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This study aims to describe the perceptions of some participants from a community mental health center in the Department of Chocó, Colombia.

A case study with a qualitative approach was carried out in 2023. Focus groups were conducted with mental health leaders and members of a community mental health center. The data were analyzed using a thematic analysis.

Two categories emerged: characterize the Community Mental Health Center of Chocó and Reaffirm human rights. In the first category, the community center is described as a place of recovery that mobilizes social services and works to increase agency capacity. In the second category, the human rights were assumed as part of community services, not only to eliminate coercive practices but also to support the increase of autonomy.

The limitations of this study are the analysis of strategies from the perspective of global politics, without delving into the structure of community actions themselves, which are not necessarily based on global recommendations.

Despite the design and development of public policies the study of their implementation still poses several challenges. The strategies carried out by regions that follow evidence-based practices and participation routes are not officially recognized as good practices in mental health and, therefore, independently supported to be sustained.

A community mental health center is described that manages to be implement and deliver a service despite not being able to be financed by current national regulations. This indicates, apart from a need, the capacity of the regions to build their solutions beyond regulations.

The mental and physical health of those residing in Australian rural and remote communities is poorer compared to major cities. Physical health comorbidities contribute to almost 80% of premature mortality for people living with mental illness. Leisure time physical activity (LTPA) is a well-established intervention to improve physical and mental health. To address the physical and mental health of rural and remote communities through LTPA, the community’s level of readiness should be first determined. This study aims to use the community readiness model (CRM) to explore community readiness in a remote Australian community to address mental health through LTPA.

Individual semi-structured interviews were conducted using the CRM on LTPA to address mental health. Quantitative outcomes scored the community’s stage of readiness for LTPA programmes to address mental health using the CRM categories of one (no awareness) to nine (high level of community ownership). Qualitative outcomes were thematically analysed, guided by Braun and Clark.

The community scored six (initiation) for community efforts and knowledge of LTPA programmes and seven (stabilisation) for leadership. The community’s attitude towards LTPA and resources for programmes scored four (pre-planning), and knowledge of LTPA scored three (vague awareness).

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first Australian study to use CRM to examine community readiness to use LTPA to improve mental health in a remote community. The CRM was shown to be a useful tool to identify factors for intervention design that might optimise community empowerment in using LTPA to improve mental health at the community level.

The purpose of this paper is to examine community based, trauma informed to support refugee mental health and wellbeing, recognising that refugee status is met through forced displacement in which refugees have experience of personal human rights abuses and have survived atrocities in which family and community have been lost.

A co-production approach was taken to review existing literature and policy to produce a position statement on how to better meet the needs of people who experience mental distress who are refugees. The co-production was between refugee and mental health researchers and refugee representatives.

Understanding the mental health needs of refugees has conventionally focused on incidence of mental illness such as post-traumatic stress disorder and depression. If mental health and illness are understood as a continuum, diagnosis of mental illness indicates a significant problem, and furthermore access to services is predicated on risks associated with mental illness. When accessing mental health services, refugees have an added issue in a lack of communication availability and recognition of the trauma that they have survived.

In this paper, a different position is advocated, that understanding the mental health of refugees can be framed more effectively as a process of recovery from trauma that emerges during resettlement, and over a long period of time before people are able to talk about the trauma they experienced. Community-based responses that enable recovery from trauma are more readily able to meet the mental health and wellbeing needs of refugee communities.

After initially positioning this paper within the broader mental health recovery literature, this paper aims to highlight the role that physical activity can play in promoting social inclusion and social recovery for those experiencing mental health challenges.

This conceptual paper draws together the limited, but growing, research on how physical activity can facilitate improved social inclusion and benefit an individual’s recovery.

For individuals suffering with mental health challenges, not being able to exercise their right to inclusion is concerning from a recovery perspective, because experiencing social inclusion is recognised as a facilitator of recovery. Initial research has demonstrated by embracing community inclusion and supporting initiatives such as physical activity programs, mental health services can better facilitate individuals’ journeys towards social inclusion and social recovery.

Future research should appreciate the interplay between inclusion, recovery and physical activity. Collaborating with individuals with lived experience, peer mentors and social prescribing teams to explore options for physical activity within local communities fosters empowerment, social inclusion and ensures interventions align with individuals’ preferences and needs.

Practitioners in health service and community settings should recognise the wide-ranging benefits of physical activity for individuals with mental health challenges, especially in terms of helping their social inclusion and social recovery.

This paper is unique in synthesising the mental health literature relating to social inclusion, social recovery and physical activity. Initial findings show promise, but more attention is needed to explore the relationship between these elements and how individuals experiencing mental health challenges can be supported using physical activity.

For over 15 years, Mental Health First Aid™ (MHFA) has successfully been delivered in Wales, United Kingdom, with growing interest in the MHFA programme and increasing course attendees. Trainers, aware of the need for support, know the importance of MHFA being accessible for different communities and learner groups. MHFA has always focused on increasing mental health literacy. One marginalised group, with lower mental health literacy than the general population, is Deaf people, a group with increased risk of mental health problems. This paper aims to provide insights about why Deaf people are twice as likely as hearing people to experience mental health problems.

During this paper, the authors have used four focal points i) exploring situational contexts for Deaf people; ii) reasons why Deaf individuals are at greater risk of mental health problems; iii) the authors explore a project, “Hear Deaf”, and implementation of MHFA Wales by Deaf MHFA trainers; and iv) initiatives to influence and impact on policymakers.

During the project, nine MHFA courses were delivered to Deaf communities across different locations in Wales, often with information and advertisements circulated directly to Deaf communities through Deaf clubs, resulting in 120 Deaf people trained. The authors conclude with their own reflections as a researcher and an MHFA who work predominantly with Deaf communities.

This paper provides a discussion on the specific risks for Deaf people around mental health and the importance of mental health promotion programmes for Deaf communities. Further research is needed regarding the impact of MHFA on Deaf populations.

Despite the substantial body of international research exploring the effects of forced migration on mental health and the obstacles faced by refugee cohorts in accessing mental health services, there is a lack of in-depth studies specifically focusing on Bosnian refugees in Australia – one of the largest ethnic groups of displaced peoples. This qualitative investigation seeks to convey the experiences of mental health services by five Bosnian refugees in Melbourne, highlighting perceived pathways and barriers to service utilisation. This study aims to address two primary research questions: firstly, what characterises the experiences of Bosnian refugees in Australia when accessing mental health services? Secondly, what are the main barriers encountered by this population when seeking mental health services?

This study used qualitative inquiry and in-depth interviews to investigate the experiences of Bosnian refugees with mental health services in Australia. Data was collected through face-to-face interviews with five Melbourne-based Bosnian refugees who had previously accessed mental health services. Participants were recruited from community groups or associations using purposive sampling. Thematic analysis was used.

Key themes were revealed, such as the crucial role of social and community services, preferences for individual vs group therapy, potential re-traumatisation from therapeutic engagement, distrust of government-run mental health services and concerns regarding psychopharmaceutical prescription practices. Addressing barriers to mental health service access necessitates a multifaceted approach, including flexible social and community service support, an increased number of co-ethnic professionals and a recognition of cultural variations for effective service provision. Implementing these strategies can enhance help-seeking behaviours, provide culturally appropriate mental health services and improve the experiences of Bosnian refugees in Australia.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to qualitatively explore how Bosnian refugees in Melbourne perceived the adequacy and availability of mental health services upon arrival to Australia. They are a large and potentially vulnerable community, due to experiences of war trauma and dislocation from country of origin. A lack of understanding regarding how this cohort engage with mental health services can lead to persistent inequities and ineffective service provision. This study identifies unique experiences and perspectives of Bosnian refugee participants, including distrust of government-run mental health services, and concerns regarding psychopharmaceutical prescription practices. This research is expected to contribute positively to the discourse on mental health service provision for Bosnian refugees and wider refugee communities in Australia.

Children in majority world countries (MWC) have high rates of unmet mental health needs, with limited access to specialist resources. Integration of child mental health in existing psychosocial care can improve provision. Through a Train-the-Trainer (ToT) cascade approach, this study aimed to provide a framework for such integration in resource-constrained communities in Karachi, Pakistan and to establish hindering and enabling factors.

Eight practitioners attended a child mental health ToT program, including training on a five-domain service transformation framework. Trainers co-designed and implemented interventions that integrated child mental health knowledge and skills on each domain. These were attended by 136 end-users (youth, parents, teachers, managers), of whom a sub-sample of 47 stakeholders, as well as the trainers, attended focus groups on their experiences. Data were analysed through a thematic codebook.

Established themes reflected common ingredients across all domains/interventions that were deemed important for child mental health care integration. These included child-centric approaches, positive parenting, community mobilization and systemic changes.

Integrated child mental health care informed by the Train-of-Trainer approach can be a useful model for resource-constrained MWC contexts. Integrated interventions should be co-produced with communities.

The purpose of this paper is to contribute theoretical ideas of how peer support workers (PSWs) bring added value to interprofessional learning (IPL) in mental health care teamwork. The question is: How can we theoretically understand the value of PSWs’ expertise for IPL in mental health care teamwork?

Initially, the authors formulate a hypothesis. Then, the authors describe the focus and context in IPL and PSWs, respectively, and the PSWs’ and mental health professions’ different roles, expertise and perspectives. The authors also refer to some peer provided programs related to IPL. Finally, the authors construct an outline and apply ideas from Wenger’s Communities of Practice (CoP).

Using CoP, the PSWs as newcomers can by their perspectives change mental health professions’ perspectives and stimulate IPL in teamwork.

The paper gives theoretical insights of how PSWs can facilitate IPL in mental health care teamwork.

The United Nation’s treaty from the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) speaks to the assurance of rights and access to justice. To assure the rights addressed in the treaty, disability scholars have argued for a collaborative approach between police officers, mental health, Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, professionals, and disability rights organisations. Internationally, we have witnessed that rights are being trampled at the intersection of race/ethnicity, gender identity, disability, and sexual orientation. Interactions with the police and the various systems are sometimes experienced as sources of trauma, racism, disrespect, pain, and abuse by individuals living with disabilities. Allyship and organising with the community, particularly with BIPOC and other ‘minoritised’ communities, is essential for policy and other systemic change. Community conversations were done to learn how Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) and allies experience and address policing and disability and act at these intersections. The advocacy and activism of Surviving Race: The Intersection of Injustice, Disability, and Human Rights served as the impetus for this study. Surviving Race was created to unite psychiatric survivors, BIPOC impacted by the mental health and disability systems, White allies, and members of the LGBQTIA+ community to stand in solidarity with activists who were demanding systemic change after the deaths of far too many. This chapter explores intersectional and cross-disability allyship, allyship to BIPOC disability, and psychiatric survivor communities. It examines how people with disabilities and allies can more effectively work at the intersection of race, rights, equity, and justice.

In this chapter, which functions as a workbook, we provide the tools for science-oriented participant-driven community building to foster the well-being of researchers, such as mental health peer networks. The target audience of the workbook includes researchers, community managers, consortium project and grant managers, researcher developers and support staff members. We cover intentional aspects of community building, such as questions that can help formulate the potential community's values, mission and vision. We propose a framework for devising a plan and to-do list to create a community, with examples of how to look for members of the community, the best ways to communicate with them, how to identify allies, how to apply for an internal budget and how to create the community structure.