Libraries for Health & Wellbeing

Culture Perth and Kinross work in partnership with NHS Tayside and other local organisations to provide a range of self-help books covering topics such as anxiety, living with chronic pain, depression, anger, stress and more. If you need some help finding the right book for you, just ask a member of library staff for assistance.

View Libraries for Health and Well-being resources on the library catalogue.

Building a personal playlist means exploring someone’s life story to gather the tunes that are most deeply attached to memories and emotions. Scientific research shows that listening to a personal playlist can make living with dementia easier and happier so Playlist for Life want everyone with dementia to have a unique, personal playlist and everyone who loves or care for them to know how to use it. Volunteers will help carers explore the music, discuss and demonstrate the different devices that can be used for Playlist for Life and assist with the download of the music from websites. Find out more about Playlist for Life

NHS professionals and local library services are working together to make it easier to access self-help books for a range of common psychological problems. This scheme is called Books on Prescription. It encourages people to use books as an alternative to, or alongside, medication and therapy services. The books are free to borrow and you don’t need to be an existing member to access them. These are recommended by NHS professionals and are available from your local library:

Chronic pain is one of the most common long term conditions affecting the population. Thanks to support from Tayside Health Fund the charity for NHS Tayside, education and support is now available in libraries across Tayside, including mobile libraries. View Pain Management Resources and Information list

Resources to support people diagnosed with dementia, their families, friends and carers, and people concerned about symptoms and wanting to find out more about the condition. View Dementia Resources and Information list

The Reading Well collections support you to understand and manage your health and wellbeing using helpful reading. Below is a spotlight on some of their collections.

Reading Well for children

Reading Well for children provides quality-assured information, stories and advice to support children’s mental health and wellbeing. Books have been chosen and recommended by leading health professionals and co-produced with children and families

The booklist is targeted at children aged 7-11 but includes titles aimed at a wide range of reading levels to support less confident readers and to encourage children to read together with their siblings and carers. Overview of Reading Well for children booklist

Reading Well for young people

These titles provide 13 to 18 year-olds with support and advice on common mental health conditions, such as depression, anxiety and stress. The books, which include self-help, psycho-education, memoirs, graphic novels and fiction, have all been chosen by young people and health professionals. View Reading Well for Young People list

Reading Well Mood-boosting books

Reading Well Mood-boosting Books is a national promotion of uplifting titles, including novels, poetry and non-fiction. The books are all recommended by readers and reading groups. View mood-boosting booklists

Culture Perth and Kinross have a separate LGBT book collection at AK Bell Library in Perth. You can find them in the library by looking out for the rainbow sticker which is on display next to the collections, and on the spine of each book. View LGBT Titles

During Mental Health Awareness Week, Perth and Kinross Council teamed up with AK Bell Library to host a series of events throughout the week to encourage people to talk about the books they find help them to survive and thrive with good mental health and wellbeing. The following list contains some of the fiction titles that were suggested during these events, along with some recommendations from readers taken from the Reading Agency Reading Well Mood-Boosting Lists. View Books that Make you Feel Good Titles

Our libraries offer computing facilities and you can access an online cognitive behavioural therapy programme called Beating the Blues. Aimed at helping you deal with depression and anxiety, the programme can be an effective and proven treatment for many. To find out more about how to access Beating the Blues, speak to your GP or find out more at the Beating the Blues website. Beating the Blues

NHS inform

NHS inform is Scotland’s national health information service with an aim to provide the people in Scotland with accurate and relevant information to help them make informed decisions about their own health and the health of the people they care for. View NHS inform information.

NHS inform – Scotland’s Service Directory

Through Scotland’s Service Directory you can find the names, addresses, opening times and service details for thousands of health and wellbeing services in Scotland. View information on Scotland’s Service Directory

ALISS – A Local Information System for Scotland

A local information tool for health and wellbeing resources and community support in Scotland. View information on ALISS

Health and Social Care Resources

This section highlights key resources, services and support for many of the common long term conditions in Scotland. Produced in collaboration by The ALLIANCE, NHS Education for Scotland, NHS Knowledge Services, Iriss, APLS, Scottish Government Digital Health and Care Team. View Health and Social Care information

Perth Citizen’s Advice Bureau provides a free, confidential, independent and impartial benefits advice service in your local library. This is a one to one service with someone who can offer advice and help with a range of issues including challenging benefit sanctions, including mandatory reconsiderations, problems with claimant commitments for Jobseekers Allowance, benefit entitlement checks, advice on welfare reforms changes as well as assistance with forms and applications. To arrange an appointment please telephone Perth Citizens Advice Bureau on 01738 450581 for further information. Benefits Advice in Libraries (BAIL)