The Institute for Global Health and Development
Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://eresearch.qmu.ac.uk/handle/20.500.12289/9
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Item Provision of mental health and psychosocial support services to health workers and community members in conflict-affected Northwest Syria: a mixed-methods study(BioMed Central, 2023-10-04) Bou-Orm, Ibrahim; Moussallem, Marianne; Karam, Joelle; deLara, Manuel; Varma, Vinod; Diaconu, Karin; Apaydin, Murat Can Birand; Van den Bergh, Rafael; Ager, Alastair; Witter, SophieBackground: Northwest Syria (NWS) is a conflict area with challenging political, economic, demographic and social dynamics. The region has a high number of internally displaced persons with increasingly disrupted delivery of basic services, including healthcare. Mental health needs have been increasing in the region while the infrastructure and capacity of the health sector has been negatively affected by the conflict. This study aimed to explore the provision of mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) services to communities in NWS (including healthcare workers) and to assess the experiences of beneficiaries with MHPSS services. Methods: The study followed a mixed-methods research design that included qualitative and participatory methods (44 semi-structured interviews and a group model building workshop with 15 participants) as well as a survey with 462 beneficiaries. Results: Findings suggested an improvement of MHPSS services in the region over the last few years due to the creation of a specific Technical Working Group for MHPSS that contributed to assessment of community needs and support of the MHPSS response. The key elements of this response were: (1) training non-specialized health workers to address the shortage in specialized providers; (2) securing funding and coordination of services between different organizations; and (3) addressing gaps in the availability and geographical distribution of other needed resources, such as medicines. While those elements contributed to improving access to services and the quality of services—especially among health workers seeking MHPSS services—findings suggested gaps in the sustainability of services and a need to scale up those interventions in an integrated approach. Conclusion: The study findings add to the evidence base on the challenges in scaling up MHPSS interventions and their long-term sustainability concerns. Priority actions should address the intermittent funding of the MHPSS response, incorporate MHPSS outputs and outcomes in the reimbursement of routine services, improve coordination between health partners and non-health actors in order to expand the scope of MHPSS response, and address the inequitable availability of resources in the region.Item Social determinants and mental health needs of Palestine refugees and UNRWA responses in Gaza during the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative assessment(BioMed Central, 2022-12-08) Jamal, Zeina; ElKhatib, Zoheir; AlBaik, Shatha; Horino, Masako; Waleed, Mohammed; Fawaz, Farah; Loffreda, Giulia; Seita, Akihiro; Witter, Sophie; Diaconu, KarinBackground: Due to pre-existing difficulties, refugees are especially susceptible to the negative effects of the pandemic; nonetheless, the pandemic’s effect on this group is still unclear. The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of Palestine refugees in Gaza by identifying the role of social determinants. During the pandemic, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) enacted a number of policies and measures. The purpose of this research was to assess their efficacy and acceptability. Methods: This qualitative study took place between August and November 2020. Twenty-nine key-informant interviews were conducted remotely with UNRWA Headquarters, field and clinical staff in Gaza and with community members, aged ≥18 years and residing in Rafah and Jabalia camps. We sought informed consent verbally or via email. Data was coded based on the framework for social determinants of mental health. Results: Interview results indicated that the relationship might be unidirectional, with COVID-19 causing the degradation of living conditions and vice versa, with living conditions exacerbating the COVID-19 situation by facilitating virus transmission. In other instances, the association between mental health determinants and COVID-19 might be bidirectional. In terms of experiencing violence and anxieties, women, children, and daily-paid employees were significantly more disadvantaged than other groups in the community. UNRWA modified its service delivery techniques in order to continue providing essential services. In general, UNRWA’s strategies throughout the pandemic were deemed beneficial, but insufficient to meet the needs of Gazans. Conclusion: The pandemic highlights the need to go beyond disease treatment and prevention to address social determinants to improve refugees’ health and reduce their susceptibility to future shocks. UNRWA has rapidly implemented telemedicine and mental telehealth services, making it imperative to assess the efficacy of these novel approaches to provide care at a distance. A long-term option may be to employ a hybrid strategy, which combines online and in-person therapy.Item Diabetes Treatment and Mental Illness: A Call for an Integrated Health Care System in Underserved Semi-Rural Malaysia(MDPI, 2022-08-14) Thangiah, Govindamal; Johar, Hamimatunnisa; Ismail, Roshidi; Reininghaus, Ulrich; Bärnighausen, Till; Thurairajasingam, Sivakumar; Reidpath, Daniel; Su, Tin TinDiabetes mellitus (DM) management imposes a tremendous psychological burden on patients. The study investigates the association between DM treatment with blood glucose (BG) control and common mental health conditions. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 1821 individuals with DM in a community-based survey conducted in 2013. Information on respondents’ sociodemographic, mental health, DM treatment, and BG levels was collected. Multinomial logistic regression was employed to examine the association of diabetes treatment with controlled BG levels (11.1 mmol/L) (42.5%, n = 774) or uncontrolled BG levels (34.3%, n = 625) compared with those not undergoing treatment (23.2%, n = 422) on depression anxiety, and stress. Having DM treatment and controlled BG was associated with high depressive symptoms (Relative Risk Ratio, RRR: 2.42; 95% CI 1.33−4.41) and high anxiety symptoms (1.66; 1.08−2.56) but not with perceived stress. However, treated DM with uncontrolled BG was associated with anxiety (high: 1.64; 1.05−2.56; low: 2.59; 1.10−6.09) but not depression or perceived stress. Our results suggest that being treated for DM, regardless of glucose control status, was associated with anxiety symptoms, whereas being treated with controlled BG was associated with high depressive symptoms. This situation highlights the need for integrative, multidisciplinary care for DM patients with mental health comorbidities.