Mental and Social Health Commons^™

“Tem Um Doido No Caps / Que Diz Que Louco É Gente/Que Diz Que Louco Sabe/Que Diz Que Louco Sente” Failures And Successes In Brazilian Mental Health Reform: A Case Study Of Caps – Quixadá, Zachary Fuhrer

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In 1987, as public health decentralized and O Movimento da Luta Antimanicomial challenged the internment of loucuras in asylums, Brazil hosted its first National Conference of Mental Health. While the fight for mental health reform and the dehospitalization of the mentally ill in psychiatric hospitals began to take form in the 1970s with the Rede de Alternativas Psi and O Movimento dos Trabalhadores de Saúde Mental, Brazil has battled with questions of saúde loucura (treatment of the mad) since the country's colonial era and the reception of the epileptic and mentally ill family of Dom João VI. The Brazilian state …

“But Who Can I Talk To?” Psychological Services For The Parents And Children Of Apdk, Jessica Steinke

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This is a study examining the adequacy of the psychological services and support offered by the Association for the Physically Disabled of Kenya, APDK, to the children in its care and the families who utilize the centre. First and foremost this study examined the psychological effect physical disabilities have on children and their families to determine what services are necessary for these individuals. The availability of mental health services was then analyzed in the context of the need for them as expressed by children at APDK and parents of disabled children. It was discovered that very few services are available …

Vih Y Alcohol En Arica, Chile: Percepciones De Portadores Y Profesionales, Lena Sessions

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This paper investigated the relationship between alcohol consumption and HIV in Arica, Chile. The objectives of this investigation were to understand the demographics of HIV positive Ariqueños who consume alcohol, and understand their perceptions of alcohol consumption with respect to whether they believed they had a drinking problem, whether they believed that the consumption of alcohol facilitated their contracting HIV, and whether the consumption of alcohol affected their treatment. Although there is no literature that specifically addresses the topic of how HIV positive individuals who consume alcohol perceive their disease, former research suggests that a significant number (25-50%) of individuals …

Mental Health In Mali: An Analysis Of The Expression Of Major Depressive Disorder Across Different Cultures, Ashley Morris

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Introduction (excerpt) What other differences exist between illnesses across different cultures? Are the differences only found in the manifestation of symptoms or are there also biological differences? How does one conceptualize mental health issues, such as depression, here in Mali? Is there a stigma against mental health patients in Mali? What facilities, treatments, and medicines are available in Mali to treat mental disorder? After a little more background research I found that the topic of mental health in the developing world has been largely ignored until very recently. As cross-cultural studies in every academic discipline become increasingly more prevalent, anthropology …

Summary And Analysis: Mental Health Infrastructure In Ulaanbaatar, Mini Saraswati

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Questions about the mind have been asked by a variety of peoples and cultures throughout the ages. While fields of psychiatry and psychology have developed in an effort to address these questions, the issue of how to best handle the mentally ill within the framework of society is ultimately a political one. While there has been work done in mapping the attitudes towards mental health, the level of awareness about mental health issues, and the quality of treatment in different institutions, little is known about these topics in a newly developing country like Mongolia. Much of the research on how …

‘The Core Resource’ The Role Of Informal Caretakers Of The Mentally Ill As Seen In Uganda, Dana Carroll

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Human experience is constantly mediated by culture. Many new studies have shown the significant role of culture in mental health, mental illness, and mental illness treatment. This project seeks to identify some of the cultural determinants of mental illness treatment in Uganda. Specifically, it has studied the role of family members in a mentally ill patient’s healing process. This study was conducted through semi-structured personal interviews with individuals from three subject groups. Group 1 consisted of mental health professional Group 2 members of organizations offering mental health services, and Group 3 the caretakers of mentally ill persons. All participants consented …

Surviving The War, Surviving The Peace: Supporting Women Survivors Of War-Rape And Domestic Violence In Medica Zenica, Zoë Brennan-Krohn

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

My research sought to examine the transition from war to post-war services provided in a women’s non-governmental organization, Medica Zenica, located in central Bosnia-Hercegovina. Opened in 1993, in the midst of the war in Bosnia, Medica Zenica began providing support for war-rape survivors. Today, Medica Zenica is still running, but the majority of clients are now survivors of domestic violence.

By interviewing women currently and previously employed in Medica Zenica, I pieced together a picture of how Medica has evolved in the last fifteen years, as well as how these evolutions are seen as a reflection of changing society in …

Taming The Mind: Current Mental Health Treatments And Obstacles To Expanding The Western-Model In A Tibetan Exile Community, Dylan Brock

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

No abstract provided.

Revitalizing The Human Spirit Together: A Case Study Of Movimento De Saúde Mental Comunitária Do Bom Jardim In Bom Jardim, Fortaleza, Ceará, Ana Bonilla

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

My research will delve into the workings of the community of Bom Jardim in Fortaleza, Ceará, in their endeavors for positive mental and physical community development through the tactics of their base organization Movimento de Saúde Mental Comunitária do Bom Jardim (MSMCBJ). Specifically I am looking at the Terapia Comunitária (community therapy) program, one of the many branches of MSMCBJ, and how through their projects do they fulfill their goal of organizing a community from the roots to blossom into a healthier and more vibrant one. I will also look into how this model is sustainable and why this method …

Understanding Mental Health From A Candomblé Perspective, Kerilyn Daniel

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Candomblé is an Afro-Brazilian religion that has a strong presence in Brazil as a religious institution as well as a health center. Many turn to the houses of Candomblé (terreiros) for healing from not only physical ailments but mental illnesses as well. Candomblé has been very effective in healing mental illnesses even when Western medicine has proved ineffective. I have sought to understand how Candomblé perceives mental health and the treatment of mental illness. I have examined how they diagnose mental illnesses, how they understand the nature of the illness, and their healing methods. I have also explored more general …

Caring And Treating Post – Traumatic Stress Disorder In Bosnia And Herzegovina, Colleen M. Boley

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder is a major issue whenever there is a war or natural disaster. From 1992 through 1995, Bosnia and Herzegovina was subject to one of the most destructive wars of the 20th century. The groups in Bosnia and Herzegovina that are working with posttraumatic stress disorder are investigated to see if they are truly helping people with posttraumatic stress disorder. This paper explores the ways in which posttraumatic stress disorder has affected individuals and the societies of Bosnia and Herzegovina as well as the organizations attempting to help people dealing with posttraumatic stress disorder.

Embracing The Demons Within: Spiritual Possession And Mental Health Support In Madagascar, Thomas Cody Swift

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Possession, and the systems of mental health support existing under the same spiritual paradigm, inherently address and serve to instigate a change in the entirety of one’s life. The two traditional systems of mental health support in Madagascar, tromba spirit healers and Protestent exorcisms, appear to differ in doctine and tradition and have been proposed to be fundementally incompatible because of “conflicting or alternative epistemological realities” (Sharp, 525). The goals of this research, however, will be to identify the contextual and functional trends of the two systems that exist to support and ameliorate the mental health of the Malagasy people. …

Mental Healthcare In A Rural Community, Thuy Nguyen

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study intends to observe and document the picture of mental health in a rural setting specifically, the Keiskamahoek area. Also, the project aims to evaluate the changes, if any exist, that resulted from recent attempts to integrate mental healthcare into the primary healthcare setting and bring psychiatric patients back to the community environment for treatment.