Manchester Mental Health and Social Care Trust

Minister for Employment Mark Hoban stopped off in Manchester this week to learn more about how one innovative service is supporting people with mental illness back into work. The Minister was giv...

The Trust has welcomed this week's announcement that dementia diagnosis rates will be improved over the next couple of years. The Trust already operates Memory Clinics in the city to encourage mo...

Professor Louis Appleby, an honorary consultant with Manchester Mental Health and Social Care Trust, is calling for a new language for mental health at a national conference today (Thursday 16th M...

Substance misuse expert Colin Tyrie gave an insight into the latest legal high to hit the headlines, mephedrone, following a record seizure of the drug by Greater Manchester Police and a number of...

Care and Support Minister Norman Lamb has spoken today about the need to more closely integrate health and social care services - something that has been happening in Manchester since 2002. Manch...

I've been thinking a lot about leadership lately. We all know leaders - or influencers - who inspire us, motivate us and drive us forward to be the best that we can be. But, in a way, everyone is ...

To celebrate International Nurses Day (12th May) we asked our staff to keep a Twitter-style diary over the course of a week to give us an insight of what was happening around the Trust, hour-by-ho...

It's International Nurses' Day on Sunday 12th May (the anniversary of Florence Nightingale's birth) and we've been asking our nurses around the Trust what their role means to them.

The Mental Health Foundation's Mental Health Awareness Week 2013 runs from Monday 13th May to Sunday the 19th. To mark the event, which this year focuses on the importance of physical health to me...

Simple messages about hand cleaning, needle safety and ward cleanliness are the focus of a week-long campaign at the Trust. Using the popular war-time poster to promote the event, the Keep Calm I...

Encouraging conversation about happy memories, adventures of youth and talking about friends of yester-year has been proven to help people with dementia.  Research has shown that encouraging ...

The largest trial into the use of ElectroConvulsive Therapy (ECT) in the UK in more than 30 years will look into how the use of the class C drug ketamine might reduce the side effects of ECT for t...

Our patient stories are powerful tools in helping us all to focus on what we are all here to do. Whether we are working directly with service users in a clinical setting or supporting that work in...

Marathon woman Vicki Baxter powered her way to a British record in London on Sunday - slicing 28 seconds off the previous best. Vicki, a personal fitness trainer and a Non-Executive Director of M...

Activities ranging from Zumba to chair-based exercises, and from football to community walking challenges are on the menu for a physical health day aimed at improving mental wellbeing. Manchester...

Our Integrated Business Plan (IBP) 2013- 2017 is an important document that sets the direction of the Trust for the future, laying out our plans for service development as we move towards Foundat...

Whilst a recent report says that the NHS is not doing enough to support mental health service users with stopping smoking, the Trust is at the forefront of supporting service users to quit.&n...

It's that time of year when the NHS Staff Survey results are out and I'm pleased to say that we have some areas of improvement and we are also better than the national average in others.  Our...

Professor Karina Lovell, one of the country's foremost mental health nurses and a Non-Executive Director at the Trust, has been awarded a prestigious title by the National Institute for Health Res...

As a closet chocoholic, I love Easter and the excuse it provides me with for a bit of shameless indulgence....! There's nothing wrong with a little bit of indulgence now again - provided it's temp...

Manchester United and Manchester City Football Club's mascots Fred the Red and Moonchester have teamed up to 'Give Smoking the Red Card' in a campaign to protect children from breathing other peop...

Throughout the year we have continued to raise standards around privacy and dignity, offering our service users an improved patient experience. The Trust is pleased to be able to confirm that we a...

A nationally-recognised service that supports people with a mental illness to gain employment has been shortlisted as a finalist for a prestigious award. Manchester Mental Health and Social Care ...

The introduction of colourful plastic cups is ensuring our older patients are being given any extra help they need when it comes to mealtimes. Joan English, one of the Trust's Assistant Practition...

Researchers are warning of an unprecedented rise in the proportion of people aged 65 years and above who are drinking above the recommended daily limits, leaving them at greater risk of developing...

Trust staff, our Governors and our partners from Third Sector organisations tell us what becoming a Foundation Trust means to them. Watch the video here.  

Chief Executive Michele Moran talks about how confidence is key in ensuring continuous improvement in services. Read the blog here.

Manchester Mental Health and Social Care Trust Chief Executive Michele Moran has been invited to lead a workshop session at a national conference on 'Governance after Francis and the NHS Reforms'....

Your latest update on mental health and wellbeing in Manchester is now available here. In this edition: Our Foundation Trust application Research and innovation in the Trust The positive out...

With an estimated one in four of us at risk of developing a mental health problem at some point in our lifetime, caring for, and supporting, those who do become unwell is a vitally pressing concer...

As X Factor finalist Stacey Solomon speaks out about her experience of post-natal depression, new mum Ella* talks about being cared for by the Trust's specialist mother and baby unit when her ment...

Hospital patients, visitors, parents and even shoppers wanting to quit smoking for good will have information on tap all this week. Stands dotted around Wythenshawe Hospital on National No Smokin...

Keeping service users in the picture about medications that are used to treat mental illness - and their potential side effects - is one of the key aims of a week-long campaign at Manchester Menta...

In her second vodcast, Chief Executive Michele Moran talks about the importance of listening to service users and putting them at the heart of all that we do to enable us to continue to develop an...

Tapping into childhood memories through sharing a favourite poem or text and reading aloud in a group - something many of us may not have done since school - are having positive spin-offs for seve...

Chief Executive Michele Moran reflects on the recently launched Alzheimer's Society's Dementia Friends campaign and asks what life might be like if our nursing values were practiced by everyone, e...

The public are being invited to attend Manchester Stop Smoking Service's No Smoking Day event on Saturday 16 March 2013 at Manchester Fort, Shopping Park, M8 8EP from 11.00am - 3.00pm. There will ...

A pilot study to help people with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) cope more effectively with daily life has had remarkable results. Professor Adrian Wells, a consultant clinical psychologist ...

Picking up a pair of knitting needles and getting creative has been shown to boost our wellbeing. In fact, it has had such a profound benefit on one group that they have found the confidence to e...

People are being given the chance to get on board for a healthier future by NHS Greater Manchester's First Stop Health Bus. The bus will visit Manchester on the following dates: ASDA, Stanley Gr...

Getting fired up about football or passionate about politics might be one way people with dementia can improve their memory and keep their mind active. Researchers are looking into how discussing...

Chief Executive Michele Moran talks about her shock at the 'appalling' standards of care highlighted in the Francis Report - and how it should remind us of the fundamentals we sometimes take for g...

Experts in Manchester are encouraging people to enjoy a healthy Valentine's Day with a new campaign being launched on Thursday 14 February 2103. The campaign 'Love is...' aims to raise awareness o...

Part of the £22 million investment recently announced by the Government to fund leading-edge research into the cause, care and prevention of dementia will support research trials in Manchester. T...

The Alzheimer's Society's Dementia Friends initiative is an important step forward in understanding dementia and supporting those with the condition, says later life consultant psychiatrist Dr Suz...

For young British Asian women with an eating disorder, getting help can be more than challenging. In a culture where food and its rituals are an important part of daily and family life, many find...

Your latest update on mental health and wellbeing in Manchester is now available here. In this edition: Find out how we are engaging with our service users to understand and improve their exper...

Research into the effects of Government legislation to reduce the pack size of paracetomol has shown a 43% reduction in deaths. Paracetamol overdoses are a common method of suicide.  In Sept...

You will all be aware that the report by Robert Francis QC into the failings in terms of standards of care provided by Mid-Staffordshire Hospitals NHS Trust has been published this week (Report of...

Chief Executive Michele Moran talks about her passion for golf and how it requires 'real commitment, discipline and focus' to improve in her latest blog, available here. She adds: "As Gary Playe...

The long-awaited Francis Report on the public inquiry into the Mid Staffordshire Foundation Trust is published this morning (Wednesday 6 February 2013). Chaired by Robert Francis QC, the...

Breathing secondhand smoke is dangerous; it increases the risk of suffering asthma, ear infections, bacterial meningitis, cancer, heart disease and a whole host of other ill health. Manchester Sto...

A diagnosis of cancer can be a life-changing event. Gone is the in-built sense of invincibility we all share, plans are put on hold and real life takes a backseat to a round of treatment that cou...

A Manchester service that supports people with mental health issues to get back into work has been awarded 'Centre of Excellence' status by the Centre for Mental Health. Manchester Mental Hea...

Stonewall, the champion of lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) rights, has named the Trust as its highest performing mental health trust in the North of England in terms of tackling discriminatio...

When things get tough, explaining to others how you are feeling and letting off steam with those closest to you can be a huge help and help put things in perspective. But when that story is about...

Researchers at the University of Nottignham have discovered that a brisk daily stroll can help stave of Alzheimer's. According to the team a daily walk helps balance the body's levels of the horm...

Health experts are warning of the dangers of so called 'legal highs' as part of a new campaign. The Trust's Drug Harm Reduction Team say that the lack of clear information about the effects of th...

Chief Executive Michele Moran has talked of the importance of 'minor victories' in mental health in her latest blog, available here. "Little actions add up to alot," she said. "I am aware that al...

Trust public health specialists have launched a new campaign to try to tackle shocking cervical cancer rates in the city. Staff are urging women to attend screening for the disease, which is more...

Statistics released today reveal that almost half of all people living with dementia in Manchester do not have a diagnosis. The Alzheimer's Society dementia diagnosis map states that the percent...

Your latest update on mental health and wellbeing in Manchester is now available here. In this edition: Find out how we are providing the safest care for our service users in the North West Le...

As you may be aware the Trust has recently been the subject of media coverage related to a Care Quality Commission (CQC) report on Park House. Below is the Trust's response to the coverage: Trust...

Chief Executive Michele Moran has said that the Trust will 'meet challenges together' in 2013. In her most recent blog, available here, Michele added that the economic situation in the UK will co...

Following the success of the digital Patient Stories, the Trust recently launched the Both Sides NOW! project. Both Sides NOW! is being funded through the NHS Innovation Fund and is a collaboratio...

Mental health service users in Manchester are receiving the safest care in the North West according to a new NHS measure. The NHS Safety Thermometer provides a quick and simple method for measuri...

Trust honorary consultant clinical psychologist Professor Gillian Haddock has been awarded a £250,000 grant to look into developing a suicide prevention therapy for people in acute psychiatric war...

Alcohol specialists at the Trust are urging people to 'drink safe' to ensure a happy and healthy holidays. Public Health Development Advisor Elizabeth Burns says there are a number of easy ways f...

The Winter edition of the Trust's Pathways newsletter for service users and carers is now available here. This edition includes tips on staying well over the holidays, ways to beat Seasonal Affe...

Service users and carers with a query about psychiatric medication can ask an expert in a special online forum next week. Manchester Mental Health and Social Care Trust's Head of Pharmacy Petra B...

In her first vodcast for the Trust our new Chief Executive Michele Moran talks about building on the great feedback from our service user survey, the importance of improving physical as well as me...

Your latest update on mental health and wellbeing in Manchester is now available here. In this edition: Find out about our new Chief Executive's plans for the Trust Discover which Trust staff...

This time of year can be stressful with presents to buy, events to arrange, dinner to cook and much more. To help, Trust Psychologist Dr Steve Eccles has put together some useful tips. Plan ahead...

A number of Trust staff who took part in Movember appeared on Granada Reports to mark the end of the campaign. Tony Ellis, Colin Tyrie and Bernard Gribbin were filmed shaving off their moustaches ...

Environment Minister Lord De Mauley praised Greater Manchester after visiting a joint Trust initiative recently. Lord De Mauley (pictured) went to Real Food Wythenshawe, a £1million partnership b...

Sexual health experts in Manchester have launched a new campaign to try and increase the numbers of gay and bi-sexual men being tested for HIV. The Trust's Sexual Health and Harm Reduction T...

With rising costs, salary freezes and job losses many families across the UK are struggling to get by. That's why the theme of this year's Carer's Rights Day on 30 November is 'getting help in tou...

Trust staff have launched a brand new campaign to try to increase awareness of the risks caused by drinking more than the NHS limits. The initiative marks Alcohol Awareness Week, which runs from M...

A ground-breaking Trust project could revolutionise the way that service users and carers plan their care in England and Wales. Our Research and Development department, along with the Universitie...

A patient safety campaign running this week (12-16 November 2012) in the Trust is focusing on reducing falls. There are roadshows around the Trust for staff and service users to find out more, in...

Help is at hand for people who find the festive season stressful. Staff at the Trust's Recovery Education Centre in North Manchester are running a course which explores ways of coping and getting...

A national survey looking into individuals' experiences of living with mental illness and the stigma that can surround it has had a very positive response from the Trust's service users. Almost 3...

People can go a long way towards beating stress by getting organised and learning to say no, according to a senior Trust psychologist. Dr Steve Eccles (pictured) shared his expert advice ahead of...

At the September Board meeting of Manchester Mental Health and Social Care NHS Trust (MMHSCT), Board members reviewed the decision taken in January 2012 to reconfigure its community mental health ...