International Journal of Mental Health Systems最新文献

Background: Canadian youth (aged 16-24) have the highest rates of mental health and addiction concerns across all age groups and the most unmet health care needs. There are many structural barriers that contribute to the unmet mental health care needs of youth including lack of available and appropriate services, high costs, long wait times, fragmented and siloed services, lack of smooth transition between child and adult services, stigma, racism, and discrimination, as well as lack of culturally appropriate treatments. Levesque et al. (2013) developed a framework to better understand health care access and this framework conceptualizes accessibility across five dimensions: (1) approachability, (2) availability, (3) affordability, (4) appropriateness, and (5) acceptability. The purpose of this study was to explore access to addiction and mental health services for youth in Ontario, Canada from the perspectives of youth, parents, and service providers.

Methods: This qualitative study was a university-community partnership exploring the experiences of youth with mental health concerns and their families from the perspectives of youth, caregivers, and service providers. We conducted semi-structured interviews and used thematic analysis to analyze data.

Results: The study involved 25 participants (n = 11 parents, n = 4 youth, n = 10 service providers). We identified six themes related to structural barriers impacting access to youth mental health and services: (1) "The biggest barrier in accessing mental health support is where to look," (2) "There's always going to be a waitlist," (3) "I have to have money to be healthy," (4) "They weren't really listening to my issues," (5) "Having more of a welcoming and inclusive system," and (6) "Health laws aren't doing what they need to do."

Conclusion: Our study identified five structural barriers that map onto the Levesque et al. healthcare access conceptual framework and a sixth structural barrier that is not adequately captured by this model which focuses on policies, procedures, and laws. The findings have implications for policies and service provisions, and underline the urgent need for a mental health strategy that will increase access to care, improve mental health in youth, decrease burden on parents, and reduce inequities in mental health policies and services.

Evidence from implementation research suggests that group-based behaviour change interventions (GBCIs) can encourage the development of peer support, promote psychosocial skills, and facilitate collaborative therapeutic relationships. However, although the mechanisms of action that mediate the behaviour change process have been extensively described in other settings, less is known about the implementation strategies and contextual factors that actuate the reported behaviour changes among programme participants in Ghana and sub-Saharan Africa, more generally. We draw on insights from the literature and field experiences from designing, implementing, and evaluating GBCIs across several rural and peri-urban communities in Ghana to discuss a range of theoretical, methodological, and contextual factors that facilitate the behaviour change process in programme participants. We offer suggestions to guide researchers to envision and manage potential challenges with the programme development and implementation processes. We propose that intervention programmes designed to facilitate health behaviour change in the defined context should (i) have a context-relevant focus, (ii) be coherent and well-structured, (iii) have explicit techniques to facilitate inter-personal and intra-personal change processes, (iv) include appropriate mechanisms to monitor and assess the progress of the interventional sessions; and (v) be implemented by trained facilitators with a deep knowledge of the sociocultural values and norms of the target group and of the principles and theories underlying the intervention programme. We envisage that these insights could serve to guide the design, implementation, and evaluation of contextually-tailored and potentially effective GBCIs that align with the needs, capacities, and circumstances of the local population.

There is increasing attention to the impacts of stigma and discrimination related to mental health on quality of life and access to and quality of healthcare. Effective strategies for stigma reduction exist, but most evidence comes from high-income settings. Recent reviews of stigma research have identified gaps in the field, including limited cultural and contextual adaptation of interventions, a lack of contextual psychometric information on evaluation tools, and, most notably, a lack of multi-level strategies for stigma reduction. The Indigo Partnership research programme will address these knowledge gaps through a multi-country, multi-site collaboration for anti-stigma interventions in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) (China, Ethiopia, India, Nepal, and Tunisia). The Indigo Partnership aims to: (1) carry out research to strengthen the understanding of mechanisms of stigma processes and reduce stigma and discrimination against people with mental health conditions in LMICs; and (2) establish a strong collaborative research consortium through the conduct of this programme. Specifically, the Indigo Partnership involves developing and pilot testing anti-stigma interventions at the community, primary care, and mental health specialist care levels, with a systematic approach to cultural and contextual adaptation across the sites. This work also involves transcultural translation and adaptation of stigma and discrimination measurement tools. The Indigo Partnership operates with the key principle of partnering with people with lived experience of mental health conditions for the development and implementation of the pilot interventions, as well as capacity building and cross-site learning to actively develop a more globally representative and equitable mental health research community. This work is envisioned to have a long-lasting impact, both in terms of the capacity building provided to participating institutions and researchers, and the foundation it provides for future research to extend the evidence base of what works to reduce and ultimately end stigma and discrimination in mental health.

Mental health services are currently undergoing immense cultural, philosophical, and organisational change. One such mechanism involved in this change has been the recognition of lived experience as a knowledge subset in its own right. Within five Community Health Care Organisations [CHOs] in the Irish mental health services, 2017 marked a new era as the traditional statutory mental health service hired a total of 30 Peer Support Workers. Since then, additional Peer Support Workers were recruited along with the added addition of Family Peer Support Work. The purpose of such positions is to use their lived experiences and the knowledge subset within it to normalise experiences, break down hierarchical barriers and facilitate candid conversations that will allow the service user to progress on their own, self-defined recovery journey. Since it's inception into Irish mental health services, peer support has been line managed by a non-peer discipline. It is this where this paper highlights a potential problem. The paper raises concerns that the supervision conducted by these non-peer professionals could tamper, mutate and destroy the essence of peer support-the transfer and use of lived experience between service users. As such, a recommendation is suggested that the literature pauses discussions as to the mechanism by which lived experience is delivered and instead focus energies on identifying the ontological and epistemological position that underpins the experiences.One potential position to examine is that of constructionism as such knowledge is created or constructed through the fusion of life experiences and sub-concious thoughts and emotions experienced at a particular moment in time which are then entangled together with current information to create a narrative or story that can be therapeutic. It is through this philosophical exercise involviong/including existential themes that the essence of lived experience can be identified, protected, and nourished within mental health discourse.

Background: Internalized stigma has been found to be high among people with mental illness (PWMI) and it results in poor treatment outcome, increased disability and high economic burden. So, this study was designed to determine the prevalence and associated factors of high internalized stigma among PWMI attending psychiatric follow-up at University of Gondar Comprehensive Specialized Hospital, Northwest, Ethiopia, 2021.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among PWMI (n = 365), and internalized stigma was measured by using internalized stigma of mental illness 29 (ISMI-29) scale. The data was entered in to EPI DATA software (4.6.0.2) and analyzed by Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 20. A binary logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with internalized stigma and reported with 95% confidence interval (CI). P-value < 0.05 was considered as statistically significant.

Results: The prevalence of high internalized stigma was found to be 27.9% (95% CI 23.1-32.6). A male gender (AOR = 0.332; 95% CI 0.175-0.629), occupation, specifically government employee (AOR = 0.309; 95% CI 0.118-0.809), life time substance use (AOR = 3.561; 95% CI 1.867-6.793), low self-esteem (AOR = 8.313; 95% CI 3.641-18.977), and history of hospitalization (AOR = 4.236; 95% CI 1.875, 9.570) were factors significantly associated with higher internalized stigma.

Conclusion: The result of this study showed that there was an intermediate prevalence of high internalized stigma among PWMI at University of Gondar Comprehensive Specialized Hospital. The hospital needs to take immediate action to fight internalized stigma by focusing on females, people with low self-esteem, individuals with history of lifetime substance use, and people who have history of hospital admission.

Background: International estimates suggest around a third of students arrives at university with symptoms indicative of a common mental disorder, many in late adolescence at a developmentally high-risk period for the emergence of mental disorder. Universities, as settings, represent an opportunity to contribute to the improvement of population mental health. We sought to understand what is known about the management of student mental health, and asked: (1) What proportion of students use mental health services when experiencing psychological distress? (2) Does use by students differ across health service types?

Methods: A systematic review was conducted following PRISMA guidelines using a Context, Condition, Population framework (CoCoPop) with a protocol preregistered on Prospero (CRD42021238273). Electronic database searches in Medline, Embase, PsycINFO, ERIC and CINAHL Plus, key authors were contacted, citation searches were conducted, and the reference list of the WHO World Mental Health International College Student Initiative (WMH-ICS) was searched. Data extraction was performed using a pre-defined framework, and quality appraisal using the Joanna Briggs Institute tool. Data were synthesised narratively and meta-analyses at both the study and estimate level.

Results: 7789 records were identified through the search strategies, with a total of 44 studies meeting inclusion criteria. The majority of included studies from the USA (n = 36), with remaining studies from Bangladesh, Brazil, Canada, China, Ethiopia and Italy. Overall, studies contained 123 estimates of mental health service use associated with a heterogeneous range of services, taking highly variable numbers of students across a variety of settings.

Discussion: This is the first systematic quantitative survey of student mental health service use. The empirical literature to date is very limited in terms of a small number of international studies outside of the USA; studies of how services link together, and of student access. The significant variation we found in the proportions of students using services within and between studies across different settings and populations suggests the current services described in the literature are not meeting the needs of all students.

Background: A reconceptualised global strategy is key as nations begin to shift from crisis management to medium- and long-term planning to rebuild and strengthen their economic, social and public health systems. Efforts towards measuring, modelling, and forecasting Mental Wealth could serve as the catalyst for this reconceptualization. The Mental Wealth approach builds systemic resilience through investments which promote collective cognitive and emotional wellbeing. This paper presents the theoretical foundations for Mental Wealth. It presents, for the first time, literature across the disciplines of health and social sciences, economics, business, and humanities to underpin the development of an operational metric of Mental Wealth.

Discussion: An approach which embeds social and psychological dimensions of prosperity, alongside the economic, is needed to inform the effective allocation of investments in the post-pandemic world. The authors advocate for a transdisciplinary framework of Mental Wealth to be applied in innovating population-level policy interventions to address the growing challenges brought on by COVID-19. Mental Wealth highlights the value generated by the deployment of collective mental assets and supporting social infrastructure. In order to inform this position, a review of the literature on the concepts underpinning Mental Wealth is presented, limitations of current measurement tools of mental and social resources are evaluated, and a framework for development of a Mental Wealth metric is proposed.

Conclusion: There are challenges in developing an operational Mental Wealth metric. The breadth of conceptual foundations to be considered is extensive, and there may be a lack of agreement on the appropriate tools for its measurement. While variability across current measurement approaches in social resources, wellbeing and mental assets contributes to the difficulty creating a holistic and generic metric, these variations are now clearer. The operationalisation of the Mental Wealth metric will require comprehensive mapping of the elements to be included against the data available.

Background: Psychotherapy is the preferred form of treatment for psychological disorders worldwide. Cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) is one of the most widely used psychotherapies due to its proven efficacy for psychological disorders, including substance abuse. However, CBT was developed in the West according to the culture of developed countries. Therefore, it requires cross-cultural adaptation for non-Western countries. Pakistan is one of the developing non-Western countries where substance use disorders are increasing at an alarming rate. Despite the proven efficacy of CBT for substance use disorders, there is a dearth of its utilization in Pakistan. Therefore, in the present study, in-depth qualitative interviews were conducted with CBT practitioners in Pakistan to understand barriers and challenges in this regard. The study was a part of a broader project aimed at cultural adaptation of CBT for people with substance use disorders (SUDs) in Pakistan.

Methods: In-depth qualitative interviews were conducted with CBT practitioners (N = 8) working in rehabilitation centres and hospitals in Islamabad, Pakistan. Thematic content analysis was conducted to develop core themes from the data.

Results: CBT for SUDs requires some adjustments according to Pakistani culture for successful utilization. The challenges in providing CBT for SUDs revolved around three main themes, i.e., the mental health system, societal practices, and therapeutic issues, and 10 subthemes.

Conclusion: In order to utilize the benefits of CBT for SUDs in Pakistan, cultural adaptation is necessary as an initial step. However, its delivery requires stringent modifications in the health care system to address these challenges.

Background and objectives: There is sparse evidence that modern hospital architecture designed to prevent violence and self-harm can prevent restrictive practices (RP). We examine if the use of RPs was reduced by the structural change of relocating a 170-year-old psychiatric university hospital (UH) in Central Denmark Region (CDR) to a new modern purpose-built university hospital.

Methods: The dataset includes all admissions (N = 19.567) and RPs (N = 13.965) in the self-contained CDR one year before and after the relocation of the UH. We compare RPs at the UH a year prior to and after relocation on November 16th (November 2017, November 2019) with RPs at the other psychiatric hospitals (RH) in CDR. We applied linear regression analysis to assess the development in the monthly frequency of RPs pre- and post-relocation and examine underlying trends.

Results: At UH, RPs performed decreased from 4073 to 2585 after relocation, whereas they remained stable (from 3676 to 3631) at RH. Mechanical restraint and involuntary acute medication were aligned at both UH and RH. Using linear regression analysis, we found an overall significant decrease in the use of all restrictive practices at UH with an inclination of -9.1 observations (95% CI - 12.0; - 6.3 p < 0.0001) per month throughout the two-year follow-up. However, the decrease did not deviate significantly from the already downward trend observed one year before relocation. Similar analyses performed for RH showed a stable use of coercion.

Conclusion: The naturalistic features of the design preclude any definitive conclusion whether relocation to a new purpose-built psychiatric hospital decreased the RPs. However, we argue that improving the structural environment at the UH had a sustained effect on the already declining use of RPs, particularly mechanical restraint and involuntary acute medication.

Background: There are increasing initiatives to reduce mental illness stigma among primary care providers (PCPs) being trained in mental health services. However, there is a gap in understanding how stigma reduction initiatives for PCPs produce changes in attitudes and clinical practices. We conducted a pilot randomized controlled trial of a stigma reduction intervention in Nepal: REducing Stigma among HealthcAre Providers (RESHAPE). In a previous analysis of this pilot, we described differences in stigmatizing attitudes and clinical behaviors between PCPs receiving a standard mental health training (mental health Gap Action Program, mhGAP) vs. those receiving an mhGAP plus RESHAPE training. The goal of this analysis is to use qualitative interview data to explain the quantitative differences in stigma outcomes identified between the trial arms.

Methods: PCPs were randomized to either standard mental health training using mhGAP led by mental health specialists or the experimental condition (RESHAPE) in which service users living with mental illness shared photographic recovery narratives and participated in facilitated social contact. Qualitative interviews were conducted with PCPs five months post-training (n = 8, standard mhGAP training; n = 20, RESHAPE). Stigmatizing attitudes and clinical practices before and after training were qualitatively explored to identify mechanisms of change.

Results: PCPs in both training arms described changes in knowledge, skills, and confidence in providing mental healthcare. PCPs in both arms described a positive feedback loop, in which discussing mental health with patients encouraged more patients to seek treatment and open up about their illness, which demonstrated for PCPs that mental illness can be treated and boosted their clinical confidence. Importantly, PCPs in the RESHAPE arm were more likely to describe a willingness to treat mental health patients and attributed this in part to social contact with service users during the training.

Conclusions: Our qualitative research identified testable mechanisms of action for stigma reduction and improving clinical behavior: specifically, recovery stories from service users and social engagement led to greater willingness to engage with patients about mental illness, triggering a feedback loop of more positive experiences with patients who benefit from mental healthcare, which further reinforces willingness to deliver mental healthcare. Trial registration ClinicalTrials.gov identifier, NCT02793271.