Dr Patsy Irizar

- greater occupational stressors (e.g. reduced access to PPE and lack of security in raising concerns) were associated with worsened mental health
- discrimination from staff and patients associated with worsened mental health, with large effects

Using data from 6973 healthcare workers(HCW) we found:
- symptoms of depression, anxiety and PTSD were stable during the second year of the pandemic (but no earlier estimates to make comparisons)
- HCWs who drank more frequently over time reported greater increases in symptoms of poor mental health

Longitudinal associations between alcohol use, occupational stressors, and mental health among healthcare and ancillary workers in the United Kingdom during the COVID-19 pandemic (UK-REACH) - BMC Medi... Background The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated exposure to trauma and demands for healthcare workers (HCWs), which are known risks for heavy alcohol use and common mental disorders (CMD). We investigate...

New article published in BMC Medicine 📓

Longitudinal associations between alcohol use, occupational stressors, and mental health among healthcare works in the UK (UK-REACH)

link.springer.com/article/10.1...

NoLo products may be helpful to support abstinence or harm reduction, but there is a need for clear guidance on safe levels of ABV (0.05 or 0.5%??)

New article! 📢

Pregnant women’s views towards NoLo alcohol products.

18 interviews with pregnant women.

NoLo products used to adhere to the societal norms of abstinence in pregnancy, whilst also navigating the societal expectation to drink when socialising.

Open access 📔
lnkd.in/ervdgcF7

Alcohol and Mental Health in Young Adults The co-occurrence of alcohol and mental health problems in the general population is well-documented. Among young adults, evidence suggests that most of those with an alcohol problem are also sufferin...

New book! 📕

Young Adult Drinking Styles: Current Perspectives on Research, Policy, and Practice.

Laura Goodwin, Jo-Anne Puddephatt, and I wrote a chapter on Alcohol and Mental Health in Young People

link.springer.com/chapter/10.1...

(not open access unfortunately)

Most young people who identified as belonging to an ethnic minority group reported better wellbeing than white British young people, but risk factors differed…

Racial discrimination is more harmful for wellbeing for Indian and Pakistani young people, than for white British young people

Ethnic inequalities in adolescent mental wellbeing: An interaction analysis of social identity markers, risk and protective factors

New article on ethnic inequalities in adolescent mental wellbeing, using data from almost 70k adolescents (aged 12-15) to understand interactions with social identity markers, risk and protective factors @beewelluk.bsky.social

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

A meta‐analytic review of the relationship between racial discrimination and alcohol and other drug use outcomes in minoritised racial/ethnic groups Aims To measure the associations between racial discrimination and distinct alcohol and other drug use outcomes in minoritised racial/ethnic groups and to explore the moderating roles of demographic...

NEW PUBLICATION!

A meta-analysis of the relationship between racial discrimination and substance use in minoritised racial/ethnic groups.

The analysis found strong associations between racial discrimination and hazardous alcohol use and cannabis use.

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

A meta‐analytic review of the relationship between racial discrimination and alcohol and other drug use outcomes in minoritised racial/ethnic groups Aims To measure the associations between racial discrimination and distinct alcohol and other drug use outcomes in minoritised racial/ethnic groups and to explore the moderating roles of demographic...

NEW PUBLICATION!

A meta-analysis of the relationship between racial discrimination and substance use in minoritised racial/ethnic groups.

The analysis found strong associations between racial discrimination and hazardous alcohol use and cannabis use.

onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

AlcoLab research group writing day, feat. Baloo the spaniel for moral support!

Research Associate in Psychology at University of Sheffield An opportunity for an academic position as a Research Associate in Psychology is available, as advertised on jobs.ac.uk. Apply now and explore other academic job openings.

✨ Job opportunity! ✨ We're currently seeking a Research Associate in Psychology for a new project led by @fieldmatt.bsky.social which will use machine learning to develop a better understanding of why many people drop out of treatment for gambling problems. More project info at: bit.ly/45WEyVb

New report summarising the findings from our recent research examining the associations between racial discrimination and mental health, through direct and indirect pathways

Authored by @patsyirizar.bsky.social, Dharmi Kapadia, Harry Taylor, Gertrude Wafula, Albert Kwansa, @charleskod.bsky.social @inequalccsr.bsky.social @vkatikireddi.bsky.social

@uomsoss.bsky.social @uomsociology.bsky.social @healthierfutures.bsky.social

New report shows a ‘dose response’ relationship between racism and poor mental health A new report titled The impact of racial discrimination on mental health investigates how experiencing racial discrimination affects mental health, both directly and indirectly.It finds a ‘dose-respon...

REPORT: The impact of racial discrimination on mental health
📌 'dose-response' relationship (more experiences of racism -> worse mental health)
📌 impact is cumulative & recency counts
📌 impact is direct & indirect (racism -> poorer housing -> worse mental health)
www.manchester.ac.uk/about/news/n...

Do ultra-processed foods really shorten our lifespan? Maybe...some of them... As we see yet more headlines about the latest edible bogeyman (sorry about that mental image), what did the study actually show? And what does ultra-processed even mean?

Wrote about the latest ultra-processed food headlines. Will these foods really kill us?? open.substack.com/pub/suzigage...

I'll be talking about this research at the @britsoci.bsky.social conference tomorrow at 11am in Lecture Theatre A!

This statement about the transphobic Supreme Court ruling by the UK's Crab Museum (yes a museum about crabs) is better than 99% of the statements I've seen on the topic

www.crabmuseum.org/visit

🦀🦀🦀🦀🦀🦀🦀🦀

After Rat Park Or why everything you think you know about addiction might be a little more nuanced than some would give you credit for

Been seeing people sharing a certain someone's TED talk recently. So I wrote this about what Rat Park actually found, why it's an important study, but it's really important not to sensationalise what it found for that 'truthy' soundbite.

📢 Postdoctoral Research Associate vacancy

Exciting opportunity for a Postdoctoral Research Associate to join our new UKRI-funded project on dietary health inequalities @liverpooluni.bsky.social.
See below for further details & reach out if any questions.
tinyurl.com/mpwbkdub

I wrote a blog for Data Science for Health Equity, summarising the findings from my recent research.

Using data science to understand how racial discrimination impacts mental health:
www.datascienceforhealthequity.com/post/using-d...

Ethnic inequalities in loneliness in Britain during the COVID-19 pandemic: Evidence for Equality National Survey (EVENS) Ethnic minority populations faced a disproportionate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Loneliness, a significant public health issue, was exacerbated during the pandemic. Most previous studies used agg...

New pre-print! Ethnic inequalities in loneliness during COVID-19.
Most ethnic minority groups had higher odds of loneliness, compared to white British - partly explained by socioeconomic inequalities for some ethnic groups www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1...

Associations Between Experiences of Racial Discrimination Across the Life Course and Mental Health: Exploring Direct and Indirect Pathways We aim to explore the association between racial discrimination across the life course on common mental disorders (CMD) during the COVID-19 pandemic, testing direct and indirect pathways. Cross-secti...

New article! Associations between experiences of racial discrimination and mental health, through direct and indirect pathways onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

Ethnic inequalities in loneliness in Britain during the COVID-19 pandemic: Evidence for Equality National Survey (EVENS) Ethnic minority populations faced a disproportionate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Loneliness, a significant public health issue, was exacerbated during the pandemic. Most previous studies used agg...

New pre-print! Ethnic inequalities in loneliness during COVID-19.
Most ethnic minority groups had higher odds of loneliness, compared to white British - partly explained by socioeconomic inequalities for some ethnic groups www.medrxiv.org/content/10.1...

@ethnicityuk.bsky.social

- racial discrimination indirectly contributed to poor mental health, through a greater likelihood of testing positive for COVID-19, financial insecurity, feelings of loneliness, and a reduced sense of belonging

- dose-response relationship between racial discrimination (RD) and poor mental health
- recent experiences of RD had a stronger effect on mental health compared to past experiences (over 5 years ago)
- chronic experiences of RD (both past and recent) had the strongest effect

Associations Between Experiences of Racial Discrimination Across the Life Course and Mental Health: Exploring Direct and Indirect Pathways We aim to explore the association between racial discrimination across the life course on common mental disorders (CMD) during the COVID-19 pandemic, testing direct and indirect pathways. Cross-secti...

New article! Associations between experiences of racial discrimination and mental health, through direct and indirect pathways onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

UK coins at the bottom of a jar, viewed from above

🖋️New on the Data Impact blog🖋️

We highlight the impact some of the data available via the UK Data Service is having in #research, #policy and public conversations around the area of #poverty, deprivation and the cost-of-living crisis.

blog.ukdataservice.ac.uk/poverty-in-d...

An infographic on homelessness

People experiencing homelessness have high mortality and morbidity from preventable or treatable conditions.

This article explores the health impacts of homelessness and practical considerations for clinicians providing care.

Includes an infographic
www.bmj.com/content/388/...