Welcome to Ilumetri^® (tildrakizumab)

The Ilumetri^® Emotional Wellbeing Programme is a service for patients who have a diagnosis of psoriasis and have been prescribed Ilumetri^® by their prescribing healthcare professional. The programme is delivered by trained and experienced healthcare professionals who are all employed by Bionical Health.

As you have been diagnosed with psoriasis, you may have questions about the condition and your treatment. This section of the programme will provide you with helpful information about psoriasis which may help to answer some of the questions that you have. It is important to remember that you can do things to help manage the impact that psoriasis can have on your life.

One of the first things to remember is looking after your general health is likely to be helpful in managing your psoriasis. Most people are familiar with the main health messages about eating well, reducing alcohol consumption, not smoking, keeping fit and active, and having a positive mindset. These lifestyle choices are also important for your psoriasis.

The severity of psoriasis can be influenced by many things, including being overweight, consuming too much alcohol, smoking, and not being active enough.

Depression, anxiety, anger, and shame are all feelings that people with psoriasis have reported (1). When we feel low, we are more likely to do unhealthy things that can make our psoriasis worse like eating certain foods or drinking too much alcohol.¹

The content in this section of the programme offers information and techniques to support you with your mental health and physical wellbeing. This is also supplemented with access to your companion app called Wysa. You can communicate with Wysa 24/7 via text and it will also support you with techniques that have been created by psychologists to support your emotional wellbeing. Regular practice of all these techniques is essential for this programme.

Through the programme you will receive questionnaires which are widely used in medical care and help healthcare professionals to understand your calmness, mood, and wellbeing. Completing these questionnaires will take approximately 10 minutes. It is very important that you complete your questionnaires as they will be checked by a Bionical nurse to see how you are doing, so consistency is important. You will be sent the questionnaires so that you can complete them every two weeks.

If the Bionical Health nurse sees from your answers to the questionnaires that your mood is changing adversely, you will be contacted by Bionical Health to help you access up to 6 free counselling sessions with a qualified therapist. These sessions will be provided by the same therapist and will assist you with tailored support to help manage your mental wellbeing. Each session will last approximately 50 minutes and will be offered remotely (video or telephone) unless the therapist feels you will benefit from a face-to-face session.

Anything you share with the therapist will be confidential, including your responses to the questionnaires. However, should your mental wellbeing deteriorate, we will support you in sourcing either support from your GP or, in the case of an emergency, urgent support from the emergency services.

Your GP and Dermatologist will be kept up to date at all times by Bionical Health.

You will receive a welcome call from one of Bionical Health`s Patient Care Advisors within two days of your doctor registering you for this service. This call will support you to access your companion app called Wysa, explain how to complete your questionnaires and also answer any of your questions.

If you feel that you are becoming mentally unwell, please contact your GP or in the case of an emergency, 999 or the Samaritans on 116 123.

References
1. Pso Well (n.d.) Linking mind and body (leaflet 3), Pso Well, accessed 26^th June 2023.