The Structure of Social Support: A Multilevel Analysis of the Personal Networks of People with Severe Mental Disorders

Abstract Background. For psychiatric service users suffering from severe mental disorders, the social support provided by personal social networks is essential for living a meaningful life within the community. However, the importance of the support received depend on the relations between the providers of social support. Yet this hasn’t been addressed in the literature so far for people with severe mental disorders. This article seeks to investigate how characteristics of service users with severe mental disorders, their social contacts, and the pattern of relationships between those contacts influence the distribution and provision of social support to people with severe mental disorders. Methods. We collected personal network data relating to 380 psychiatric service users from a random sample of health care providers in Belgium. We computed various measures of the structure of those neworks and of the position of support persons within those networks. We conducted a multilevel analysis of the importance of the support provided by each support persons.Results. The results show that the more central a support person was in the network of a service user, the more important his or her support was considered to be by the service user. Also, the denser the network in which a support person was embedded, the less important was the support he or she offers, but only for hospitalised service users. Conclusions. These finding highlight the collective dimension of social support. We discuss the implications for the organisation of mental health care.

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Cross-Sectional Study of Mental Health Related Knowledge and Attitudes Among Care Assistant Workers in Guangzhou, China

10.21203/rs.3.rs-107392/v1 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Jie Li ◽

Xiao-Ling Duan ◽

Hua-Qing Zhong ◽

Wen Chen ◽

Sara Evans‑Lacko ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Health Care ◽

Mental Disorders ◽

Linear Regression ◽

Mental Health Care ◽

Health Staff ◽

Care Providers ◽

Knowledge And Attitudes ◽

Additional Item ◽

Health Related

Abstract Background: Care assistant workers (CAWs) are a part of a new pattern of mental health care providers in China and play a significant role in bridging the human resource shortage. CAWs in China mainly include community cadres, community mental health staff and community policemen. The mental health related knowledge and attitudes of CAWs could influence their mental health care delivery. This study aimed to assess the mental health related knowledge and attitudes of CAWs in Guangzhou, China. Methods: In November 2017, a study was conducted among 381 CAWs from four districts of Guangzhou, China. Participants were assessed using the Perceived Devaluation and Discrimination Scale (PDD), the Mental Health Knowledge Schedule (MAKS), and the Mental illness: Clinicians’ Attitudes (MICA). Data were analyzed by descriptive statistics, ANOVA, Bonferroni corrections and multivariable linear regression. Results: The mean scores (standard deviation) of PDD, MAKS and MICA were 36.45 (6.54), 22.72 (2.56), 51.67 (7.88), respectively. Univariate analyses showed that the older CAWs, community policemen and those who were less willing to deliver care had significant higher MICA scores when compared with other staff (P < 0.001). However, participants who disagreed additional item 1（views towards inpatients) and additional item 2 (affiliate stigma) had a significant lower MICA scores when compared with those who agreed (P < 0.001). Multivariable linear regression showed that after controlling some variables, care willingness and PDD total score were significantly positively associated with the MICA total score (all P < 0.05), while attitudes on additional items were significantly negatively associated with the MICA total score (all P < 0.01).Conclusion: These findings suggest negative attitudes towards people with mental disorders among CAWs are common, especially among older staff. Community policemen suggest that they applied stereotypes of ‘violent mentally ill’ people to all people they deal with who have mental disorders. The results also indicate human rights are being paid attention to now, but need to be improved in the future. Strategies to improve attitudes and to reduce stigma and discrimination should be conducted with particular staff groups.

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Características sociodemográficas de las personas admitidas en un centro hospitalario psiquiátrico alemán: un estudio retrospectivo.

ENE 2018 - Revista Española de Enfermería de Salud Mental ◽

10.35761/reesme.2020.10.02 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 4-10

Author(s):

Blanca Patricia Silva-Barrera ◽

Rocio Juliá-Sanchis ◽

Andrés Montoyo-Guijarro ◽

Rosa Requena-Morales

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Health Care ◽

Substance Abuse ◽

Retrospective Study ◽

Mental Disorders ◽

Psychiatric Hospital ◽

Psychiatric Symptoms ◽

Clinical History ◽

Severe Mental Disorders ◽

Salud Mental

Resumen En los últimos años se han suscitado cambios en la salud mental de las personas, debido a las diversas problemáticas sociodemográficas actuales. Se requiere de la exploración de los acontecimientos que causan síntomas psiquiátricos en las personas con necesidad de ingreso y hospitalización. Es por eso que se realizó este estudio retrospectivo sobre 1.593 historias clínicas del hospital psiquiátrico Main-Kinzig-Kreis Schlüchtern en Alemania durante el período 2000-2014 en pacientes de 18 a 69 años. Se identificó como motivo de ingreso a un 37.16% de personas como pacientes con síntomas agudos, una relación con consumos de sustancias provocadas por adicciones en un 41.62% y el trastorno depresivo en un 28.75%. Se detecta la descompensación de trastornos mentales graves en 27.05%, en donde el 34.71% de los pacientes fueron derivadas desde otros dispositivos asistenciales y el 32.89% decidió ingresar por sí mismo. El perfil del paciente ingresado es de ser hombre entre 41-50 años, casado o con pareja, derivado por recurso asistencial relacionado con la descompensación de un trastorno mental grave. Abstract In recent years, changes have occurred in people's mental health due to various current socio- demographic issues. The exploration of the events that cause psychiatric symptoms in people who need admission and hospitalization is required. That is why this retrospective study was conducted on 1.593 clinical history from the Main-Kinzig-Kreis Schlüchtern psychiatric hospital in Germany during the period 2000-2014 in patients aged 18 to 69. A total of 37.16% of the patients were identified as having acute symptoms, 41.62% as having substance abuse due to addiction and 28.75% as having a depressive disorder. Decompensation of severe mental disorders was detected in 27.05%, where 34.71% of the patients were referred from other care devices and 32.89% decided to be admitted on their own. The profile of the admitted patient is a man between 41-50 years old, married or with a partner, referred to the psychiatric hospital for health care resources due to a decompensation of some serious mental disorder.

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Providing gender-affirming hormone therapy through primary care: Service users' and health professionals' experiences of a pilot clinic

10.26686/wgtn.12693110.v1 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

A Ker ◽

Gloria Fraser ◽

Antonia Lyons ◽

C Stephenson ◽

T Fleming

Keyword(s):

Primary Care ◽

Health Care ◽

New Zealand ◽

Hormone Therapy ◽

Health Care Providers ◽

Health Professionals ◽

Care Service ◽

Gender Diversity ◽

Service Users ◽

Care Providers

© 2020 CSIRO Publishing Journal Compilation © Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners 2020 This is an open access article licensed under a. INTRODUCTION: Primary health care providers are playing an increasingly important role in providing gender-affirming health care for gender diverse people. This article explores the experiences of a primary care-based pilot clinic providing gender-affirming hormone therapy in Wellington, New Zealand. AIM: To evaluate service users' and health professionals' experiences of a pilot clinic at Mauri Ora (Victoria University of Wellington's Student Health and Counselling Service) that provided gender-affirming hormones through primary care. METHODS: In-depth interviews were conducted with four (out of six) service users and four health professionals about their perspectives on the clinic. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed using thematic analysis. RESULTS: Three themes were identified in service users' interviews, who discussed receiving affirming care due to the clinic's accessibility, relationship-centred care and timeliness. Three themes were identified in the health professionals' interviews, who described how the clinic involves partnership, affirms users' gender and agency, and is adaptable to other primary care settings. Both service users and health professionals discussed concerns about the lack of adequate funding for primary care services and the tensions between addressing mental health needs and accessing timely care. DISCUSSION: The experiences of service users and health professionals confirm the value of providing gender-affirming hormone therapy in primary care. Models based in primary care are likely to increase accessibility, depathologise gender diversity and reduce wait times.

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Perceived helpfulness and impact of social support provided by family, friends, and health care providers to women newly diagnosed with breast cancer

Psycho-Oncology ◽

10.1002/pon.1084 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 16 (5) ◽

pp. 474-486 ◽

Cited By ~ 201

Author(s):

Neeraj K. Arora ◽

Lila J. Finney Rutten ◽

David H. Gustafson ◽

Richard Moser ◽

Robert P. Hawkins

Keyword(s):

Breast Cancer ◽

Social Support ◽

Health Care ◽

Health Care Providers ◽

Newly Diagnosed ◽

Care Providers ◽

Perceived Helpfulness

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Attitudes toward evidence-based practices, occupational stress and work-related social support among health care providers in China: A SEM analysis

PLoS ONE ◽

10.1371/journal.pone.0202166 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 13 (8) ◽

pp. e0202166 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Shan Qiao ◽

Xiaoming Li ◽

Yuejiao Zhou ◽

Zhiyong Shen ◽

Bonita Stanton

Keyword(s):

Social Support ◽

Health Care ◽

Occupational Stress ◽

Health Care Providers ◽

Sem Analysis ◽

Evidence Based ◽

Care Providers ◽

Evidence Based Practices ◽

Work Related

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Exploring Perceptions of Continuity of Care Among People With Long-Term Mental Disorders in Denmark

Qualitative Health Research ◽

10.1177/1049732319840286 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 29 (13) ◽

pp. 1916-1929

Author(s):

Anna P. Folker ◽

Mette M. Kristensen ◽

Amalie O. Kusier ◽

Maj Britt D. Nielsen ◽

Sigurd M. Lauridsen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Health Care ◽

Mental Disorders ◽

Mental Health Care ◽

Continuity Of Care ◽

Service Users ◽

Mental Health Care System ◽

Template Analysis ◽

Depth Interviews

Continuity of mental health care is central to improve the treatment and rehabilitation of people with mental disorders. While most studies on continuity of care fail to take the perspectives of service users into account, the aim of this study was to explore the perceived meanings of continuity of care among people with long-term mental disorders. Fifteen service users participated in semi-structured in-depth interviews. We used template analysis to guide the analysis. The main transversal themes of continuity were “Navigating the system” and “Connecting to people and everyday life.” While the first theme related to the participants’ experiences of their interaction with the mental health care system, the latter related to their hopes and perceived opportunities for a good life as desired outcomes of mental health care. We conclude that efforts to improve continuity of mental health care should be tailored to the priorities of service users.

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