness is recorded and treated, and its impact on service engagement. Sleep Medicine, 124. pp. 58-69. ISSN 1087-0792

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Abstract

Background: Sleep and mental health share a bidirectional relationship whereby problems in one exacerbate the other. Accordingly, sleep problems are frequent and severe in serious mental illness (SMI) populations, exacerbating SMI symptoms. This study examined the documentation and treatment of sleep problems within anonymised clinical records of SMI patients, and their association with attendance rates and number of appointments scheduled. Methods: Patient records between 01.09.2021 and 31.08.2022 were identified and relevant records (n = 229) extracted from an NHS Trust database. Content analysis was used to assess documentation and treatment of sleep problems and Chi-square tests were used to assess demographic differences. Mann-Whitney U tests were used to compare attendance rates and number of appointments scheduled between patients with/without sleep problems. Results: Most (n = 170; 84 %) patients with sleep problems had no or minimal assessment of the sleep problem within their records. Patients were primarily offered no (n = 115; 57 %) or non-recommended (n = 69; 34 %) sleep treatment. More outpatients were offered no sleep treatment (n = 89; 64 %) than inpatients (n = 26; 41 %) (p = .002) whilst more inpatients were offered non-recommended sleep treatments (n = 33; 52 %) than outpatients (n = 36; 26 %) (p < .001). No significant associations were found between sleep and attendance or appointments scheduled. Conclusions: There is a lack of routine clinical attention to sleep assessment and treatment in SMI groups. Where sleep is addressed, treatment often conflicts with guidelines. Improved sleep assessment and treatment could significantly enhance current SMI patient care.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	Funding information: This research was supported by the NIHR Cambridge Biomedical Research Centre (BRC-1215-20014). The views expressed are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the NIHR or the Department of Health and Social Care.
Uncontrolled Keywords:	cbt-i,clinical records,insomnia,serious mental illness,sleep assessment,sleep treatment,medicine(all),sdg 3 - good health and well-being ,/dk/atira/pure/subjectarea/asjc/2700
Faculty \ School:	Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Norwich Medical School Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > School of Health Sciences
UEA Research Groups:	Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Research Centres > Population Health (former - to 2025) Faculty of Science > Research Groups > Norwich Epidemiology Centre Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Research Groups > Norwich Epidemiology Centre Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Research Groups > Health Promotion Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Research Centres > Mental Health and Social Care (fka Lifespan Health) Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences > Research Centres > Public Health
Related URLs:	http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?...
Depositing User:	LivePure Connector
Date Deposited:	12 Sep 2024 11:30
Last Modified:	13 Aug 2025 01:10
URI:	https://ueaeprints.uea.ac.uk/id/eprint/96732
DOI:	10.1016/j.sleep.2024.09.002

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