Article Review on Mental Health and Psychosocial Support in Humanitarian Emergencies

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Article Review on Mental Health and Psychosocial Support in Humanitarian Emergencies

The article under review titled “Identifying best practice for the supervision of mental health and psychosocial support in humanitarian emergencies: a Delphi study” was authored by various individuals, including Aine Travers, Nadeen Abujaber, Kelly McBride, Pia Tingsted Blum, Nana Wiedemann, and Frederique Vallieres. The article was published in the International Journal of Mental Health Systems on 7th February 2022. This text answers various questions concerning the article, ranging from the mental health illness symptoms, impact, treatment, geographical location, participants region, intervention programs, cost, and success of the program in detail. Further, it includes information on numerical data, limitations of the study, program importance, and recommendations to improve global health.

Mental health illness, also known as a mental health disorder, comprises various mental health conditions that affect behavior, thinking and mood. Common examples of mental illness include anxiety disorders, depression, eating disorders, schizophrenia, and addictive behaviors. While many people occasionally suffer mental health concerns, it becomes an issue of concern when symptoms affect a person’s function and cause them frequent stress (Sin, Galeazzi, McGregor, Collom, Taylor, Barrett, & Henderson, 2020). Some of the common signs and symptoms of mental health illness include suicidal thinking, feeling sad, excessive anger or violence, confused thinking, change in sex drive, extreme fear, change in sex drive, withdrawal from activities and friends, changes in feeding habits, and general tiredness. Other signs and symptoms of mental illness pertain to hallucinations and paranoia, drug and substance abuse, and difficulties relating to people and situations. Mental health illness is rife in the United States, with 52.9 million adults (1 in 5) living with the illness in 2020. The degree of severity of mental illness ranges from mild, moderate to severe. Mental health affects global health because it breeds other problems to do with social and economic deprivation. It also paves way for other problems such as discrimination. Mental health also impacts problems such as alcohol and substance abuse and gender-based violence. One of the most common treatments for mental illness is counseling or psychotherapy. It involves the patient taking a professional about their problems in what is referred to as talk therapy. Cognitive-behavioral therapy is one of the most effective treatments for mental illnesses.

The geographical area that is directly affected in this article includes Europe, Africa, North America, Asia, Australia, and South America. The participants of the study were selected from various countries, including Australia, Uganda, Bangladesh, Spain, Belgium, Sweden, Bolivia, Nigeria, Herzegovina, the Netherlands, Malaysia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Malaysia, Liberia, Lebanon, Jordan, Kenya, the USA, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Egypt, Finland, Germany, France, Ireland, Iceland, and Italy (Travers, Abujaber, McBride, Tingsted Blum, Wiedemann, & Vallières, 2022). In this specific study a total number of 72 individuals agreed to participate in the study. Of these, 48 individuals took part in round 1 and only those that took part in round 2 could take part in round 2. A total of 37 participants completed both rounds. The intervention being used in the study was both qualitative and quantitative in nature. The program intervention is known as the Delphi method. It was used to collect stakeholders’ views on supervision of mental health and psychological support services (MHPSS) supervision in humanitarian settings. The Delphi method was selected as a recognized intervention for reaching consensus among the stakeholders. The 28 sets of statements were presented in more than two rounds with the purpose of reducing responses in each round. The cost of the program (Delphi method) is not mentioned. The program employed in the study was successful as it provided significant information in the development of guidance in supervision of mental health and psychosocial services in humanitarian provision settings. The study findings pointed to the importance of having confidential space for mental health supervision. The program success is determined by uptake of study recommendations, including the importance of not compromising on confidentiality during supervision that take place in challenging situations. In essence, unique emergency setting of humanitarian provision should always conform to the best practice and the realities of the changing environments. Confidentiality, an important element of supervision, should be at the centre of service provision. The researchers note that statement five, which attained a score of 69% in the first round, increased to 76% in round two. Similarly, statements pertaining to leaving space for discussions at the end of each session attained consensus in the second round (86%) compared to round 1 (72%). This was an indication that none of the participants objected the idea of seeking feedback from supervisors.

Some of the limitations which if changed would impact the program result directly has to do with the participants’ personal information. Minimal information relating to their level of experience working in humanitarian settings was gathered. Such information would have been more helpful in the interpretation of the study. This program is important in showing the importance of supportive supervision in improving worker well-being and resilience in humanitarian settings. The program emphasizes the need to prioritize this area as it remains largely under untapped and under-prioritized. If cost was not an issue, one of the ways that could be used to improve the program for better global health is policy enactment declaring mental illness a national disaster in the geographical areas of interest. Additionally, it would help if the policy made it mandatory for supervisor follow-up on all individuals battling a mental health issue. Individuals that work in humanitarian emergency settings are exposed to tough situations that expose them to mental health problems such as depression, anxiety and even suicidal ideation. It is therefore imperative that we provide them with all the psychosocial support they might needs. In my learning institutions, the school provides psychosocial support services for students. Most students are familiar with the counseling program and are encouraged to seek help in various matters ranging from addiction counseling to poor performance issues.

In closing, this article delves on the important problem of mental health that has is slowly becoming a menace to society. A huge population is struggling with mental health illnesses ranging from depression, anxiety, among others. The article centers on the role of supportive supervision in improving well being and worker resilience particularly in humanitarian emergency settings. The study employed Delphi consensus-methodology to assess agreement levels in 48 individuals on various ideas relating to supervision in humanitarian settings.

References

Sin, J., Galeazzi, G., McGregor, E., Collom, J., Taylor, A., Barrett, B., & Henderson, C. (2020). Digital interventions for screening and treating common mental disorders or symptoms of common mental illness in adults: systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of medical Internet research, 22(9), e20581.

Travers, Á., Abujaber, N., McBride, K. A., Tingsted Blum, P., Wiedemann, N., & Vallières, F. (2022). A Delphi study identifies best practice for the supervision of mental health and psychosocial support in humanitarian emergencies. International Journal of Mental Health Systems, 16(1), 1-10.