scholarly journals Cross cultural and global uses of a digital mental health app: results of focus groups with clinicians, patients and family members in India and the United States

2021 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elena Rodriguez-Villa ◽  
Abhijit R. Rozatkar ◽  
Mohit Kumar ◽  
Vikram Patel ◽  
Ameya Bondre ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Focus Groups ◽  
Digital Health ◽  
Phase 1 ◽  
Family Members ◽  
The United States ◽  
Mental Illnesses ◽  
Human Interaction ◽  
Specific Feedback

Abstract Background Despite significant advancements in healthcare technology, digital health solutions – especially those for serious mental illnesses – continue to fall short of their potential across both clinical practice and efficacy. The utility and impact of medicine, including digital medicine, hinges on relationships, trust, and engagement, particularly in the field of mental health. This paper details results from Phase 1 of a two-part study that seeks to engage people with schizophrenia, their family members, and clinicians in co-designing a digital mental health platform for use across different cultures and contexts in the United States and India. Methods Each site interviewed a mix of clinicians, patients, and their family members in focus groups (n = 20) of two to six participants. Open-ended questions and discussions inquired about their own smartphone use and, after a demonstration of the mindLAMP platform, specific feedback on the app's utility, design, and functionality. Results Our results based on thematic analysis indicate three common themes: increased use and interest in technology during coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), concerns over how data are used and shared, and a desire for concurrent human interaction to support app engagement. Conclusion People with schizophrenia, their family members, and clinicians are open to integrating technology into treatment to better understand their condition and help inform treatment. However, app engagement is dependent on technology that is complementary – not substitutive – of therapeutic care from a clinician.

Mental health recovery and its correlates: Perspectives from 2 countries (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huiting Xie
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Self Efficacy ◽  
The United States ◽  
Mental Illnesses ◽  
Health Conditions ◽  
Mental Health Recovery ◽  
Mental Health Conditions ◽  
Serious Mental Illnesses ◽  
Promote Mental Health

BACKGROUND Many people are affected by mental health conditions, yet its prevalence in certain populations are not well documented. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study is to describe the attributes of people with mental health conditions in U.S and SG in terms of: perception of mental health recovery and its correlates such as strengths self-efficacy, resourcefulness and stigma experience. With the findings, not only could the knowledge base for mental health recovery in both countries be enhanced but interventions and policies relating to self-efficacy, resourcefulness and de-stigmatization for mental health recovery could be informed. METHODS A A cross-sectional, descriptive study with convenience sample of 200 community dwelling adults were selected, 100 pax from the United States (U.S) and 100 pax from Singapore (SG). Adults with serious mental illnesses without substance abuse impacting on their recovery were recruited. Participants completed self-administered questionaires measuring their mental health recovery, strengths self-efficacy, resourcefulness and stigma experience. RESULTS This study offered the unique opportunity to examine mental health recovery as well as its correlates such as strengths self-efficacy, resourcefulness and stigma experience from both the United States and Singapore. While the perception of mental health recovery and positive attributes like strengths self-efficacy and resourcefulness remained strong in participants with serious mental illnesses across both countries, people with serious mental illnesses in both countries still experienced negative perception like stigma. The findings would not only inform strategies to promote mental health recovery but also enhance the focus on correlates such as strengths self-efficacy and resourcefulness across both countries. CONCLUSIONS The findings would not only inform strategies to promote mental health recovery but also enhance the focus on correlates such as strengths self-efficacy and resourcefulness across both countries.

scholarly journals Family Separation and the Impact of Digital Technology on the Mental Health of Refugee Families in the United States: Qualitative Study

10.2196/14171 ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (9) ◽  
pp. e14171 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sayyed Fawad Ali Shah ◽  
Julia Meredith Hess ◽  
Jessica R Goodkind
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Digital Technology ◽  
Family Members ◽  
The United States ◽  
Theory Approach ◽  
Financial Barriers ◽  
Family Separation ◽  
Ict Use ◽  
The Impact

BackgroundConflicts around the world have resulted in a record high number of refugees. Family separation is a critical factor that impacts refugee mental health. Thus, it is important to explore refugees’ ability to maintain contact with family members across the globe and the ways in which they attempt to do so. It is increasingly common for refugees to use information and communication technologies (ICTs), which include mobile phones, the internet, and social media sites, such as Facebook, WhatsApp, Skype, and Viber, for these purposes.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to explore refugees’ perceptions of the impact of communication through ICTs on their mental health, the exercise of agency by refugees within the context of ICT use, especially their communication with their families, and logistical issues that affect their access to ICTs in the United States.MethodsWe used a constructivist grounded theory approach to analyze in-depth interviews of 290 adult refugee participants from different countries, who were enrolled in a randomized controlled trial of a community-based mental health intervention.ResultsAnalyses showed that communication through ICTs had differing impacts on the mental health of refugee participants. ICTs, as channels of communication between separated families, were a major source of emotional and mental well-being for a large number of refugee participants. However, for some participants, the communication process with separated family members through digital technology was mentally and emotionally difficult. The participants also discussed ways in which they hide adversities from their families through selective use of different ICTs. Several participants noted logistical and financial barriers to communicating with their families through ICTs.ConclusionsThese findings are important in elucidating aspects of refugee agency and environmental constraints that need to be further explicated in theories related to ICT use as well as in providing insight for researchers and practitioners involved in efforts related to migration and mental health.

A brief history of the criminalization of mental illness

CNS Spectrums ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (5) ◽  
pp. 638-650 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joel A. Dvoskin ◽  
James L. Knoll ◽  
Mollie Silva
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
Community Mental Health ◽  
Mental Disorders ◽  
The United States ◽  
Mental Illnesses ◽  
The People ◽  
History Of ◽  
Serious Mental Illnesses

This article traces the history of the way in which mental disorders were viewed and treated, from before the birth of Christ to the present day. Special attention is paid to the process of deinstitutionalization in the United States and the failure to create an adequately robust community mental health system to care for the people who, in a previous era, might have experienced lifelong hospitalization. As a result, far too many people with serious mental illnesses are living in jails and prisons that are ill-suited and unprepared to meet their needs.

A Capabilities Approach to Mental Health Transformation: A Conceptual Framework for the Recovery Era

2009 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 35-46 ◽  
Author(s):  
Larry Davidson ◽  
Priscilla Ridgway ◽  
Melissa Wieland ◽  
Maria O'Connell
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Health Care ◽  
Conceptual Framework ◽  
Systems Of Care ◽  
The United States ◽  
Capabilities Approach ◽  
Mental Illnesses ◽  
The Past ◽  
Serious Mental Illnesses

Recent commissions in Canada and the United States have stipulated recovery to be the overarching aim of mental health care and have called for systems of care to be transformed to be made consistent with this aim. If these efforts are not simply to repeat the mistakes of the past, a new conceptual framework will be needed to provide an alternative foundation for rethinking the nature of care for people with serious mental illnesses. In this paper, the authors identify the limitations of the conceptual framework of the deinstitutionalization movement and then offer the capabilities approach developed by Sen (1992, 1999) and others as a more adequate framework for the post-institutional era.

scholarly journals Family Separation and the Impact of Digital Technology on the Mental Health of Refugee Families in the United States: Qualitative Study (Preprint)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sayyed Fawad Ali Shah ◽  
Julia Meredith Hess ◽  
Jessica R Goodkind
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Digital Technology ◽  
Family Members ◽  
The United States ◽  
Theory Approach ◽  
Financial Barriers ◽  
Family Separation ◽  
Ict Use ◽  
The Impact

BACKGROUND Conflicts around the world have resulted in a record high number of refugees. Family separation is a critical factor that impacts refugee mental health. Thus, it is important to explore refugees’ ability to maintain contact with family members across the globe and the ways in which they attempt to do so. It is increasingly common for refugees to use information and communication technologies (ICTs), which include mobile phones, the internet, and social media sites, such as Facebook, WhatsApp, Skype, and Viber, for these purposes. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to explore refugees’ perceptions of the impact of communication through ICTs on their mental health, the exercise of agency by refugees within the context of ICT use, especially their communication with their families, and logistical issues that affect their access to ICTs in the United States. METHODS We used a constructivist grounded theory approach to analyze in-depth interviews of 290 adult refugee participants from different countries, who were enrolled in a randomized controlled trial of a community-based mental health intervention. RESULTS Analyses showed that communication through ICTs had differing impacts on the mental health of refugee participants. ICTs, as channels of communication between separated families, were a major source of emotional and mental well-being for a large number of refugee participants. However, for some participants, the communication process with separated family members through digital technology was mentally and emotionally difficult. The participants also discussed ways in which they hide adversities from their families through selective use of different ICTs. Several participants noted logistical and financial barriers to communicating with their families through ICTs. CONCLUSIONS These findings are important in elucidating aspects of refugee agency and environmental constraints that need to be further explicated in theories related to ICT use as well as in providing insight for researchers and practitioners involved in efforts related to migration and mental health.

Disagreement in perceptions of stepfamily communication and functioning: Implications for mental health

2020 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 393-412
Author(s):  
Paul Schrodt
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Developmental Process ◽  
Family Members ◽  
The United States ◽  
Communication Behaviors ◽  
Negatively Associated

This study tested the degree to which disagreement in perceptions of stepfamily communication and functioning is associated with the mental health of family members. Participants included 119 stepfamily triads from two different regions of the United States. Results indicate that stepfamily dissension and avoidance are inversely associated with the mental health of family members, whereas stepfamily involvement, flexibility, and expressiveness are positively associated with mental health. Disagreement in family members’ perceptions of stepfamily dissension is negatively associated with the mental health of both adults, whereas disagreement in perceptions of stepfamily involvement is inversely associated with the mental health of stepchildren. The results extend efforts to identify communication behaviors that differentiate strong stepfamilies from those struggling with the developmental process.

scholarly journals The American Psychiatric Association

2005 ◽  
Vol 2 (9) ◽  
pp. 18-20
Author(s):  
Michelle B. Riba ◽  
Steven S. Sharfstein ◽  
Allan Tasman
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Substance Use ◽  
Substance Use Disorders ◽  
American Psychiatric Association ◽  
Medical Specialty ◽  
The United States ◽  
Mental Illnesses ◽  
Specialty Society ◽  
Health Field

The American Psychiatric Association (APA) is a medical specialty society that represents nearly 36 000 psychiatrists from the United States and Canada, as well as around the globe. It is the longest serving medical specialty society. As a leader in the mental health field, the APA continually supports the diagnosis and treatment of patients with mental illnesses, including substance use disorders, and also supports prevention and research. The APA acts as an advocate for psychiatrists and their patients.

scholarly journals Mental Health Issues and Substance Use in the United States: Pulling the Power Levers

2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 19-26 ◽  
Author(s):  
Linda S. Beeber
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
Substance Use ◽  
Substance Use Disorders ◽  
Mental Health Treatment ◽  
Well Being ◽  
The United States ◽  
Mental Illnesses ◽  
Health Administration

BACKGROUND: Promising treatment avenues have been developed and studied that align well with the skills of psychiatric-mental health (PMH) nurses. The treatments are relationship-driven, nimble and accessible, and recovery-guided. They emphasize a whole-person approach with care delivered by a team of experts working in a contextually coordinated way. AIMS: To describe the challenges facing the United States with regard to mental illness and substance use disorders and the ways in which PMH nurses can use their skills to mitigate these challenges. METHOD: Published research and government reports were reviewed to obtain current mental health and substance use data. RESULTS: The number of people not being treated for mental illnesses—particularly serious mental illness, major depressive episode, and suicidal thoughts—has not improved since 2009. Although inroads have been made in reducing the rate of smoking in the United States, we are facing an opioid crisis. There are limited data on marijuana use, but it is apparent that many Americans use cannabis routinely. According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration, approximately 44.7 million people need mental health treatment and 20.1 million Americans need substance use treatment, but only 10% to 30% receive it. CONCLUSIONS: PMH nurses must take a leading role in retooling the therapeutic relationship and partnering with clients, families, and caregivers to improve the quality of life and well-being of those dealing with mental illness and substance use disorders. To accomplish this essential task, the PMH nursing workforce must be robust and distributed throughout the United States.

“They Make These Laws to Put Us Back in Our Place”: A Found Poem on the Trauma, Hope, and Resilience of Transgender and Gender Diverse Youth and Discriminatory Policies

2021 ◽  
pp. 107780042110301
Author(s):  
Megan S. Paceley ◽  
Emera Greenwood ◽  
Zosimo A. Dikitsas ◽  
Jessica N. Fish ◽  
Lauren B. McInroy ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
United States ◽  
Focus Groups ◽  
Thematic Analysis ◽  
The United States ◽  
Current Policy ◽  
Call To Action ◽  
Gender Diverse ◽  
Youth Research ◽  
And Gender

In early 2021, over 50 bills were proposed to limit rights for transgender and gender diverse (TGD) youth across the United States. Anti-TGD policies and rhetoric are associated with poorer mental health for TGD youth. We used focus groups with a TGD youth research board ( N = 6) to explore the impacts of the current policy climate. Following thematic analysis, we used quotes from participants in the form of a research poem to share the story of the findings. We share this poem as a call to action for scholars and advocates to resist these harmful and dangerous policies.

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