Mental Health Nursing Report: Illness, Care, and Strategies

This report provides a comprehensive overview of mental health and substance abuse, common in Australia, and their detrimental effects on physical health, including increased risks of heart and respiratory diseases, and reduced life expectancy. It explores challenges patients face in accessing healthcare, such as inadequate specialty programs, financial barriers, and stigma. The report emphasizes the importance of holistic and recovery-oriented care, advocating for nurses to provide patient-centered services and promote resilience through support and goal setting. It also examines Australian strategies for improving mental health, like coaching programs and creating supportive environments, and outlines strategies for promoting resilience in patients, including providing support, teaching self-care, and guiding patients towards their goals. The report concludes by highlighting the implications for nursing practice in addressing these critical issues.

Running Head: MENTAL ILLNESS 1
Mental Health and Substance and Alcohol Abuse
Name of Student
Name of Professor
Institution Affiliation
Date

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Abstract
Mental Health and substance and alcohol abuse has been on the rise drastically. These
two aspects have had negative impacts on the people experiencing them. They affect the quality
of their lives, result in deaths, heart disease, and respiratory complications. Due to stigma and
discrimination, financial constraints, and lack of specialty programs for people experiencing the
two conditions, it has become so difficult for them to access useful and effective healthcare. As a
result of inaccessibility to healthcare, the complications have continued to influence them
negatively. Mental health nurses and other nurses should strive to provide holistic and recovery-
oriented care for these patients. They can do so by being patient-centered and becoming
optimistic and committed to providing services. Australia has been at the forefront of providing
proper mental health. It has adopted strategies like providing a supportive environment and
striving to create awareness. Resilience is another factor that enhances recovery. Nurses should
at all times, be committed to providing resilience to the mental illness patients through helping
them develop achievable goals, providing support, and coaching them on self-care.

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Table of Contents
Introduction....................................................................................................................................4
Common physical health associated with mental illness/substance abuse disorder................4
Challenges faced by mental health illness while accessing health care.....................................5
Inadequate mental specialty programs.........................................................................................5
Financial barriers..........................................................................................................................5
Discrimination and stigma...........................................................................................................6
Holistic and recovery-oriented care for mental illnesses...........................................................6
Australians strategies that promote good mental health...........................................................8
Strategies for promoting resilience..............................................................................................9
Conclusion....................................................................................................................................10
Implications for nursing..............................................................................................................10
References.....................................................................................................................................11

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Introduction
Mental illness and substance and alcohol abuse is a common occurrence in Australia.
Approximately one out of five (20%) of Australians aged 16-85 years encounter a mental
pandemic in a year. The most commonly experienced mental related illnesses among this age
group are substance use disorder, anxiety, and depression. Available data indicate that half (45%)
of Australians experience a mental illness across their lifetime. These mental illnesses
negatively influence the way of life of the user, and hence effective strategies should be applied
to assist in promoting good mental health. Formulation of practical and effective strategies is
essential in achieving resilience among people encountering mental complications and substance
abuse. This essay aims at discussing physical problems associated with mental health, strategies
for addressing, and other aspects related to mental illnesses.
Common physical health associated with mental illness/substance abuse disorder
There are various ways that patients with mental illnesses/substance abuse disorders have
revealed to be detrimental to physical health. Some of the common physical complications linked
to mental health include;
 Doubling the chances of death occurring from heart disease
 Increased risk of developing heart disease
 Doubling the likelihood of death occurring as a result of respiratory disease
 Depression has been associated with a 67% increase in a person’s likelihood of dying due
to heart disease and 50% from cancer
 Reduction in life expectancies by 10 to 20 years (Houben et al., 2019, p 457-467).
These physical complications, especially high cases of deaths, arise because these patients
are less likely to get the physical healthcare they are eligible for (Buhagiar et al., 2020). They

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also experience fewer chances of receiving routine checks that are carried for some conditions
like weight, cholesterol, and blood pressure that can assist in detecting these physical health
complications earlier. They are also less likely to receive the help that can support them in
adjusting their lifestyle (Daly, 2017, p. 1-2). They require more assistance that can support them
in reducing the consumption of alcohol, give up on smoking, and assisting them in making
positive alterations in their diet. It is therefore clear that if the world tries to effectively treat or
prevent mental illness and substance abuse disorder, it does affect not only the emotional
wellbeing of the patient but also their physical wellbeing (Tranter & Robertson, 2020)
Challenges faced by mental health illness while accessing health care
While seeking healthcare for the above physical complications, patients with substance
abuse disorder and mental illnesses experience a lot of challenges. Some of the challenges
include;
Inadequate mental specialty programs
Much of substance abuse and mental health care is provided in primary healthcare
settings instead of specialty programs. Despite the provision of guidelines on clinical practice,
training programs, and continuing education courses, primary healthcare caregivers tend to
underdiagnose these physical health complications. They even underdiagnose substance abuse,
depression, and anxiety; hence they cannot adequately diagnose the physical health conditions
associated with them. Coordinated care within the health care and establishment of specialty
programs can help in reducing this. It will enhance an effective and early diagnosis of the
discussed physical complications.

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Financial barriers
The cost of accessing health services among these patients is a significant challenge.
The mental illnesses and substance abuse disorders patients lack health insurance through both
the private and public sectors, which is a significant determinant of access to healthcare services.
As a consequence, they encounter a delay in seeking care, increased barriers to proper care, and
have a lot of unmet care needs. These patients, due to their mental conditions, are more likely to
lose their insurance. Even with insurance, patients with mental illnesses encounter difficulties
since insurance contains higher restrictions for mental illness compared to other health illnesses
(Porras-Javier et al., 2018, p. 668-677).
Discrimination and stigma
The stigma linked with mental illness is one of the paramount reasons behind them not
even wishing to seek healthcare. Stigma is the prejudicial attitudes and stereotypes held by the
general public concerning mental illness and substance abuse disorder (Olmos-Ochoa et al.,
2019, p. 220). The pejorative attitudes held by the general public make them distance
themselves, reject and fear these patients. This results in these patients becoming unwilling to
seek medical attention and hence posing and exposing them to more severe physical
complications linked to their illnesses (Schnyder et al., 2017, p. 261-268). For people with
substance abuse disorder and mental illness, the effects of discrimination and stigma can be so
severe. They include; lower self-esteem, diminished opportunities, concealment of symptoms,
decreased help looking behaviours and shame. These make them even to be more affected by
their physical health complications that may result from their illnesses (Shor & Shalev, 2016,
p.116-123).

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Holistic and recovery-oriented care for mental illnesses
Mental Health Nurses and other nurses should always aim at providing recovery-oriented
and holistic care for people with mental diseases and substance abuse disorders. For many people
suffering from mental illness, their main concern about recovery is to stay in control of their life
instead of indefinable return to premorbid level of functioning. The right approach does not
necessarily have to put emphasis on full symptom resolution but rather on control over life and
problems and resilience; this is known as recovery model (Davidson et al., 2016, pp. 39-58).
Some of the ways that other nurses can enhance a recovery-oriented and holistic care for the
patient include;
Their services should be incorporated in such a way that they adapt to and are centered on
the mental illnesses patient’s aspirations and needs. They should adopt strategies that are
welcoming to the patients and make them feel safe and respected (Thornicroft et al., 2016, p.
1123-1132). Most mental illnesses patients experience unresolved trauma, and hence they
struggle to feel safe. The core principles that other nurses should adopt include collaboration,
empowerment, choice, and trustworthiness.
They should show commitment and optimism. Nurses should ensure that they collaborate
with other stakeholders like public health teams, patients with mental illness, their families,
community, social services, and mental health professionals to enhance commitment and
optimism when dealing with mental illness patients. People’s attitudes and expectations much
determine recovery-oriented care, and hence a well-organized support system from nurses is
essential. Nurses should incorporate innovative ways in order to ensure optimism and
commitment in their services (McKenna et al., 2016, p. 167-175).
They should assist people with mental illness and substance abuse disorder to look
beyond mere existence and survival. To provide a recovery approach, nurses should inspire them

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to move forward and assist in setting new goals. This supports the view that they ought to get on
with their lives, do things normally while developing relationships that can provide their lives
meaning (Cusack et al., 2017, p. 93-104).
.
Australians strategies that promote good mental health
Several factors have been linked to mental health. Individuals who are disadvantaged and
more socially isolated tend to experience mental health problems more. The determinants of
mental health include gender, age, ethnicity and race, education level, geographic location,
income, and sexual orientation. Other factors that can influence mental health both negatively
and positively include social support, housing quality, family, community and interpersonal
dynamics, school conditions, and employment opportunities. Effective strategies should support
in addressing the negative influence of those determinants. Some of the Australian strategies that
promote good mental health include;
Establishment of mentoring and coaching programs. These programs are established in
order to empower people and decrease the level of depression. Individual coaching sessions are
helping in providing knowledge and information regarding mental health, which allow the
individuals to develop further while giving them a sense of value and worth towards their life
(Lehr et al., 2016, pp. 257-281)
Implementation of public policy and the creation of supportive environments. These
include improving nutrition, improving housing conditions, ensuring proper access to education,
and strengthening community networks. These strategies help in developing a sense of social

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responsibility and ownership among the socially disadvantaged people. Strengthening
community networks go a long way in reducing social isolation.
Promoting mental awareness in society. Australia has adopted practices that are
advertising and encouraging mental health promotion and prevention for everyone. They include
advertising and encouraging on importance of physical exercise, use of green space, proper
nutrition, giving and volunteering, social networks, and good parenting. All these factors assist in
promoting good mental wellbeing (Fernandez et al., 2016, p. 797-807).
Strategies for promoting resilience
Resilience is the capacity of a patient experiencing mental illness to recover quickly from
the condition. Instantly, when one has not yet experienced the condition, then resilience can
support in protecting against mental illnesses like anxiety and depression. It also assists in
offsetting factors that can trigger the risk of mental illnesses such as previous trauma and being
bullied. But in case one has already encountered a mental illness, then becoming resilient help in
improving the capability to cope. Nurses play an essential role in promoting resilience among
people experiencing mental illnesses or substance use disorder. Some of the strategies that nurses
can incorporate in promoting resilience include;
Providing support. Nurses should establish connections with these patients. The nurse
should encourage and teach the patients how to form a friendship while also explaining how the
patient can undergo through his/her inevitable hurts and disappointments. The nurse ought to
ensure that the patient is not going though isolation by always being there for him/her (Amodeo
et al., 2018, p. 3-19)
Teaching the patient about self-care. The nurse should teach the patient about the
significance of making time to rest, exercise, and eat properly. Helping in developing self-care

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and having fun with him/her will support in helping the patient to effectively deal with stressful
circumstances and stay balanced (Foster et al., 2018, p. 1470-1480).
Teach the patients how to move towards his/her goals. Teaching patients, especially those
having substance abuse disorder on how to set reasonable and achievable goals, is essential. A
nurse should guide the patient on how to move towards the goal one stage at a time. A nurse
should also appraise the patient when he/she accomplishes a step towards the goal. This will
encourage them and hence promote resilience.
Conclusion
In conclusion, mental illness and substance abuse disorders are so common in Australia.
Anxiety, depression, and substance abuse being the most common. These mental illnesses have
been associated with a lot of negative physical impacts on the affected person. They influence
their quality of life and cause a lot of complications, like heart disease and respiratory
complications. The affected people furthermore face a lot of challenges while trying to seek
medical help while they are experiencing these conditions. In some instances, the situation
worsens and results in death. These challenges include stigma and discrimination from society
and financial barriers. If nurses provide holistic and recovery-oriented care while promoting
resilience, then high chances are that the affected people can recover. Australia has formulated
strategies that aim at creating awareness and providing the support they are essential for
promoting good mental health among her population.
Implications for nursing
This research is essential to mental health nursing, especially when they are delivering
their services. They need to know the strategies that they should incorporate to provide holistic
and recovery-oriented care for patients with mental illness. Second, it guides them on how they
can build on techniques they ought to learn how to enhance resilience while caring about the

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wellbeing of the patient. Lastly, it teaches them factors that can hinder mental illness patients
from seeking for the patient, and they should educate the community and everybody on how to
solve these issues (Cusack et al., 2017, p. 93-104).
.
References
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