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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.

This study aims to report the effectiveness of family based treatment and pharmacotherapy on an adolescent boy with anorexia nervosa and intellectual disability.

The authors reported the case of a 16-year-old boy with AN and ID and referred him to a family therapist and psychiatrist in Tehran.

The patient experienced fatigue, weakness, dissatisfaction, suicidal thoughts and self-harm signs over the past one year. He also had behaviors such as abstinence from eating and voluntary vomiting. He was diagnosed with AN and MDD.

The results suggest that these interventions can be effective but should be used with special consideration. Combining family therapy and pharmacotherapy might offer a chance to alleviate anorexia symptoms in people with ID.

Arab Americans experience higher rates of mental illness and lower rates of treatment compared to the general population. While some factors leading to this disparity have been proposed, data in the literature remains lacking. This study aims to explore the mental health perspectives of Arab Americans living in Southeastern Michigan regarding barriers to mental health treatment, treatment resource preferences and telemental health preferences.

Responses were collected through an anonymous bilingual Qualtrics survey from both Arab and non-Arab participants (n = 294, ages 18+) in Southeastern Michigan. Participants’ perceptions regarding mental health barriers, resource preferences and telemental health were assessed. Comparisons were performed between Arabs and non-Arabs, and among Arabs.

Compared to non-Arabs, Arabs were less likely to seek mental health treatment from a therapist or a primary care provider and were more likely to not seek treatment. Arabs were more likely than non-Arabs to list fear of being called crazy by others and cultural barriers. With regards to preferences on telemental health utilization, no significant differences between Arab and non-Arab participants were found.

The results provide insights into Arab-American mental health perspectives, especially pertaining to mental health barriers, resources and telemental health preferences, adding a novel perspective on the mental health preferences of Arab-American subgroups, especially regarding gender and age differences. This study highlights the Arab-American population as a nuanced and diverse group, emphasizing the importance of future studies to show a more complete picture of Arab-American mental health.

This study aims to report on the feasibility, acceptability and outcomes of a peer support program designed to promote social participation for adults with serious mental illness (SMI) in China.

The authors used a community-based participatory research approach to adapt and test a six-month, culturally responsive peer program with 68 participants. Peer supporters were trained and supervised in Guangzhou, China. Peer workers were hired via a competitive process and completed both classroom and field training. Study participants were offered individual and group socialization activities. Participants completed measures on recovery, quality of life, functioning and symptoms at three time points (pre-, post- and follow-up).

Nearly 90% of participants expressed satisfaction with their peer supporters and the frequency of services. Findings showed a significant increasing trend for the social relationships domain of quality of life from baseline to follow-up. Female participants reported significantly increased recovery from pre to post and increased psychological quality of life pre-follow-up as compared to their male counterparts. Supervision logs documented positive gains from participants such as increased help-seeking, improved social skills, enhanced emotion regulation and self-confidence and established routine, alongside challenges like inconsistent engagement, low service incentives and an overreliance on social workers. Peer supporters also reported concerns about their own lack of skills and in navigating relationships between participants and their family members.

Peer interventions have been well studied in Western countries but underexplored in China. This research addresses this gap by presenting a peer program aimed at enhancing the social participation of Chinese with SMI.

This paper aims to explore the efforts of four American women living with psychosis to chart their recovery process in published memoirs.

This paper looks at the different types of stigma that the patient-authors claim to encounter.

The author discusses the impact that the patient-authors see stigma as having on their recovery, and why they need artistic spaces to express themselves.

The memoirs offer a space for the women to revisit their memories of psychosis, and to achieve at least a partial acceptance of these experiences.

This paper aims to illuminate the issue of workplace violence (WPV) against psychiatry residents. Workplace violence is known to negatively impact physical and emotional well-being, professional development and the quality of the care that mental health professionals provide to patients. The authors discuss the prevalence of, risk factors for and consequences of WPV against psychiatry residents, as well as the need for support and resources to help residents cope with the emotional challenges of their job.

This paper is a review of the literature on WPV against psychiatry residents, and includes studies on its prevalence, associated risk factors and consequences.

Psychiatry residents face a heightened risk of WPV, including physical and verbal attacks, which can harm their mental and physical health and disrupt their continuity of care. Factors that contribute to WPV against psychiatry residents include exposure to aggressive or violent behaviors, inadequate training in WPV, understaffing, the stigmatization of mental illnesses, and discriminatory treatment. Furthermore, psychiatry residents who encounter WPV may develop negative emotions and attitudes toward their patients, which can compromise the care they provide.

The inherent heterogeneity of study designs highlighted in this review could hinder the establishment of definitive conclusions about the impact of workplace violence on psychiatry residents. A focus on studies published in English may inadvertently exclude relevant literature in other languages, potentially limiting the comprehensiveness of study findings.

This paper highlights resident physicians’ personal experiences with and perceptions of WPV encountered during residency training. In response, potential solutions are proposed to address WPV, including increased support for resident physicians, mandatory reporting of WPV incidents, and a cultural shift toward zero tolerance for WPV. In addition, the paper raises awareness of the limited research on this topic and the importance of further investigation.

This systematic review (SR) aims to evaluate and summarize the effectiveness of using eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR) intervention among individuals diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), as well as to highlight the standardized EMDR-based interventional protocol.

This SR is guided according to preferred reporting items for SRs and meta-analyses standards. Several online databases were used in searching for eligible studies in peer-reviewed journals relevant to the study keywords. The included studies were SRs and clinical trials that used EMDR interventions among patients experiencing PTSD symptoms, older than 18 years and were published in English language from 2015 to 2022. Three researchers independently contributed to study selections, data extraction and study evaluations from different aspects, including quality assessment, risk of bias and study synthesis.

A total of eight published studies met the inclusion criteria and were included in this SR; four articles were randomized controlled trials and four were SR and meta-analysis studies. In all included studies, the EMDR was used as a primary psychotherapy intervention for PTSD symptoms. The results of this extensive and comprehensive review showed that EMDR is an effective psychotherapeutic intervention to reduce and control the severity of symptoms among individuals with PTSD.

It is important to acknowledge several limitations inherent in this study. First and foremost, it is noteworthy to mention that only studies conducted in the English language were included in this review, potentially restricting the overall scope and diversity of the findings. Furthermore, the number of studies incorporated into this review was limited, which may have implications for the comprehensiveness and generalizability of the results. Finally, it is worth noting that certain studies within this review had a relatively small sample size, which could potentially limit the statistical power and precision of the conclusions drawn.

This paper, a review of the literature, gives an overview of EMDR effectiveness, provides baseline information and plays a significant role in decreasing the gap in Jordanian literature regarding using EMDR as the strongest evident psychotherapy approach for PTSD treatment to help psychiatrists, psychologists and psychiatric nurses in the health-care sectors to design comprehensive strategies to enhance and improve the quality of health care and patients’ status.

EMDR intervention offers significant alternative treatment opportunities for individuals suffering from PTSD, depression and anxiety. The implementation of EMDR for depression, anxiety and PTSD improves patient outcomes as compared to standard therapeutic modalities in PTSD.

This SR gives an overview and explains strong supportive evidence for the effectiveness of EMDR interventions among individuals with PTSD. Therefore, EMDR therapy could be assumed as one standard treatment option for PTSD, aiming at reducing treatment duration and cost of treatment and restoring the mental well-being and functionality of those suffering from PTSD.

The purpose of this survivor-researcher-led study is to explore the agency of voice-hearers who are migrants and/or from black and minority ethnic backgrounds in actively negotiating the gaps between their understanding of hearing voices, and those of their family, their society or the medical establishment.

This study draws four case studies of voice-hearers, who are migrants and/or from black and minority ethnic backgrounds. Data were thematically analysed.

This study shows how bilingual voice-hearers related emotionally to voices in one or two languages.

This study is original in that it shows that bilingual voice-hearers may hear their voice/s in either their native language or second language, but that in both cases voices may embody strong positive or negative emotions.

The purpose of this paper is to understand the functioning of a mutual aid group for mental health in rural area and analyze their own strategies for the recovery of mental health, especially those focused on cooperation, social innovation and the strengthening of their own culture through coffee.

The qualitative approach was addressed through the thematic analysis, method to identify, analyze and report patterns within the data. For the selection of participants, the members of a mutual aid group called “Cooperativa de Mujeres' was selected. This group functions as an autonomous business organization in Risaralda, Colombia. They have accompanied people diagnosed with anxiety, depression and domestic violence. Six women were interviewed, between the ages of 18 and 62.

Two thematic nuclei are described: “One for all” made up of categories such as identification with the other, need for the other, being able to communicate, contributing to the group involuntarily and actions to help others. “All for one”, made up of categories such as growing together, welcoming individuals in their individuality from group dynamics, strengthening the relationship of the person with reality, strengthen from the experiences of others.

Mutual Aid Groups in mental health propose associative structures that they seek to oppose the barriers of historical exclusion in the labor field and in this way contribute to the fact that the models, although they have a long history, have been little studied with a view to their implementation by health systems.

Current research in the field of health should focus on recognizing the flaws of the current mental health model focused on medicalization, psychologization and institutionalization, and point to a greater commitment to intersectoral support for initiatives and scenarios that promote links, networks, autonomy and care for each other and the environment, where sustainability and social and economic growth are fundamental.

The transformative actions of cooperatives are configured with a fundamental element when it comes to generating spaces for the rehabilitation of mental health.

Components of a mutual aid group in rural areas are explored, which could serve to replicate said structures in similar scenarios, especially in territories where social inequities make recovery difficult, such as Colombia.

The purpose of this paper is to challenge some of the stigma that surrounds voice-hearing. This excerpt of creative writing comes from a self-published memoir, that tells a young woman's story of her struggle with hearing voices, and her journey through the mental health system.

Writing provides a useful filter for Emily to reflect on what it was like to receive various diagnoses, treatments and therapies when she was hearing voices.

Emily learns to accept that she hears voices. This is a journey that takes all of her new-found strength and resolve.

This memoir describes voices (auditory verbal hallucinations) that need to be more widely understood.