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Evidence-Based Mental Health alerts clinicians to important advances in treatment, diagnosis, aetiology, prognosis, continuing education, economic evaluation, and qualitative research in mental health. We select and summarise the highest quality original and review articles. Experts in the field comment on the clinical relevance and context of each study.
Our target audience includes psychiatrists, psychologists, nurses, social workers, occupational therapists, pharmacists, and other professionals whose work may be enhanced by up to date research. Evidence-Based Mental Health is multidisciplinary. It covers studies of adults, children, older adults, people who have developed psychiatric or psychological problems as a result of trauma, and people with learning disabilities, head injuries, drug and alcohol problems, and personality disorders.
SELECTION PROCEDURE
The Editorial team screens each issue of 65 leading journals for articles that meet our criteria and the following journals are regularly reviewed:
Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica
Addiction
Age and Ageing
American Journal of Psychiatry
American Journal of Public Health
American Psychologist
Annals of Internal Medicine
Archives of General Psychiatry
Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine
Australian and New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry
Behaviour Research and Therapy
Behaviour Therapy
BMJ
British Journal of Clinical Psychology
British Journal of General Practice
British Journal of Psychiatry
Canadian Journal of Psychiatry
Child Development
Clinical Psychology Review
Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews
Cognitive and Behavioral Practice
Developmental Medicine and Child Neurology
European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry
General Hospital Psychiatry
Health Psychology
International Journal of Behavioural Medicine
International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry
Journal of Abnormal Child Psychology
Journal of Abnormal Psychology
Journal of Affective Disorders
Journal of Anxiety Disorders
Journal of Applied Psychology
Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders
Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology
Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry and Allied Disciplines
Journal of Clinical and Experimental Neuropsychology
Journal of Clinical Pharmacology
Journal of Clinical Psychiatry
Journal of Clinical Psychology
Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology
Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology
Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics
Journal of Developmental Medicine Behavioral Pediatrics
Journal of Mental Health
Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry
Journal of Neuropsychiatry and Clinical Neurosciences
Journal of Psychosomatic Research
Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
Journal of the American Geriatrics Society
Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA)
Lancet
Molecular Psychiatry
New England Journal of Medicine
Pediatrics
Psychiatric Services
Psychiatry Interpersonal and Biological Processes
Psychological Bulletin
Psychological Medicine
Psychology and Aging
Psychosomatic Medicine
Research in Developmental Disabilities
Schizophrenia Bulletin
Schizophrenia Research
Social Science and Medicine
United Kingdom Health Technology Assessment Reports
We also assess articles nominated by our readers.
CRITERIA FOR SELECTING ARTICLES
Articles are considered for inclusion in Evidence-Based Mental Health if they are:
original or review articles
in English
about humans
about topics that are important to clinical practice in the field of mental health
use analysis techniques consistent with the study design.
Studies of prevention, treatment, quality improvement, and continuing education must also:
randomly allocate participants to comparison groups
follow up a high proportion of the original participants (eg 80%)
measure an outcome of known or probable clinical importance.
Studies of causation (aetiology) must also:
collect data prospectively if possible
identify a comparison group(s) for the outcome of interest
mask outcome observers to exposure (this criterion is assumed to be met if the outcome is objective).
Studies of diagnosis must also:
include a spectrum of participants, some, but not all of whom have the disorder of interest
include a diagnostic (gold) standard
include information about reliability if possible (measure of agreement among observers, for example)
ensure each participant receives both the new test and some form of the diagnostic standard
interpret the diagnostic standard and the new test result independently, without knowledge of the other test.
Studies of prognosis must also:
include an inception cohort of participants (first onset or assembled at a uniform point in the development of the disease), all initially free of the outcome of interest
follow up at least 80% of the original participants.
Studies of prevalence must also:
include a valid and repeatable definition of the disease or disorder
employ adequate sampling methods.
Studies of the cost-effectiveness of interventions must also:
compare alternative diagnostic or therapeutic services or quality improvement strategies
compare activities on the basis of the outcomes produced (effectiveness) and resources consumed (costs)
include data from real (not hypothetical) participants from studies which meet the quality criteria for other articles described above
present results in terms of the incremental or additional costs and outcomes of one intervention over another
include a sensitivity analysis when there is uncertainty in the estimates or imprecision in measurement.
In review articles, at least one article included in the review must meet the quality criteria for treatment, diagnosis, prognosis, causation, and cost effectiveness studies described above. Review articles must also:
clearly state the clinical topic
describe sources and methods
explicitly state inclusion and exclusion criteria for selecting articles.
Qualitative studies must meet the following criteria:
the content must relate to how people feel or experience situations that relate to mental health care
data collection methods must be appropriate for qualita tive studies. (For example, unstructured interviews, semi-structured interviews, participant observation of people in natural settings, focus groups, review of documents or text).
SUMMARISING MATERIAL
Relevant articles which meet these criteria are summarised using a structured abstract. Articles are reviewed by experts in the field who provide commentaries describing the context of the article, methodological problems that may affect interpretation, and recommendations for clinical application. If you are interested in writing an expert commentary, please contact Alan Lovell (alan.lovell{at}bazian.com).