21.09.18
Blog 8 Thing 7 Finding Resources

This was one of the most time consuming Things to Do though useful as I find a new library and interesting to read some new research

Haven't used SSKS before so took a few sessions ( see previous blogs when I started thinking about it) just finding my way round the website and then registering with Open Athens. Although registration appears straight forward, if your organisation isn't on the list then you have to approximate and that caused a bit of a delay before I understood the instructions. I then had to wait a day for a return email with my link and user name so a new user could be put off. Once in however, I found the general layout easy to navigate though became a bit side tracked by the many bits of information that attracted me on the home page - like techniques and frameworks for evidence based practice.

I decided I would explore treatment methods currently in favour for working with Borderline Personality Disorder in young people because it is current I imagined from that I would get a good comparison with Google Advanced search. Also it is such a common diagnosis for the group I am interested in especially high risk or marginalized young women.

Google and SSKS

Both websites delivered. Honestly did not find that Google Advanced search offered anything that the regular search didn't. Not surprising that Google identified a plethora of self help forums which though interesting was not what I was after since they tended to be for adults generally rather than young people and the search doesn't really handle requests using words like marginalized or treatment particularly well. But because they like advertising I found some interesting references - one was a new research training initiative being developed by Norfolk and Suffolk Health Trust for 13-18 year olds, diagnosed as BPD, called BEST and that might be one to watch for the future. I also found another academic piece with interesting findings on the stability of the diagnosis at a young age and whether early intervention might be a good thing using an analyses of the research. A bit general but would be useful for new workers. Annoyingly difficult to ascertain when the research took place because date suggested current though on reading found it was probably several years earlier (from the references)

 But it was SSKS that came up trumps......

After scampering around other areas on the site like learning disability, I quickly located a good piece of comparative research into substance use motivators among a group of 500 students and specifically within that group, those assessed as BPD. It was current and a substantial summary which after reading I was able to print off for a practitioners team doing this work. Findings were really fascinating because the study was gendered so interesting to see the comparisons between males and female. Briefly, one key finding that was noteworthy was females in the BPD group's motivates to use opioid pain killers was pain related and as a coping mechanism to a much higher degree than males. Firstly, motives were physical then progressing to emotional pain. The study references the fact that young women come to opiates generally much later than boys but often escalate more rapidly. Some similarities and differences between males and females are noted in relation to alcohol use  with social conformity as a common motivation but with twice as many females proportionately in this category.  Conclusions centre on proposals for earlier intervention and the value of looking at these motives as the focus for the group treatment rather than it being BPD or simply drugs with suggested approaches such as Mindfulness perhaps more helpful
This article is published in Addictive Behaviours Jan 2018 by NAVest, KTMarphy & Tragesser

I copied this article for a team specializing in work with High Risk Young Women irrespective of the agency triggering assessment. This project has strong academic links and aims to inform work with practice and evidenced outcomes in order to raise the profile of a group who often feel disenfranchised opting out of services which they cannot relate to. The team will connect with the messages of this paper and it will give confidence in some of their own findings from face to face work. As founder of the project in 2009 I found the article an interesting read adding to both gender informed practice and knowledge of substance use among the BPD group and with lots of reference at the end.

There are other sources of useful reading linked to the user group - such as Celsis, or the CYCR or Children Scotland. SSKS adds another dimension to this with more choices and other perspectives on young peoples Mental Health agenda.  I shall certainly pass on the SSKS link.