Traditional Carrier Approaches to Mental Health

2015 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 23-35 ◽  
Author(s):  
Christina Dobson ◽  
Glen Schmidt
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
First Nations ◽  
Traditional Healers ◽  
Mental Health Practitioners ◽  
Traditional Practices ◽  
North Central ◽  
Health Practitioners ◽  
European Colonization ◽  
Over Time

The Carrier First Nations, who are the original inhabitants of North Central British Columbia, have endured years of hardship as a result of European colonization. Over time, this has resulted in an erosion of traditional practices and a decline in overall health. There is concern that mental health practitioners are not meeting the needs of the Carrier people because they fail to understand the Carrier worldview. In an effort to better understand and respect the Carrier ideas and beliefs about mental health and mental illness, interviews were conducted with 7 traditional healers about their beliefs and their practices. The traditional healers reported that the concept of mental illness did not exist in pre-contact culture. However, the traditional healers who participated in this research actively practise ceremonies and rituals that seek to restore balance and harmony between the person and his or her environment.

The Importance of Assessment in Supporting Bereaved Students

2017 ◽  
pp. 38-51
Author(s):  
Catherine B. Woahn ◽  
Benjamin S. Fernandez
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Individual Differences ◽  
Rating Scales ◽  
Mental Health Practitioners ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Grieving Process ◽  
School Based ◽  
Health Practitioners ◽  
Tiered Support ◽  
Over Time

This chapter provides a framework allowing school-based mental health practitioners to assess and track characteristics of grief in bereaved students. Several types of assessments and tools (observations, structured interviews, and a range of rating scales) are discussed as a part of a three-tiered support framework to assess and monitor student progress over time. Current approaches to assisting bereaved students vary widely and may over-serve or under-serve students based on limited understanding of grief. There are also individual differences in the grieving process. School-based professionals must conduct assessments that enable them to identify individual needs and potential symptoms of complicated grief that may affect a child’s functioning at school.

scholarly journals Relationship is Everything: Holistic Approaches to Aboriginal Child and Youth Mental Health

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 8-26 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeannine Carriere ◽  
Cathy Richardson
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
First Nations ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Children And Youth ◽  
Mental Health Practitioners ◽  
Aboriginal Child ◽  
Holistic Approaches ◽  
Health Practitioners ◽  
Indigenous Children ◽  
Indigenous Perspectives

This article addresses topics related to Indigenous holistic well-being including, 1) Indigenous perspectives on Aboriginal child and youth holistic mental health; 2) Factors undermining Indigenous well-being; 3) Process and curriculum for training to support mental health practitioners working with Indigenous children, youth and communities; 4) concrete applications and participant feedback. To begin, it is important to explore the following question: What is holistic mental health for First Nations, Métis and Inuit children and youth? In outlining this training curriculum we hope to contribute to a broader conversation about supporting and enhancing the well-being of Indigenous children and youth in Canada.

Personal reactions to sexual assault disclosures made by female clients diagnosed with serious mental illness

2018 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 248-256
Author(s):  
Charlotte Strauss Swanson ◽  
Tracy Schroepfer
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
Sexual Assault ◽  
Serious Mental Illness ◽  
Mental Health Practitioners ◽  
Personal Factors ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Study Results ◽  
Health Practitioners ◽  
Female Clients

Purpose Mental health practitioners working with female clients diagnosed with a serious mental illness (SMI) often face client disclosures of sexual assault. Research has shown that practitioners’ responses can be complicated by the diagnosis and lack of professional training; however, less is known about the role their personal factors may play. The purpose of this paper is twofold: to further understanding of practitioners’ personal reactions and investigate how these reactions affect their professional response. Design/methodology/approach Nine mental health practitioners participated in face-to-face interviews, in which they were asked to describe their personal reactions when faced with a disclosure and to discuss how these reactions influence client assessment, treatment and referral. Findings The study results show that lacking training, practitioners expressed feelings of uncertainty, fear and worry about how best to respond without causing further harm. Findings serve to inform future training to support practitioners and, as a result, improve care and treatment for this population. Originality/value This study is unique because it explores the personal reactions mental health practitioners’ experience when responding to disclosures of sexual assault among women diagnosed with an SMI and how these reactions may impact their professional response.

scholarly journals Supported Decision-Making: The Expectations Held by People With Experience of Mental Illness

2018 ◽  
Vol 28 (6) ◽  
pp. 1002-1015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fauzia Knight ◽  
Renata Kokanović ◽  
Damien Ridge ◽  
Lisa Brophy ◽  
Nicholas Hill ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Decision Making ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
Service Provision ◽  
Mental Health Practitioners ◽  
Health Service Provision ◽  
The Social ◽  
Health Practitioners ◽  
Diverse Individual ◽  
Mental Health Service Provision

Supported decision-making (SDM) is a principle guiding mental health service provision, which aims to improve people’s ability to make informed decisions about their care. Understanding diverse individual needs is vital to its success. Based on 29 narrative interviews with people diagnosed with mental illness in Australia, we examine how participants reflected on their own experiences of SDM. We find that participants’ conceptualization of mental health expertise, their own experiences and sense of agency, and their varying needs for dependence and independence influenced their relationships with mental health practitioners. These factors in turn shaped their expectations about SDM. Four narrative positions emerged: the “Inward Expert,” the “Outward Entrustor,” the “Self-Aware Observer,” and the “Social Integrator.” These positionings influenced the type or style of support that participants expected and considered most useful. Our findings are relevant to developing effective approaches to SDM that take into account service users’ needs and preferences.

scholarly journals Telemental Health Care: A Review of Efficacy and Interventions

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Calvin T. Schaffer ◽  
Preeti Nakrani ◽  
Paul A. Pirraglia
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Care Delivery ◽  
Quality Care ◽  
The United States ◽  
Mental Health Practitioners ◽  
Telemental Health ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Health Practitioners

Objective: Mental illness continues to rise in the United States, burdening a healthcare system set to dive further into a shortage of mental health practitioners. The effects of this are already being felt in many rural areas, which are all too frequently understaffed to address the mental health concerns of their populations. To further compound this growing crisis, COVID-19 has led to a reduction in access to in-person care. Furthermore, COVID-19 has led to reduced access to in-person care. As a result, Telehealth has become more essential. Knowledge of the strategies and barriers to implement a successful Telehealth program is necessary to deliver a sustainable, accessible, and quality care. Design: In this review, we analyze published research on the efficacy of Telehealth for mental health, discuss how these services have been implemented, and explore how to address barriers to quality care delivery via Telehealth. Results: Telehealth, when the appropriate resources and supports are considered, is effective in a wide range of patient populations and care locations. Multiple modalities, including via video, apps, and telephone were shown to be efficacious. Interventions have been shown to increase the accessibility to care without compromising quality of care. Conclusions: Telehealth constitutes a well-researched, efficacious tool to address the issues in access to care. Telemental health programs should address the barriers to implementation, including training, access to technology, reimbursement and regulations, and adequate program oversight. Telehealth interventions should be strongly considered in areas facing shortages of mental health practitioners and long wait times for patients with mental health disorders, to reduce the burden of mental illness on healthcare.

Finding the “Golden Moments”: Strategies of Perseverance Among Parents and Siblings of Persons With Severe Mental Illness and Violent Tendencies

2019 ◽  
Vol 40 (17) ◽  
pp. 2658-2683 ◽  
Author(s):  
Karyn Sporer ◽  
Lisa Speropolous ◽  
Katarina E. Monahan
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
Severe Mental Illness ◽  
Family Members ◽  
Mental Health Practitioners ◽  
Aggressive Child ◽  
Ethnographic Interviews ◽  
Health Practitioners ◽  
Silver Lining ◽  
Gaining Insight

This article examines strategies family members identify as being helpful when challenged by stressors related to living with an aggressive child or sibling with severe mental illness. Data from in-depth, ethnographic interviews with 42 parents and siblings of violent children with severe mental illness were analyzed using a modified version of grounded theory. Our analysis identified three themes that represent helpful strategies: (a) gaining insight and knowledge, (b) joining peer support programs, and (c) identifying a silver lining. Giving attention to these strategies may prove beneficial for other family members confronted and confused by mental illness, violence, and the complex mental health system. We recommend mental health practitioners help family members locate and engage with these resources and strategies to minimize family members’ sense of isolation and confusion, and to increase their knowledge of mental illness.

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