hi penny,
I get light in the tunnel by sustaining relationships with other like-
minded folk who share my values - like those on this email list. And there
are some good things happening in the NHS, individualistic though the
dominant discourse is. have you, for example, seen the "Ten essential
capabilities" for mental health workers - it isn't perfect but it's got
some really good things in it that I am able to refer to in helping us
currently to move our Doctorate in Clinical and Community Psychology
forward to a more socially responsible model of training.
I think it's important to find the hooks out there that we can hang on to
and use for positive progress - there are a few.
good wishes,
Annie
--On 30 November 2004 10:38 +0000 pennypriest <[log in to unmask]>
wrote:
>
> Exactly. What's new? I have a paper here, called 'The Tyranny of Health
> Promotion', written by Marshall Becker in 1986. He quotes Zola (in a
> chapter called 'Medicine as an institution of social control'), who says:
> 'By locating the source and the treatment of problems in an individual,
> other levels of intervention are effectively closed' (it could have come
> straight out of David Smail!). He goes on to say, himself, 'We must be
> honest and explicit about what we can and cannot do. The domain of
> personal health over which the individual has direct control is very
> small when compared to heredity, culture, environment, and chance. Nor is
> health promotion the panacea for rising health care costs.' I could go
> on. But this was 1986, and yet we have a burgeoning evidence base on
> Azjen's theory of planned behaviour and Prochaska and DiClemente's stages
> of change, like psychology has gone down some long dark tunnel, seeking
> an ever smaller source of light. And yes, it's so despairing, I sometimes
> feel like I'm in the blooming tunnel myself and I'm damned if I can get
> out! Perhaps I need to get myself some CBT.
> Penny
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Diamond Bob
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Sent: Tuesday, November 30, 2004 9:16 AM
> Subject: Re: FWD: Public Health White Paper "Choosing health" & Mental
> health promotion [Scanned By NHC]
>
>
> Thanks Paul
> It is despairing. Clearly for this Government health is considered to be
> an individual thing, with the emphasis on making individual choices. This
> is because it is convenient and gets them off the hook of introducing
> policies that address inequalities. Quite despairing but then what's new?
>
> Bob
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Paul@home [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
> Sent: 29 November 2004 22:53
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: FWD: Public Health White Paper "Choosing health" & Mental
> health promotion
>
> Here is Mr Blair's foreword to the White paper. Don't read this if you
> have
> just eaten.... it may make you feel nauseous
>
> For each of us, one of the most important things in life is our own and
> our
> family’s health. I believe that this concern, and the responsibility that
> we
> each take for our own health, should be the basis for improving the
> health
> of everyone across the nation. ... It aims to inform and encourage people
> as
> individuals, and to help shape the commercial and cultural environment we
> live in so that it is easier to choose a healthy lifestyle.
>
> Small changes in the choices people make can make a big difference. Taken
> together, these changes can lead to huge improvements in health across
> society. But changes need to be based on choices, not direction. We are
> clear that
> Government cannot ? and should not ? pretend it can ‘make’ the population
> healthy. But it can ? and should ? support people in making better
> choices
> for their health and the health of their families. It is for people to
> make
> the healthy
> choice if they wish to.
>
>###########
> Note that he does not mention the economic or political climate, it is
> now
> just culture and commerce .. interesting! I would suggest that we
> compliment
> the reading of the White paper with a re/reading of Richard Wilkinson's
> book
> on Unhealthy Societies and see what conclusions we distill from it. My
> own
> view is that the White Paper displays in many parts an appauling piece of
> victim-blaming (we are primarily responsible for our own health/ill
> health),
> and displays an absurd lack of engagement with the systemic causes of
> ill-health (income inequalities, corporate tyrany etc). It looks clear
> that
> the government are wanting to push the individual responsibilty harder
> than
> the corporate responsiblity so we may have to be creative in how we argue
> that what we do merits funding under this policy initiative - thankfully
> the
> civil service might offer us a rescue as they re-interpret this policy.
> You
> might also find the following section on mental health issues in the
> "easy
> read summary" of the white paper interesting. I quote it in full and
> direct
> from source:
>
> "We want to help people be healthy mentally. This is because:
> - many people living in England now have mental ill health. Mental ill
> health is things like being very depressed.
> - it is very important to be healthy mentally, as well as having a
> healthy
> body
> - mental ill health can lead to people killing themselves"
>
> I promise you, the above is exactly as stated in the 'accessible' version
> of
> the white paper, it actually reads this way ... Oh dear, oh dear, oh
> dear....
>
> p
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: The UK Community Psychology Discussion List
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of amitchel
> Sent: 29 November 2004 22:17
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: [COMMUNITYPSYCHUK] FWD: Public Health White Paper "Choosing
> health" & Mental health promotion
>
>> =The attached may be of interest to many of us,
> Annie
>
> Annie==== Original Message From "Jean Alger-Green"
> <[log in to unmask]> =====
> Sent on behalf of Jeremy Voaden
> To: Members of NIMHE South-West Mental Health Promotion and Social
> Inclusion Networks
>
> Please find attached:
> A summary of the mental health promotion content of "Choosing Health",
> the recent Public Health White Paper.
>
> "We will ensure that standard one of the NSF for Mental Health which
> deals with mental health promotion is fully implemented" (p.131, Ch.6)
>
> This document summarises the mental health promotion opportunities in
> the recent White Paper "Choosing Health: Making healthy choices easier"
> (DoH, 2004)
> Each chapter is analysed under the following headings:
> -Policy focus/direction
> -Initiatives/settings highlighted as good practice
> -New initiatives, capacity and resources
> -Missed Opportunities
>
> Of particular interest is:
> Chapter Three: Children and Young People
> Chapter Four: Local Communities-all about social capital
> Chapter Five: Health as a way of life-lots of implications for
> recovery, self-management etc
> Chapter Seven: Work and health
>
> Best wishes
> Jeremy
> Jeremy Voaden
> Public Health & Mental Health Promotion Specialist
> NIMHE South-West
> Tel: 07747-562437
> e-mail: [log in to unmask]
>
> Eastgate House (Ground Floor)
> 121-131 Eastgate Street
> Gloucester GL1 1QB
>
> Jean Alger-Green
> Office Manager
> NIMHE South West
> Ivor House
> 2 Tower Lane
> Taunton
> TA1 4AR
> Tel; 01823 337879
> Fax: 01823 272897
> [log in to unmask]
>
> ___________________________________
>
> COMMUNITYPSYCHUK - The discussion list for community psychology in the
> UK.
> To unsubscribe or to change your details visit the website:
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> For any problems or queries, contact the list moderator at
> [log in to unmask]
>
> ___________________________________
>
> COMMUNITYPSYCHUK - The discussion list for community psychology in the
> UK.
> To unsubscribe or to change your details visit the website:
> http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/COMMUNITYPSYCHUK.HTML
> For any problems or queries, contact the list moderator at
> [log in to unmask] ___________________________________
>
> COMMUNITYPSYCHUK - The discussion list for community psychology in the
> UK. To unsubscribe or to change your details visit the website:
> http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/COMMUNITYPSYCHUK.HTML For any problems or
> queries, contact the list moderator at [log in to unmask]
>
> ___________________________________
>
> COMMUNITYPSYCHUK - The discussion list for community psychology in the
> UK. To unsubscribe or to change your details visit the website:
> http://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/lists/COMMUNITYPSYCHUK.HTML For any problems or
> queries, contact the list moderator at [log in to unmask]
Annie Mitchell
Lecturer in Psychology,
Clinical Director, Doctorate in Clinical and Community Psychology,
School of Psychology,
Washington Singer Building,
University of Exeter,
Exeter,
EX4 4QG
Phone 01392 264621 or
Liz Mears, Programme Administrator 01392 403184
___________________________________
COMMUNITYPSYCHUK - The discussion list for community psychology in the UK.
To unsubscribe or to change your details visit the website:
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