Effective communication skills are essential for all healthcare professionals. Specialist teaching on communicating with people with intellectual disabilities is often lacking, resulting in poorer healthcare and worse outcomes than in the general population. Working with professionally trained actors with intellectual disabilities, we developed an interprofessional workshop that sought to provide authentic communication skills training to enable healthcare students from various disciplines to communicate effectively with patients of all abilities. In a survey, students reported that they found the workshops rewarding and confidence-building, and that they learnt more about the roles of their interprofessional colleagues.

Outcomes for people with schizophrenia are improved by expedient diagnosis and specific treatment. ICD-11 and DSM-5 have reduced the importance of Schneider's first rank symptoms (FRS) in the diagnosis of schizophrenia; however, FRS may still offer a useful triage tool for the early identification of schizophrenia and initiation of antipsychotic therapy in high-demand and resource-poor settings. This commentary considers a Cochrane review that assesses the diagnostic accuracy of one or multiple FRS in diagnosing schizophrenia in adults and adolescents.

Baillon et al’s Cochrane review included 430 participants with agitation in dementia from five randomised controlled trials. Overall, the reviewers found that valproate was no better than placebo for the treatment of agitation in people with dementia; however, the quality of the studies included was very variable. Adverse effects and events were higher in the treatment group compared with the controls, although these finding were largely based on low-quality data with incomplete reporting; thus, valproate's safety profile is of concern. This review demonstrates that there is insufficient evidence to change current treatment guidelines.

The pharmacological treatment of depression is often hampered by side-effects and unsatisfactory response to treatment. Vortioxetine is one of the newest antidepressants on the market, purportedly with a different mechanism of action compared with other antidepressants. This month's Cochrane Corner review examines the evidence available for the use of vortioxetine as a first-line treatment for depression in adults. This commentary puts the Cochrane review's findings into their clinical context and revises them in view of earlier and later studies.

The development of rational treatments for tardive dyskinesia has been held back by limitations to our understanding of its aetiology, which even now does not extend far beyond its association with centrally acting dopamine-blocking drugs. This article reviews briefly the major aetiological theories and addresses general management and specific treatment options. Primary prevention and early recognition remain the crucial management issues because, once the condition is established, there are no satisfactory treatments. The article considers two newly developed drugs, valbenazine and deutetrabenazine, in some detail as, although they are not yet licensed in Europe, they have largely been responsible for an upsurge in interest in tardive dyskinesia in the North American literature and are likely to be widely promoted in the future. Although possessed of undoubted benefits, the evidence suggests that these represent small steps rather than large leaps forward in treatment.

Although antipsychotic medication remains the mainstay of treatment for schizophrenia, medications alone are not always successful. Cognitive–behavioural therapy (CBT) is recommended as an adjunct to pharmacological treatment. The Cochrane review under consideration evaluates the effects of offering CBT as an add-on to standard care compared with standard care alone, and this commentary puts those findings into their clinical context.

Violence is a critical challenge for society and it disproportionately affects young people. Violence experienced in an intimate relationship is associated with attempted suicide, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, as well as poorer physical health. Interventions to limit intimate partner violence, especially in adolescents and young people, are a priority. This commentary examines a systematic review and meta-analysis of educational interventions for relationship and dating violence in young people aged 12–25 years. Random-effects meta-analysis revealed a small statistical effect on knowledge, but no statistical associations with reduced violence. None of the included studies assessed health outcomes. The reviewers recommend further investigation of educational interventions in low- and middle-income settings, and studies with longer follow-up.

Mental health clinicians are expected to offer support and advice to patients to promote smoking cessation. Alongside this is the relatively new and increasingly popular phenomenon of electronic cigarette use. The absence of any long-term evidence regarding safety is recognised and clinicians' awareness of e-cigarettes may be limited to personal experience or media publications, leading to uncertainty in their confidence discussing e-cigarettes with patients, both in general and as an aid to quitting smoking. This article provides a historical and contemporary overview of e-cigarettes and vaping. The reader will gain an understanding of e-cigarette usage, risks and benefits, the current position on use of e-cigarettes in mental health settings, and tips on how to take an e-cigarette/vaping history and how to offer advice about use. This is achieved in the context of recent publications and national recommendations. Although the focus is primarily on the mental health patient, the article is of benefit to all health and social care professionals to help them develop an understanding of e-cigarettes as a tobacco-smoking cessation or harm-reduction aid.

Avoidant/restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID) was a new diagnosis in DSM-5 and is due to be included in ICD-11. However, confidence in making the diagnosis seems to be low among clinicians. Furthermore, there is no national consensus on care pathways for ARFID and therefore patients tend to be managed across core child and adolescent mental health services, specialist eating disorder services and paediatric services. If not adequately treated, ARFID can result in stunted growth, nutritional deficiency and impaired psychosocial functioning. Research and guidelines for managing this disorder are scarce, owing to low rates of diagnosis. This article aims to improve clinician confidence in the use of ARFID as a diagnosis and explores current consensus on treatment approaches, in order to progress future service planning for this complex and diverse patient group.