Studies on predictors of outcomes of treatment for common mental health disorders (CMDs) in community mental health settings are scarce, and sample sizes are often small. Research on the impact of identifying as a member of an ethnic minority group on treatment outcomes is limited.

To ascertain whether ethnicity is an independent predictor of outcome and the extent to which any association is mediated by other sociodemographic factors.

Retrospective observational study of anonymised treatment data collected for routine clinical purposes. Data were analysed from nine Improving Access to Psychological Therapy (IAPT) services from 2009 to 2016. Social functioning, ethnic group, age, gender, occupation and baseline severity of the mental health disorder were analysed as predictors of outcome.

Outcomes varied with ethnic group. Levels of occupation, social deprivation, initial morbidity and social functioning varied between ethnic groups at baseline. After adjustment for these factors the impact of ethnicity was attenuated and only some ethnic groups remained as significant independent predictors of treatment outcome.

Ethnic minority status is a marker for multiple disadvantages. Some of the differences in outcome seen between ethnic groups may be the result of more general factors present in all ethnic groups but at greater intensity in some ethnic minority groups.

Food choice is complex. Digital nutrition applications are emerging to help decisions about food choices. Nestlé's Meal Nutritional Score (MNS) is a number between 0 and 100 that provides a measure of the extent to which a meal meets US dietary recommendations. The objective was to evaluate if the MNS influences food choices in a workplace restaurant.

A workplace education campaign ran over two weeks in order to introduce the MNS to employees. This was done during the lunch break at the entrance to the cafeteria of Nestlé's research centre, which serves around 250 hot meals at lunchtime every day. Employees choose between a typical Western meal, a healthy meal and a vegetarian meal. During the campaign, and for three weeks afterwards, LED screens displayed the MNS for the three different types of meal, every day. Employees’ voluntary feedback on the MNS was collected using a closed-ended questionnaire. Descriptive analyses were done for the scores and sales of each type of meals for one week before the education campaign, immediately after the campaign and three weeks later. Data are reported as mean ± 1 standard deviation.

Feedback was obtained from 152 employees, of whom 96% said the MNS helped them to understand the nutritional balance of the meals, and 38% said the MNS influenced their meal choices. The MNS scores pre-campaign, post-post campaign and 3 weeks later were 52 ± 14, 50 ± 16 and 56 ± 11 for the Western meal; 54 ± 14, 62 ± 6 and 67 ± 6 for the healthy meal and 64 ± 11, 57 ± 14 and 57 ± 12 for the vegetarian meal, respectively. The percentage of sales pre-campaign, post-post campaign and 3 weeks later were 48 ± 10%, 43 ± 9% and 33 ± 9% for the Western meal; 25 ± 10%, 30 ± 8% and 36 ± 10% for the healthy meal, and 27 ± 4%, 27 ± 4% and 30 ± 8% for the vegetarian meal, respectively.

The number of people selecting the healthy meal, which usually had the best score, increased during the three weeks following the education campaign, suggesting that the MNS positively influences food choices. The MNS may also help chefs to design more nutritionally balanced meals. Longer-term follow up is necessary to evaluate if these are sustained behaviour changes as well as to test the impact of the MNS in a different workplace environment.