co-occurring conditions
and stigma
What are
co-occurring conditions?
​​Stigma around mental health and addiction is a barrier.
Be the bridge.
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​​​​Welcome to our campaign focused on improving support for people with co-occurring conditions. Co-occurring conditions refers to when people experience both mental health conditions and addiction at the same time.
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Understanding co-occurring conditions is key to providing effective support. This combination can create unique treatment and support needs, and it’s important for healthcare providers to offer integrated and complete care.
Co-occurring conditions are common. Research shows that mental health conditions are experienced by 70% of people using drug services and 86% of those using alcohol services in community substance use treatment in the UK1.
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These conditions are complex, and often interlinked. People with co-occurring conditions often face barriers to accessing appropriate and holistic care, including stigma and a lack of integrated services.
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“With every case, you need time — but with co-occurring conditions, stigma makes it even harder. When people are assessed for the first time, they’re not going to share what they hate about themselves or all their trauma, even though these are often at the heart of the issue. We need to create services that allow these stories to unfold, without the pressure of fitting into rigid service specifications.” - Anonymous, Social Worker
Co-occurring conditions and stigma
Stigma around co-occurring conditions can stop people from feeling able to seek the help they need.
Negative attitudes and beliefs about mental health and addiction can lead to discrimination, and social exclusion. This, sadly, can also impact the quality of care that people receive.
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People who work in healthcare services play a crucial role in reducing stigma. By using supportive language, showing empathy and applying best practices in your work, you can help create a more understanding and inclusive environment for people with co-occurring conditions.
Resources for NHS Staff
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This campaign is part of our effort to support NHS staff in their vital work. A lot of progress has been made in combating stigma in the mental health field, thanks to campaigns like 'Time to Change.' We aim to build on this progress by addressing the stigma associated with addiction, which still remains a significant barrier to effective treatment.
This training guide has been designed in order to support NHS staff,
particularly those who work in mental health services, to recognise and apply the skills they already have to support people with co-occurring conditions.
This document has been prepared by the NHS APA Co-Occurring
Conditions working group.
Share your feedback
Your feedback is important to us. Please take a moment to complete our survey and share your thoughts on the resources provided.
Working group
The NHS APA currently runs a co-occurring conditions working group which is focused on making a positive difference in the treatment of co-occurring conditions.
If you are an existing NHS APA member and you’d like to get involved, please contact us.