Perspectives towards mental illness in people living with HIV/AIDS in South Africa

Sorsdahl, Katherine; Stein, Dan J.; Joska, John A.

doi:10.1080/09540121003758655

Cited by 21 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…The finding that many respondents were unable to correctly identify a mental disorder is consistent with a previous study conducted 5 years ago in South Africa with a community sample (Hugo et al, 2003) and a sample of people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) (K. Sorsdahl et al, 2010). In the present study, only 31% of respondents correctly identified the presence of psychiatric disorders in the vignettes.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Knowledge of and Stigma Associated With Mental Disorders in a South African Community Sample

Sorsdahl

Stein

2010

Journal of Nervous &Amp; Mental Disease

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The aim of this study was to assess the awareness of, attitudes toward, and stigma associated with psychiatric disorders among South Africans. A convenience sample of 1081 members of the general public participated in the study. One of 10 vignettes portraying different psychiatric disorders with subtle or obvious symptoms was presented to each respondent. Schizophrenia was reported as being the most representative of a psychiatric disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder as the least representative. Psychosocial stress was reported more frequently than medical etiologies as a possible cause of mental disorders. Seeking help from a health professional in the form of psychotherapy was often endorsed as an effective treatment option, whereas taking medication was rarely endorsed. Respondents held more stigmatizing attitudes toward patients with substance abuse and schizophrenia, whereas post-traumatic stress disorder was stigmatized significantly less than the other conditions. Further effort is required to educate the public about the psychobiological underpinnings of psychiatric disorders and about the value of effective treatments.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Knowledge of and Stigma Associated With Mental Disorders in a South African Community Sample

Sorsdahl

Stein

2010

Journal of Nervous &Amp; Mental Disease

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“…47 Mental health literacy in South Africa has been investigated in community samples 48,49 , and in an HIV population. 50 This work indicates that common mental disorders are viewed as the result of everyday life challenges, rather than as treatable conditions. However, there is some evidence (none from South Africa) to suggest that population-wide and individual level interventions designed to improve mental health literacy are effective.…”

Section: Adaptation Of Services To the South African Contextmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mental Health Services in South Africa: Scaling up and future directions

2012

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Abstract"No health without mental health" has become a rallying call for the World Health Organization and numerous service providers, training institutions, health researchers, and advocacy groups around the world. It is timely to consider the implications of this call for South Africa. We review key evidence regarding the burden and risk factors for mental disorders in South Africa and crucial challenges for local mental health services and research. We emphasize that mental disorders are more impairing but less treated than physical disorders, and that existing services need to be scaled up and adapted to the local context. New research is needed to determine what interventions work best in the South African context.

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“…In South Africa, barriers to treatment have not been researched as extensively as in other countries; however, low levels of mental health literacy (34,35), poorly developed mental health services, a limited supply of mental health professionals and staff (36–39), and a reliance on traditional medicine have been noted as contributing factors (40). We used the SASH data set to examine both structural and attitudinal barriers to treatment initiation among individuals with a mental disorder, as well as demographic and clinical predictors of treatment dropout.…”

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confidence: 99%

Barriers to Mental Health Care and Predictors of Treatment Dropout in the South African Stress and Health Study

Bruwer

Sorsdahl²,

Harrison³

et al. 2011

Psychiatric Services

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Objective This study used data from the South African Stress and Health Study (SASH) to examine both structural and attitudinal barriers to treatment initiation among South Africans with mental disorders and to investigate predictors of treatment dropout. Methods Face-to-face interviews were conducted with 4,315 adult South Africans living in households or hostel quarters. The interview included a core diagnostic assessment of past-12-month mental disorders and assessments of disorder severity, service use, and barriers to treatment. Multivariate logistic regression models were used to determine predictors of not seeking treatment in relation to disorder severity and sociodemographic characteristics, as well as factors that were predictive of premature treatment discontinuation by participants who had received mental health treatment in the previous 12 months. Predictors of dropout were identified by cross-tabulation and discrete-time survival analysis. Results Of the 4,315 adults, 729 (16.9% weighted) met criteria for a mental disorder in the past 12 months. Across all levels of severity, the most frequently cited reason for not seeking professional treatment was a low perceived need for treatment. Among those who recognized the need but did not access treatment during the past 12 months (7.2%), attitudinal barriers to treatment seeking were reported more commonly than structural barriers (100% and 34%, respectively). Of the 182 respondents who received treatment (25% weighted), 20% discontinued prematurely. Various factors, such as substance use disorders and absence of health insurance, increased the odds of treatment dropout. Conclusions Low rates of treatment seeking and high treatment dropout rates for common mental disorders among South Africans are a major concern. Public health efforts to improve treatment of mental disorders should consider the multiple influences on treatment initiation and discontinuation.

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Perspectives towards mental illness in people living with HIV/AIDS in South Africa

Cited by 21 publications

References 43 publications

Knowledge of and Stigma Associated With Mental Disorders in a South African Community Sample

Knowledge of and Stigma Associated With Mental Disorders in a South African Community Sample

Mental Health Services in South Africa: Scaling up and future directions

Barriers to Mental Health Care and Predictors of Treatment Dropout in the South African Stress and Health Study

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