The Mental Health Leadership and Advocacy Program (mhLAP): a pioneering response to the neglect of mental health in Anglophone West Africa
The Mental Health Leadership and Advocacy Program (mhLAP): a pioneering response to the neglect of mental health in Anglophone West Africa
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DOI：
10.1186/1752-4458-8-5
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发表时间：
2014-01-27
影响因子：
3.6
通讯作者：
Gureje, Oye
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Abdulmalik, Jibril;Fadahunsi, Woye;Gureje, Oye
非洲和其他地区的发展中国家也有类似的情况，即精神卫生人力资源不足、资金匮乏、服务需求未得到满足以及官方对精神卫生的重视程度较低。对精神障碍起因的误解、耻辱和歧视常常导致对精神疾病患者采取有害做法，从而使这种情况更加恶化。先前对应对这些挑战所需反应的探索已经确定需要强有力的领导和一致的倡导作为所需变革的潜在驱动力。心理健康领导和宣传计划 (mhLAP) 是一个旨在提供和加强心理健康领导、服务开发、宣传和政策规划方面的技能获取的项目，并建立行动伙伴关系。本文于 2010 年启动，旨在为冈比亚、加纳、利比里亚、尼日利亚、塞拉利昂等英语国家提供服务，介绍了该计划的组成部分、启动以来获得的经验以及实施三年期间取得的成就。这些成就包括：1) 年度心理健康领导力和宣传培训，来自 9 个不同非洲国家的 96 名参与者已毕业；2) 在每个参与国建立了由服务使用者团体、非政府组织、媒体从业者和心理健康专业人员组成的广泛联盟，以实施针对具体国家优先事项的协调一致的心理健康宣传工作
Developing countries in Africa and other regions share a similar profile of insufficient human resources for mental health, poor funding, a high unmet need for services and a low official prioritisation of mental health. This situation is worsened by misconceptions about the causes of mental disorders, stigma and discrimination that frequently result in harmful practices against persons with mental illness. Previous explorations of the required response to these challenges have identified the need for strong leadership and consistent advocacy as potential drivers of the desired change. The Mental Health Leadership and Advocacy Program (mhLAP) is a project that aims to provide and enhance the acquisition of skills in mental health leadership, service development, advocacy and policy planning and to build partnerships for action. Launched in 2010 to serve the Anglophone countries of The Gambia, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, this paper describes the components of the program, the experience gained since its initiation, and the achievements made during the three years of its implementation. These achievements include: 1) the annual training in mental health leadership and advocacy which has graduated 96 participants from 9 different African countries and 2) the establishment of a broad coalition of service user groups, non-governmental organizations, media practitioners and mental health professionals in each participating country to implement concerted mental health advocacy efforts that are focused on country-specific priorities