Mental health first aid training for the Bhutanese refugee community in the United States

International Journal of Mental Health Systems

Katherine Yun³  Caroline C Johnson⁴  M Christina Dogbey⁴  Destani Bizune⁴  Ashok Gurung¹  Changwei Li²  Parangkush Subedi⁴ 

[1] University of Pittsburgh, 4200 Fifth Ave, Pittsburgh 15260, PA, USA;Tulane University, 6823 St, Charles Ave, New Orleans 70118, LA, USA;Division of General Pediatrics, PolicyLab, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, 36th and Market Street, Philadelphia 19104, PA, USA;Philadelphia Department of Public Health, Division of Disease Control, 500 South Broad Street, Philadelphia 19146, PA, USA

关键词: Vignette;    Suicide;    Resettlement;    Mental health;    Bhutanese refugees;   

Others  :  1207692
DOI  :  10.1186/s13033-015-0012-z

 received in 2015-02-23, accepted in 2015-04-26,  发布年份 2015

【 摘 要 】

Background

The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) training for Bhutanese refugee community leaders in the U.S. We hypothesized that training refugee leaders would improve knowledge of mental health problems and treatment process and decrease negative attitudes towards people with mental illness.

Methods

One hundred and twenty community leaders participated in MHFA training, of whom 58 had sufficient English proficiency to complete pre- and post-tests. The questionnaires assessed each participant's ability to recognize signs of depression, knowledge about professional help and treatment, and attitudes towards people with mental illness.

Results

Between the pre- and post-test, participants showed significant improvement in the recognition of symptoms of depression and expressed beliefs about treatment that became more concordant with those of mental health professionals. However, there was no reduction in negative attitudes towards people with mental illness.

Conclusions

MHFA training course is a promising program for Bhutanese refugee communities in the U.S. However, some adaptations may be necessary to ensure that MHFA training is optimized for this community.

【 授权许可】

   
2015 Subedi et al.; licensee BioMed Central.

【 参考文献 】

• [1]Schinina, G, Sharma S, Gorbacheva O, Mishra AK. Who am I? Assessment of Psychosocial needs and suicide risk factors among Bhutanese refugees in Nepal and after the third country resettlement. International Organization for Migration (IOM). 2011.
• [2]Hutt, Michael. 2003. Unbecoming Citizens: Culture, Nationhood, and the Flight of Refugees from Bhutan. New Delhi: Oxford University Press.
• [3]Kohrt BA, Hruschka, DJ. Nepali concepts of psychological trauma: the role of Idioms of distress, ethno psychology and ethno physiology in alleviating suffering and preventing stigma. Cult Med Psychiatry. 2010; 34 (2).
• [4]Thapa SB, Van Ommeren MV, Sharma B, de Jong JT, Hauff E. Psychiatric disability among tortured Bhutanese refugees in Nepal. Am J Psychiatry. 2003; 160–11:2032-2037.
• [5]Center for Disease Control and Prevention. An Investigation into Suicide among Bhutanese Refugees in the US 2009–2012. Stakeholders Report, 2012.
• [6]Preventing Suicide: A global imperative. World Health Organization, 2014.
• [7]Marshal GN, Schell TL, Elliot MN, Berthold M, Chun C. Mental health of Cambodian refugees after resettlement in the United States. J Am Med Assoc. 2005; 294(5):571-579.
• [8]Younan SS, Mond J, Bussion E, Mohammad Y, Guajardo MGU, Smith M et al.. Mental health literacy of resettled Iraqi refugees in Australia: knowledge about posttraumatic stress disorder and beliefs about helpfulness of intervention. BMC Psychiatry. 2014; 14:320. BioMed Central Full Text
• [9]Kitchener BA, Jorm AF. Mental health first aid training: review of evaluation studies. Aust NZJ Psychiatry. 2006; 40:6-8.
• [10]Vogel DL, Wade NG, Hackler AH. Perceived public stigma and the willingness to seek counseling: The Mediating roles of self-stigma and attitudes toward counseling. J Couns Psychol. 2007; 54(1):40-50.
• [11]Hadlaczky G, Hokby S, Mkrtchian A, Carli V, Wasserman D. Mental Health First Aid is an effective public health intervention for improving knowledge, attitudes, and behavior: A meta-analysis. Int Rev Psychiatry. 2014; 26(4):467-75.
• [12]Aromaa E, Tolvanen A, Tuulari J, Wahlbeck K. Personal stigma and use of mental health services among people with depression in a general population in Finland. BMC Psychiatry. 2011; 11:52. BioMed Central Full Text
• [13]Golberstein E, Eisenberg D, Gollust SE. Perceived Stigma and Mental Health Care Seeking. Psychiatric Services. 2008; Vol. 59 No 4.
• [14]Murray KE, Davidson GR, Schweitzer RD. Review of Refugee Mental Health Interventions Following Resettlement: Best Practices and Recommendations. Am J Orthopsychiatry. 2010; 80(4):576-85.
• [15]Lam AK, Jorm AF, Wong DF. Mental Health first aid training for the Chinese community in Melbourne, Australia: effects on knowledge about and attitudes toward people with mental illness. Int J Ment Health Syst. 2010; 4:18. BioMed Central Full Text
• [16]Minas H, Colucci E, Jorm AF. Evaluation of Mental Health First Aid training with members of the Vietnamese community in Melbourne, Australia. Int J Ment Heal Syst. 2009; 3:19. BioMed Central Full Text
• [17]National Council for Behavior Health. http://www.thenationalcouncil.org (2014).
• [18]Kelly CM, Mithen JM, Fischer JA, Kitchener BA, Jorm AF, Lowe A et al.. Youth mental health first aid: a description of the program and an initial evaluation. Int J Ment Heal Syst. 2011; 5:4. BioMed Central Full Text
• [19]Jorm AF, Kitchener BA, Mugford SK. Experience in applying skills learned in a Mental Health First Aid training course: a quantitative study of participants stories. BMC Psychiatry. 2005; 5:43. BioMed Central Full Text
• [20]Rebecca AC. Mental health first aid. The growing movement trains laypeople to spot mental health concerns. What does it mean for psychologists? American Psychological Association. 2013. http://www.apa.org/monitor/2013/07-08/first-aid.aspx. Accessed July/August 2013
• [21]Kitchener BA, Jorm AF. Mental health first aid training for the public: evaluation of effects on knowledge, attitudes and helping behavior. BMC Psychiatry. 2002; 2:10. BioMed Central Full Text
• [22]Bhutanese Refugee Health Profile. Division of Global Migration and Quarantine. CDC Report, 2014.
• [23]Colucci E, Kelly CM, Minas H, Jorm AF, Suzuki Y. Mental health first aid guidelines for helping a suicidal person: a Delphi consensus study in Japan. Int J Ment Health Syst. 2011; 5:12. BioMed Central Full Text
• [24]Colucci E, Kelly CM, Minas H, Jorm AF, Nadera D. Mental Health First Aid Guidelines for helping a suicidal person: a Delphi consensus study in India. Int J Ment Health Syst. 2010; 4:4. BioMed Central Full Text
• [25]Colucci E, Kelly CM, Minas H, Jorm AF, Nadera D. Mental health first guidelines for helping suicidal person: a Delphi consensus study in the Philippines. Int J Ment Health Syst. 2010; 4:32. BioMed Central Full Text
• [26]Colucci E, Kelly C, Minas HK, Jorm AF. Suicide First Aid Guidelines for Japan. Melbourne: Center for International Mental Health & ORYGEN Youth Health Research Center, the University of Melbourne. 2009
• [27]Colucci E, Kelly C, Minas HK, Jorm AF. Suicide First Aid Guidelines for India. Melbourne: Center for International Mental Health & ORYGEN Youth Health Research Center, the University of Melbourne. 2009
• [28]Colucci E, Kelly C, Minas HK, Jorm AF. Suicide First Aid Guidelines for Philippines. Melbourne: Center for International Mental Health & ORYGEN Youth Health Research Center, the University of Melbourne. 2009.