In order to assess the current provision for patients who misuse opiates in primary care, the discrepancy between this, and government expectations and the resources required to bridge this gap, a purpose-designed questionnaire based on the Department of Health guidelines was distributed to all general practitioners (GPs) in Solihull and Warwickshire (n=379). Data were analysed with the Chi-squared, Fisher's exact, Mann–Whitney U and Kruskal–Wallis tests, using the computer software SPSS version 10.

Replies were received from 205 GPs, representing 77.2% of the practices. Only 12 GPs (6%) provided all four key services studied and 71 (34%) provided none of these services. One hundred and six GPs (51.7%) had read the guidelines. Of these, 51 (49%) were not willing to change their practice. Forty-one (39.4%) were prepared to change their practice, but only with additional resources. The main resources identified as necessary were shared care and training.

There is a huge gap between current provision and government expectations, which may be unrealistic. If this gap is to be bridged, then resources should be targeted to shared care and training for GPs.

We aimed to assess the contents and tone of articles on mental health care in the UK print media by comparing them with reporting in the USA and Australia. Two broadsheets from each country were analysed using the Internet for a random 4 months over a 1-year period. The number of articles, their content and the views expressed in them were identified and compared.

A total of 118 articles on mental health care issues were found. The predominant tone of the articles in all three countries was negative, though there were slightly more positive articles in the USA and Australian media. Positive articles highlighted in the UK media covered mostly medical conferences and research findings.

Efforts to achieve a more positive attitude towards people with mental illnesses in the public, such as anti-stigma campaigns, operate against a background of predominantly negative coverage of mental health care issues in broadsheets. The coverage in the UK may tend to be even less positive than in the USA and Australia. Medical conferences and research findings can, however, be used to promote positive views of mental health care in the media.

To assess the impact of Carers' & Users' Expectations of Services –User version (CUES–U) upon clinical care planning in working age adults with mental health problems. Eighty-six individuals who were receiving input from the community mental health team gave their views.

Life and service satisfaction ratings ranged from 49% to 88%. The CUES–U discussion led to a change in clinical care for 49% of respondents. Care coordinators rated CUES–U as a good use of their time in 64% of cases. Women and those with a shorter duration of mental disorder were rated as more engaged in the consultation process.

CUES–U appears to be a useful tool for supporting individual clinical care and the evaluation of community mental health services.

A postal survey of consultants in liaison psychiatry was carried out in the spring of 2002 to document the current state of liaison psychiatry in the UK and the Republic of Ireland. Information was collected on post specifications, clinical organisation and plans for further local development.

Ninety-three liaison consultants were identified. Seventy-seven posts were full-time or half-time, compared with 43 such posts in 1996. During the same time period, specialist registrar training posts have doubled from 30 to 61. A third of respondents anticipated further consultant posts in their region.

Despite the increase in the number of liaison consultants since 1996, the numbers still fall below that recommended by the Royal College of Psychiatrists. Liaison consultants need to improve links with primary care and continue to develop specialised services to demonstrate the qualitative and financial benefits that liaison psychiatry has to offer to a wide range of patients.

All 208 consultant members of the Faculty for the Psychiatry of Learning Disability were contacted and asked to complete a questionnaire to provide qualitative and quantitative information about their work and experiences.

One hundred and thirty-six consultants responded, giving a 64% response rate. They reported a wide range of clinical, academic and management skills, with 72 having registration in other specialities. Insufficient in-patient provision and problems with discharge were cited by 85% of respondents. There was a wide disparity in the provision of mental health services for children and adolescents with learning disabilities and 12 areas reported no services from any source. Although most respondents showed satisfaction with clinical work and professional relationships, there were many concerns about management, commissioning and planning of services.

Consultant psychiatrists in the field of learning disability are a broadly skilled group of clinicians with a wide range of responsibilities and areas of expertise, but many are working in services that they see as under-resourced and poorly managed, planned and commissioned. Overall levels of satisfaction are good, particularly in relation to clinical work, peer support and study/academic work.

We describe activity and outcome concerning a consecutive series of older community patients referred to an outreach support team while waiting for acute psychiatric admission.

Forty patients on an admissions waiting list who were referred to the outreach support team were followed up. Each patient was reassessed for admission by the responsible medical officer when an in-patient bed became available. Thirty patients who would have been admitted (if a bed had been available at the time of the first assessment) remained at home and did not need hospitalisation.

This study suggests that intensive domiciliary support might offer an acceptable form of crisis intervention for older people with mental illness. Further research is needed before generalisation of these findings can be recommended.

A questionnaire was sent to all general adult psychiatry specialist registrars (SpRs, n=33) on the largest rotation in the South West to survey their safety awareness and provision for safety in their workplace.

The response rate was 82%. Most SpRs had received training, but less than half within the previous 2 years. Only 44% had been given induction to their job and only 37% reported inclusion in local safety procedures. More than half felt they had to interview in unsuitable rooms and sometimes felt vulnerable or fearful at work. No personal involvement in violent incidents during SpR training was reported.

Important gaps in workplace safety provision for SpRs persist and should be addressed.