Books, Articles and Research
Sustainable development helps us to flourish
This article examines the connection between sustainable environmental practices and positive mental health, suggesting that efforts to improve conditions for our planet have the potential to also improve mental health throughout society. The author explores ways the natural environment is connected to psychological wellness, emphasizing ways it serves one's needs, not only for food and water, but also for one's spiritual and emotional wellness. In the Mental Health Foundation of New Zealand's recognition of these described connections, some common goals for their work with organizations are listed: integrating social, cultural, economic, and environmental goals; regenerating natural and social capital; affirming the value of local communities; valuing nature intrinsically; and promoting non-material sources of happiness.
Neighbourliness: Local connections and mental wellbeing
This Mental Health Foundation of New Zealand article explores social capital and its potential to support growing communities and enhance mental health. The author discusses social capital as it is defined by Robert Putnam, "the collective value of all 'social networks' and the inclinations that arise from these networks to do things for each other." The article highlights the impact of local community projects and campaigns on increasing trust between community members and social connectedness. It also covers the current status of social connectedness in New Zealand, recommendations for building local connections and opportunities at the local level, and encouraging quality relationships among neighbors and community members.
Social inclusion: Its importance to mental health
This Mental Health Coordinating Council document outlines the importance of social inclusion for people with mental disorders and the role that community-based organizations can play in establishing a socially inclusive community. In addition to emphasizing the importance of a meaningful community connection, this publication also focuses on the need for supportive family and caregivers, strong consumer networks, and access to clinical services as a way of reaching social inclusion.
Prevention, treatment, and recovery supports for those with substance use problems: Opportunities for enhanced access and quality of care
While recognizing the negative impact that substance use disorders can have on an individual, one's family, and community, this article explores ways to improve access to prevention and care for substance use disorders.
Designing healthy communities
This book discusses tools for individuals looking to bring about positive change within their communities. It explores ways in which the design of an environment influences the health of individuals and also discusses issues relating to social and environmental justice. Obesity and a variety of additional preventable diseases are addressed, while the author also takes time to emphasize best practices for countering these conditions.
Social Inclusion
This article discusses how public perspectives regarding individuals with mental disorders have changed since the 1960s. It describes social inclusion as a moral imperative and encourages individuals to find ways to promote and support full inclusion of people with mental disorders into their communities.
Introduction to "Building communities from the inside out: A path toward finding and mobilizing a community's assets"
This publication is an introduction to a guide on rebuilding troubled communities that emphasizes identifying and building upon community strengths rather than focusing on deficits within the community. It includes success stories of communities that have thrived and the role that the asset-based community development strategy has played in developing steps toward community growth. This introduction explores ways the traditional approach has failed communities, identifies problems, and discusses solutions and assets of a community, including those of individuals, associations, and institutions.
"The mental health consumer movement: Implications for
This paper examines the consumer movement and the unique problems rural communities face in enhancing services to consumers. It finds that the consumer movement has great potential to positively impact rural service delivery.
Mental health problems in rural contexts: A broader perspective
The objectives of this article are to expand and comment upon a recent review in Australian Psychologist of the literature in relation to mental health problems in rural contexts by Jackson et al. (2007). In this article the authors reviews recently published qualitative research on the help-seeking attitudes and experiences of rural Australian adolescents.
Rurality, gender, and mental health treatment
The objective of this study was to identify the influence of gender and rurality on mental health services utilization by using more sensitive indices of rurality.
Mental healthcare for rural seniors. An outreach program in Cedar Rapids, IA, uses an integrated approach to break down barriers to care
Article discussing the Abbe Center for Community Mental Health in the Cedar Rapids, IA, and the work that the Center does in breaking down some of the barriers to mental health services for older adults in rural communities.
Rural and frontier mental and behavioral health care: Barriers, effective policy strategies, best practices
This report focuses on the following areas: barriers to mental and behavioral health service delivery in rural America, model programs and effective activities for rural America, model policy strategies for rural mental and behavioral health care delivery, the role telehealth should play in service delivery to rural America, and the role that State Offices of Rural Health and other State and local organizations should play in service delivery to rural America.
The journey of Native American people with serious mental illness: Executive summary
This report describes the first national conference on Native American people with serious mental illness. Describes meeting of State, tribal, and Federal mental health officials; providers; families; and consumers to tackle mental health delivery issues for Native Americans and to overcome barriers for developing coordinated, efficient, and culturally relevant systems of care.
Collaboration and referral practices of general practitioners and community mental health workers in rural and remote Australia
This article reports on a study that examines the collaboration and referral practices between general practitioners and community mental health workers in rural and remote areas of Australia. The researcher's findings indicate there are serious problems in Australia's rural and remote mental health care system due to the negative collaboration and referral practices between general practitioners and mental health workers.
Ethical considerations in rural health care: A pilot study of clinicians in Alaska and New Mexico
To investigate differences in the experiences of rural versus non-rural clinicians, we surveyed caregivers in New Mexico and Alaska regarding ethical aspects of care provision. Consistent with past literature, rural compared to non-rural clinicians perceived patients as having less access to health care resources.
Rural culture is a diversity issue
This article attempts to make the case that there are some significant differences in factors that affect rural people?s mental health, as well as in the manner in which we can most effectively provide mental health services to them.
Examination of attitudes toward disabilities among college students: Rural and urban differences
The purpose of the study was to examine rural versus urban differences with respect to the Attitudes Toward Disabled Persons survey (ATDP), the Scale of Attitudes toward Disabled Persons (SADP), and the Rehabilitation Situations Inventory (RSI).
No comfort in the rural south: Women living depressed
An article discussing the opportunities for research and strategy that exist for providing mental health services to women in a rural area.
Mental health-related knowledge, attitudes and practices in two kibbutzim
This study explored mental health-related knowledge, attitudes and practices (KAP) in two kibbutzim (collective villages).
Does stigma concerning mental disorders differ through medical education? A survey among medical students in Istanbul
The aim of this study is to determine the attitudes of medical students toward mentally disabled people and to understand the impact of schooling on attitude difference by evaluating second and sixth year medical students.
Effect of labeling on public attitudes toward people with schizophrenia: Are there cultural differences
A representative survey was recently conducted in Germany and concluded that labeling as mental illness has an impact on public attitudes towards people with schizophrenia, with negative effects clearly outweighing positive effects. In this study, we will examine whether this result can be replicated in other countries.
Rural mental health: Neither romanticism nor despair
This paper explores the relationship between rural places and mental health. It begins with a definition of mental health and an outline of the data that have led to the current concern with promoting positive mental health.
Medicaid managed care for mental health services in a rural state
State governments throughout the country increasingly have turned to managed care for their Medicaid programs, including mental health services. We used ethnographic methods and a review of legal documents and state monitoring data to examine the impact of Medicaid reform on mental health services in New Mexico, a rural state. New Mexico implemented Medicaid managed care for both physical and mental health services in 1997. The reform led to administrative burdens, payment problems, and stress and high turnover among providers. Restrictions on inpatient and residential treatment exacerbated access problems for Medicaid recipients. These facts indicate that in rural, medically underserved states, the advantages of managed care for cost control, access, and quality assurance may be diminished. Responding to the crisis in mental health services, the federal government terminated New Mexico's program but later reversed its decision after political changes at the national level. This contradictory response suggests that the federal government's oversight role warrants careful scrutiny by advocacy groups at the local and state levels.
School based youth health nurses' role in assisting young people access health services in provincial, rural and remote areas of Queensland, Australia.
This study was undertaken to explore the referral role of the School Based Youth Health Nurse Program in provincial, rural and remote Queensland and to ascertain the availability of referral services.
Perception of stigma among family members of individuals with schizophrenia and major affective disorders in rural Ethiopia
This study aimed to estimate the extent and socio-demographic distribution of stigma as perceived by relatives of mentally ill individuals in rural Ethiopia.
A community needs assessment for rural mental health promotion
This paper describes the needs assessment phase of a mental health promotion programme for rural communities in Ireland.
How definition of mental health problems can influence help seeking in rural and remote communites
The present study sought to understand the rural and remote influences on people's identification of, and response to, mental health problems.
A primary mental health-care model for rural Australia: Outcomes for doctors and the community
To address the high rate of depression and suicide in rural Australia requires a multifaceted approach to educate the community, improve the skills of health workers and provide user-friendly patient counselling. This paper describes a model that covers each of these aspects and details the outcomes with respect to the doctors and the community.
Introducing a professional development programme to a rural area mental health service: The importance of context
This paper describes the introduction of an ongoing professional development programme for clinicians in a rural Australian, mental health service.
Dynamics of inclusion and exclusion: Comparing mental illness narratives of Haredi male patients and their rabbis
By comparing versions of mental illness narratives - told by Haredi (Utraorthodox Jews) male patients of a mental health clinic in Israel and by their rabbis - this paper relates to two distinct, yet interrelated, theoretical questions: the place and agency of narrators, and the tension between experience and representation.
Public attitudes to schizophrenia in rural Turkey
The aim of this study was to determine the public's attitudes towards patients with schizophrenia in rural areas.
Helping carers care: An education programme for rural carers of people with a mental illness
An article providing descriptive information about a short-term educational program for caregivers of people with a mental illness, living in rural Australia.
Role of stigma and attitudes toward help-seeking from a general practitioner for mental health problems in a rural town
This study was conducted to examine the role of perceived stigma and attitudes to seeking care in predicting help-seeking from a general practitioner (GP) for mental health problems in rural communities.
Rural residence is not a risk factor for frequent mental distress: A behavioral risk factor surveillance survey
The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between residing in a rural area and frequent mental distress, which is one indicator of poor mental health.
Behavioral health care needs of rural women
This report attempts to direct attention to this underrepresented group and presents a review of the literature related to the behavioral health care needs of rural women. With this knowledge, psychologists and other health professionals will be able to more effectively plan and deliver services to this population.
?Like a friend going round?: Reducing the stigma attached to mental healthcare in rural communities
Traditionally, stigma is seen as something that is the fault of the mental health system, and that involves an individual suffering social disapprobation and reduced life chances as a result of having been given a diagnostic label and an identity as a patient as a result of their contact with psychiatric institutions. The present study, based on focus group discussions conducted with users and mental healthcare workers in a rural setting, suggests that this classic conception of stigma does not readily apply to care in the community.
Effects of a unit in mental health on rural adolescents' attitudes about seeking help and concepts of mental illness
The present study investigated the effects of a unit of instruction in mental health on rural adolescents' conceptions of mental illness and their attitudes about seeking professional help for emotional problems.