International Journal of Mental Health Systems
Volume 9, Issue 1, 2015

Mental health first aid training for the Bhutanese refugee community in the United States (Article) (Open Access)

Subedi P.* , Li C. , Gurung A. , Bizune D. , Dogbey M. , Johnson C.C. , Yun K.
  • a Division of Disease Control, Philadelphia Department of Public Health, 500 South Broad Street, Philadelphia, PA 19146, United States
  • b Tulane University, 6823 St, Charles Ave, New Orleans, LA 70118, United States
  • c University of Pittsburgh, 4200 Fifth Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, United States
  • d Division of Disease Control, Philadelphia Department of Public Health, 500 South Broad Street, Philadelphia, PA 19146, United States
  • e Division of Disease Control, Philadelphia Department of Public Health, 500 South Broad Street, Philadelphia, PA 19146, United States
  • f Division of Disease Control, Philadelphia Department of Public Health, 500 South Broad Street, Philadelphia, PA 19146, United States
  • g The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Division of General Pediatrics, PolicyLab, 36th and Market Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, United States

Abstract

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. © Subedi et al.; licensee BioMed Central.

Author Keywords

Vignette resettlement Suicide Bhutanese refugees Mental health

Index Keywords

educational status depression refugee mental health service mental health human health belief priority journal groups by age health personnel attitude mental disease United States paramedical education first aid attitude male female professional knowledge questionnaire emotional stress Article adult Bhutanese attitude to health Suicide
Link
https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-84929335608&doi=10.1186%2fs13033-015-0012-z&partnerID=40&md5=1ab70897c79d753d24347ead7ec653a6
DOI: 10.1186/s13033-015-0012-z
ISSN: 17524458
Cited by: 7
Original Language: English