The Health Improvement Profile for people with severe mental illness: Feasibility of a secondary analysis to make international comparisons

Introduction 

To date, no studies have contrasted physical health profiles of people with severe mental illness (SMI) in different countries. 

Aim 

To evaluate feasibility of using the Health Improvement Profile (HIP) to compare and contrast physical health and health behaviours of people with SMI from four countries. 

Method 

An observational feasibility study using secondary analysis of pooled health state and lifestyle data. Physical health checks using modified versions of HIP were administered in four countries. 

Results 

Findings suggest feasibility of HIP screening to profile and compare physical health and health behaviours of people with SMI across international settings. High overall numbers of risk items (red flags) were identified in all but the Thailand sample. Despite some commonalities, there were important differences in health profiles across countries. 

Discussion 

This is the first study to demonstrate feasibility of the HIP to compare health risks in individuals with SMI across countries. Future multi-national HIP studies should recruit a fully powered stratified random sample of people with SMI that is representative of each setting. 

Implications for practice

 It appears feasible to utilize the HIP to identify specific areas of health risk in different countries, which may help to better focus nursing interventions and use of resources.