03131nas a2200265 4500000000100000008004100001260004400042653005700086653001800143653003000161653003300191653003100224100001400255700001500269700001200284700001300296700001500309700001300324700001300337245010300350856007700453490000700530520231400537022001402851 2021 d bSpringer Science and Business Media LLC 10 aPublic Health, Environmental and Occupational Health 10 aHealth Policy 10 aPhychiatric Mental Health 10 aPsychiatry and Mental health 10 aPrimary healthcare workers 1 aMarangu E 1 aMansouri F 1 aSands N 1 aNdetei D 1 aMuriithi P 1 aWynter K 1 aRawson H 00 aAssessing mental health literacy of primary health care workers in Kenya: a cross-sectional survey uhttps://ijmhs.biomedcentral.com/track/pdf/10.1186/s13033-021-00481-z.pdf 0 v15 3 aAbstract
Aim
To assess mental health literacy of health workers in primary health care services in Kenya.
Background
Mental illness is common in Kenya, yet there are fewer than 500 specialist mental health workers to serve Kenya’s population of over 50 million. The World Health Organization recommends the integration of mental health care into primary health care services to improve access to and equity of this care, especially in low and middle-income countries. An important step to integrating mental health care into primary health care services is to determine mental health literacy levels of the primary health care workforce.
Method
A cross-sectional survey using Jorm’s Mental Health Literacy Instrument (adapted for the Kenyan context) was administered to 310 primary health care workers in four counties of Kenya.
Results
Of the 310 questionnaires distributed, 212 (68.3%) were returned. Of the respondents, 13% had a formal mental health qualification, while only 8.7% had received relevant continuing professional development in the five years preceding the survey. Just over one third (35.6%) of primary health care workers could correctly identify depression, with even fewer recognising schizophrenia (15.7%).
Conclusions
This study provides preliminary information about mental health literacy among primary health care workers in Kenya. The majority of respondents had low mental health literacy as indicated by their inability to identify common mental disorders. While identifying gaps in primary health care workers’ mental health knowledge, these data highlight opportunities for capacity building that can enhance mental health care in Kenya and similar low and middle-income countries.
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