Authors:
Ms Teresa Kelly, Department of Nursing, School of Health Sciences, The University of Melbourne.
Associate Professor Bridget Hamilton, Department of Nursing, School of Health Sciences, The University of Melbourne.
Professor Sharon Lawn, Flinders Human Behaviour and Health Research Unit, Department of Psychiatry, Flinders University.
Professor Suresh Sundram, Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Sciences, Monash University; Monash Health.

People who live with mental illness such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder are vulnerable to premature mortality. The leading cause of death is cardiovascular disease. Extensive research has produced important biomedical knowledge of this complex health problem. However, this knowledge has not translated into improvements in the cardiovascular health of people who live with mental illness. This PhD research project explored this real-world problem through the stories of ten people who live with mental illness.

Using an interdisciplinary and multi-perspective approach generated a new narrative for understanding the cardiovascular risks associated with living with mental illness; one that views the person and their cardiovascular vulnerabilities in the context of a much broader narrative.

This new narrative extends beyond the parameters of biomedical and biopsychosocial frames. It affirms mental illness to be a powerful generator of a complex array of interconnected cardiovascular risks. By shifting the lens from stories of illness to stories of transformation, this new narrative points to connection as a fundamental precursor to holistic heart health. From this perspective, heart health is not separate from recovery-oriented care; rather it depends on it.

The translation of the findings of this narrative research into policy in Victoria is already underway.

In this paper, we will showcase the Heartscapes. We will share the key discoveries and outline implications for policy, research, and practice. We will conclude with a call for a radical, relational and transformational approach to holistic heart health.