3^rd International Conference on Mental Health and Human Resilience June 21-23, 2017 @ Holiday Inn London, Brentford Lock, UK

Biography:

Shauna Mckay-Burke, is a licenced practical nurse with experience in adolescent, adult and forensic psychiatry, she has also worked in geriatrics, VON and the OR. Mom of 3, she has also experienced her child's admission to psychiatric hospital for 3 months duration. She understands what it is like to be on either side of the hallway.

Abstract:

A dozen or so years ago when the author has started in psychiatry, nursing was very different, often rigid and routine, sadly this was the expectation. Patients were looked at more statistically and less interpersonally. The author’s days were kept busy with acquiring vitals and handing out pills, often with basic staff-patient dialogue, aimed at a more basic assessment, and then passing along same to the psychiatrist. The highlight of the author’s day was meal time when the author could watch and interpret the candour of the patients without the presence of a magnifying glass on them. The author has also applied for 3 months to work in recreation activities. There the patients soared. They weren't so afraid to talk or show their passions, and there were a great many artists, intellects, gregarious personalities, athletes and those quiet and introverted. The author has learned more in those 3 months about the public and served, then the author has ever did working the actual nursing floor. Most of the entire author learned that psychiatric patients are people first. They may be anyone; even sometimes friends, family, colleagues, but they are person first. You can't realistically expect to walk into someone's life and ask them the most intimate questions of their psyche without first establishing relevant repoire and respect. The author once heard a colleague describing a patient as the schizophrenic in room 9. The author didn't like that term very much and decided to tell them then and there, that is found incredibly disrespectful. Apparently someone noticed, because it gave me a bit of reputation as an advocate. Back in 2006 with the advent of Tidal Model Nursing the author has got first glimpse of what it means to embrace the patient/client as a person foremost. It spoke to me of autonomy and to respect the individual as they ultimately know their limitations, experiences and tribulations better than anyone. The author has decided that she wanted to be a leader in her own area of education. She took numerous courses often with advancement, in such things as: SRAI (suicide risk), psychotropic medication and ultimately a 2 year distance psychiatric distance program through Douglas College. The LPN Mental Health Nursing Program focused on nursing practices like the nurse-patient relationship, interpersonal skills, nursing diagnosis, assessment, human emotions and stress for the patient and for the clinician. How we talk with and to our clients/patients has changed profoundly and that she is glad to say is for the better. With more dialogue comes acceptance and understanding so that we better support the cognitive, emotional and social aspects of the patient. She is also been fortunate enough to attend and speak at several conferences within my own country and internationally to support anti-stigma in Mental Health. She would have never dreamed such things at the start of my career. It has brought me to a much broader awareness and understanding of the plight of those with mental illness and their loved ones. It is bittersweet however, because my own family has been statistic themselves, yet she still believes in hope and that the will of the individual is far greater than that of the adversity.

Biography:

Ren VanderLind studies phenomena related to the experiences of college students with mental illness. She is currently working on her Doctorate in developmental education with a focus on literacy and is researching how stigma and resilience affect students with mental illness in terms of their identity development. Although her degree is within education, her research agenda focuses specifi cally on supporting students with mental illness in their academic pursuits and development of self-concept. She is an advocate for destigmatizing mental illness and opening social discussions of this important issue.

Abstract:

In a duoethnographic study, two college students with bipolar disorder were investigated for their experiences of being college students diagnosed with mental illness. Th rough qualitative inquiry, it emerged that both participants have diff ering experiences of stigmatization due to having a diagnosed mental illness. Th is stigmatization occurred both from internal and external sources and varied by participant and life-domain (e.g., academic versus personal life). Feelings of stigmatization were also found to be mediated by the student’s academic discipline, implying that some may be more open to issues surrounding mental illness than others. Another finding of note was that the participants demonstrated significant resilience in their management of symptoms while pursuing academics. Th is was oft en unrecognized by the participants, a type of unseen resilience that may indicate individuals with mental illness exhibit greater resilience than they perceive. Th is talk will cover the importance of stigma and resilience in the experiences of individuals with mental illness with a specifi c focus on college students. In addition to the duoethnographic data, autoethnographic data from my experiences as an individual with bipolar disorder will be used to further exemplify the complex nature of resilience and stigmatization that individuals with mental illness face, particularly in academia. If possible, research from a third study will be incorporated to add additional detail to the picture of stigma and resilience among college students with mental illness. Th is study examines students’ experiences of stigmatization and resilience as related to their mental illnesses and includes a larger dataset.

Biography:

Aboelezz Kalboush is an Egyptian Consultant Psychiatrist. He has received his Master’s degree in Psychiatry and Neurology from Ain-Shams University, Egypt in 2007, Arab Board in Psychiatry in 2007 and Egyptian Board in Psychiatry in 2008. He is the Head of Psychiatry Department in Al Noor Specialist Hospital, Saudi Arabia since June 2013. He is responsible for training of medical students (both undergraduates & postgraduates) in Psychiatry. He has participated as a speaker in international conferences in psychiatry beside his continuous educational activities directed to non-psychiatric doctors and health care staff to provide them with the updates in fi eld of psychiatry as they have an important midway role between the psychiatric patients and the psychiatrist. He works in parallel on two main goals: Exploring the neuro-biological basis of both the different psychiatric disorders specially the challenging ones and their psychotherapeutic treatments.

Abstract:

Introduction: Psychotherapy is evidenced to be as eff ective as pharmacological treatment in treating a wide range of psychiatric disorders including major depressive disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder and different anxiety disorders. Most of antidepressants have clear and well known mechanisms of action and cause specific brain changes. Regarding psychotherapy; it has been used eff ectively for decades without knowing a clear mechanism of action for it.
Objectives: This presentation will highlight the changes that the psychotherapy causes in the brain which mediates its treating effects; and how the change in minds of the patients (i.e., their thoughts) can cause changes in the function and more interestingly the structure of the brain cells themselves.
Methods: Critical review of various current and most updated literature on the topic.
Results: Psychotherapy can cause molecular changes on the level of the receptors and transporters of different neuro-transmitters. Brain function changes on the level of brain networks and circuits and brain physiological response to certain chemicals. Brain structure changes on the level of both grey matter and white matter.
Conclusions: Although still preliminary, the studies using neuroimaging for measuring change caused by psychotherapy will in the long run lead to a more understanding of how different psychotherapies work. Th is may lead to a development in which specific modes of psychotherapy can be designed to target specific brain circuits.

Biography:

Colin Pritchard is Britain’s longest Research Active Social Work Professor, an Emeritus Professor, School of Medicine, University of Southampton involved in psychiatric training of medical students and psychiatric trainees. His research is very cross disciplinary, publishing recently in British Journal of Neurosurgery-Social Work-Cancer, Scandinavian Journal Public Health and Journal of Social Work - Community Mental Health.

Abstract:

This is a journey the team has shared as we gave up established ideas about child neglect/abuse, which is challenging as we confront anxieties about adding to stigma surrounding mental health problems. Consequently, colleagues might also find this difficult. Based on recent and new research our thesis is that practitioners need to consider the child-development-protection and psychiatric interface in a new preventative and protection paradigm. Rather than consider separate psychiatric diagnoses, psychoses, depression, personality disorder, alcohol, substance abuse, we urge they are considered as an over-lapping mental health syndrome paradigm that can improve child development and protection against neglect/abuse. Evidence is that Child-Abuse-Related-Death (CARDs) assailant’s problems essentially psychological, although compounded by socio-economic factors the majority of assailants had mental health problems, psychosis or severe personality disorders: Neglect deaths are a minority. We show the mental health problems has a far higher death rate for young people than CARDS and challenge the concept of a neglect to abuse continuum at the extreme leads to CARD’s. High UK child mortality is linked to relative poverty which needs a greater societal/political response. Mental health syndrome paradigm is based on a normative child development perspective, focusing on the often ignored impact parental mental illness on child’s psychosocial development. Depression, suicidal behavior and mental health problems in adolescents and young adults are linked to history of adverse childhood, especially parental mental illness, but are ignored until the difficulties subsequently manifest themselves. Th e MHSP indicates we need a real integrated inter-agency holistic approach that is intergenerational to more
effectively enhance the child’s development, whilst making them safer.

Biography:

Mohammad Reza Dawoudi is a Data Com Engineer, Bioinformatician for nursing students and is the CEO of Finno Bio Stock Oy, championing the business of biomedical stock in Finland as well as a Manager of Research, Development and Innovation Lab in FBSC.

Abstract:

Diff erences in intelligence are the most signifi cant factor in explaining levels of social progress and development. One measure scientists use to determine diff erences in intelligence is Intelligence Quotient (IQ), which is derived from standardized tests de-signed to assess human intelligence. Individuals with IQ scores between 90 and 109 are considered average intelligence and those with scores of 89 to 80 are considered below average or dullness. In this study our analysis of the literature has assessed the level of Kurdish intelligence quotient. Th e area of Kurdish nation, located in four different countries includes Iran, Iraq, Syria and Turkey. Th e average IQ of Iranian people is 84, Iraqi people 87, Syrian people 83 and Turkey people is 90. Th ese numbers came from a work carried out from 2002 to 2006 by Richard Lynn, a British Professor of Psychology and Tatu Vanhanen, a Finnish Professor of Political Science, who conducted IQ studies in more than 80 countries. Based on this study, we estimate the average Kurdish IQ ranges between 83 and 90. Vanhanen and Lynn argue that IQ and the Wealth of Nations analyses the relation between national IQ scores and measures of economic performance. In this study, we aimed to assess the association between IQ (intelligence quotient) and neurocognitive, biological and genetics factors among Kurdish populations and then we drew inferences about the state of social progress and development of Kurdish societies and genetic characteristics based on a statistical pattern.

Biography:

Vishnukumar S is a dedicated Researcher with a strong background in health science especially in Pediatrics. He has expertise in evaluation and passion in improving the health and wellbeing. After obtaining his MBBS degree at Eastern University in 2012, he has obtained Postgraduate Diploma in Child Health in Sri Lanka. Currently he is following his MD in Pediatrics at Postgraduate Institute of Medicine, University of Colombo, Sri Lanka. He holds an appointment of Lecturer of Pediatrics at the Faculty of Healthcare Sciences, Eastern University, Sri Lanka. He is also a Member of the Sri Lanka Medical Council (SLMC), Sri Lanka Medical Association (SLMA), Young Scientist Forum (YSF), Perinatal Society of Sri Lanka (PSSL) and Nutritional Society of Sri Lanka (NSSL) where he contributes to the
functional platform.

Abstract:

Childhood overweight and obesity have dramatically increased throughout the world over last three decades largely due to increased food craving and lack of physical activity. Apart from the known physical comorbidities obesity has significant psychological impact on growing children and adolescents thus it receives great interest in psychological research. Obesity imposes the risk of stronger psychological strain to both the child and the parents as obesity is a highly visible disorder. These experienced problems fulfill the diagnostic criteria of psychiatric disorders in about 10-20% of the children and adolescents. Obese child and parents are thought to be responsible for the weight of the child. Th e child who looks diff erent among his peers is at increased risk of discrimination hence obese children are neglected while severely obese children are rejected by their peers. Obese children are facing social discrimination including teasing experiences, emotional problems such as depression or low self-esteem, school and functional restrictions and adverse eff ects on overall quality of life. There are consistent discriminations for obese people for education, employment and healthcare facility which are considered as three important area of life. Unraveling the relationship of the childhood obesity to psychological illness is important to recognize the impact of the disease for the development of effective primary, secondary and tertiary prevention strategies. From this work it is concluded that obese children have increased number of worse reported outcome in emotional and psychological health. Parents, teachers and clinicians should be made aware on the specific psychological impact of childhood obesity to target the effective interventions. Future studies should focus on the psychological impact of the childhood obesity to design the multifactorial interventional programs to overcome this health care burden.

Biography:

Frances A Maratos is a Reader in Emotion Science. Her main interests are concerned with emotion processing and well-being, including self-compassion selfcriticism, the role of attention processes in anxiety-related disorders and threat/emotional processing. To aid the comprehensive and robust investigation of research in these fields, over her 15 plus years researching emotion she has chosen to adopt an integrative approach and regularly uses a wide variety of experimental methods in her research.

Abstract:

There is growing evidence that focusing on the cultivation of compassion-based emotions has important effects on mental states and well-being, with research demonstrating compassion-focused therapy and compassionate mind training (CMT) is effective in clinical and non-clinical populations respectively. Very recently, CMT initiatives have begun to be embraced within the UK educational system. Yet no rigorous evaluation of these interventions within a school setting has been progressed nor is there a standardized format in which the intervention is delivered. Therefore, the purpose of the present work was to assess the feasibility of conducting CMT interventions in school settings as well as evaluate the potential effi cacy of such interventions. To this end, we provided all staff of a school specializing in the education of adolescents with social, emotional and behavioral difficulties, with a six session CMT intervention. The intervention included both educational aspects (e.g., emotional processing systems of the human brain and how/when these can be problematic) and specific exercises and practices (e.g., breathing exercises and imagery) to activate the parasympathetic nervous system and up-regulate positive soothing emotions. In evaluation, we adopted a mixed-methods approach. We took measures of well-being, including burn-out, anxiety, stress, depression, self-criticism and occupational self-compassion, pre and post the intervention. Additionally, to gain in-depth feedback concerning the actual CMT initiative we conducted a post intervention focus-group discussion with six staff members. In this talk, I will outline why compassion in school settings is potentially important, as well as overview the specifi c initiative staff undertook in the current work. I will further present the preliminary quantitative and qualitative results of the study, sharing our plans for the next phase of the research and inviting discussion.

Biography:

Annie M Temane is a Psychiatric Nursing Lecturer for seven years. She has a passion for supervising doctoral and masters’ candidates. She serves as a Research Ethics Committees Member and Ministerial Advisory Board Member on Mental Health. She has previously worked in various psychiatric health care settings and projects related to mental health. Her current interests are ethics and supervision and facilitating mental health of individual, groups and families.

Abstract:

Statement of the Problem: Mental health laws and policies are promulgated to safeguard the needs of psychiatric patients. It is a fundamental human right that psychiatric patients be treated in mental health services that are accessible and acceptable. Mental health care professionals are accountable for protecting the human rights of psychiatric patients. A recent incident in South Africa has appeared to infringe on the basic human rights of the provision of accessible and acceptable mental health services. One hundred psychiatric patients died due to hunger starvation, dehydration and lack of acceptable mental health services and being cared for by skilled mental health practitioners. Th e purpose of this paper is to investigate the ethical responsibilities of mental health practitioners towards their psychiatric patients.
Methodology & Th eoretical Orientation: A qualitative, descriptive design with an interpretative approach was utilized. Th is issue is addressed through document analysis of articles published between 2015 and 2016 in newspapers. In-depth individual interviews will be conducted with mental health care professionals in order to understand their ethical obligations towards psychiatric patients.
Conclusion & Significance: Mental health practitioners are bound by their oath taking to speak up when there are violations of human rights. When these rights are violated and they take no action to protect their psychiatric patients, it may seem that their silence is assent. Mental health professionals are not exonerated from being unethical sound towards caring for psychiatric patients in mental health services.

Biography:

Dr. Kaufui Vincent Wong, Life ASME Fellow, Life AIAA Assoc. Fellow Energy and the Environment. Renewable energy from the Wind, Water and the Sun (WWS). Renewable bioresources. Energy-Water-Food nexus and associated global issues. Decoupling of power generation from water. Climate change and its effects, both current and predicted, and mitigation at the local, national and worldwide levels; education, policies and devices. Drones and flight. Nanotechnology in the energy sciences, the environment and smart devices. Oil spill science, innovative oil boom systems, and environmental impact of spills. Groundwater transport and contamination – monitoring, modelling, predicting. Municipal solid wastes and medical wastes. Disposal, energy derivation and environmental impact. Health, nutrition and disease as they affect the human condition. Holistic view of human health, with nutrition and environmental factors influence factors.

Abstract:

This work strives to list the significant practices which are good for the body, practices which are especially good for the brain, as well as foods and nutrition which are especially good for the brain. The objective is to help researchers and promote brain health among the public. It is suspected that several of the practices may not be commonly known. The generation of discussion is healthy in the field of science, and this is a secondary function of this publication. Any omission of significant actions which can be easily adopted by anyone are regretted. This mini review also produced a listing of commonly available brain-healthy foods.
Below are some of the many ways to protect the health of one’s body, including the brain.
• Eat a balanced diet of fruits and vegetables, whole grains, proteins and fats.
• Exercise regularly and properly.
• Think of food as one of the two essentials for a healthy body; the other being regular and proper exercise. Practices Especially Good for the Brain
Below are some of the many ways to protect the health of one’s brain.
• Physically protect your brain e.g. wearing a helmet while on a motor cycle.
• Do not partake of mind-altering drugs, including marijuana.
• Teach others about this and other good practices and conduct of life.
• Be a goose, rather than a chicken. In other words, be a leader in matters of brain fitness rather than a follower.
Below are some of the major foods that could help protect the health of one’s brain.
• Eat dark chocolate.
• Keep one’s body hydrated at all times.
• Avoid the ‘weapons of mass destruction in the food world, eg. refined sugar, gluten
• Eat more fruits and vegetables in the ratio of 1:2.
• Eat a daily supplement e.g. multivitamin tablet suitable for your age group.

Biography:

Begum Engur has completed her BSc in Psychology in Istanbul with high honor and as an International Baccalaureate Scholarship student. During the undergraduate years, she has served as a volunteer and did Internships in various CAMHS settings. In addition to the works, she has completed numerous trainings, earned certificates from institutions worldwide in the same area of interest. She has completed her MSc in Child Adolescent Mental Health at King’s College London, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience. During MSc, she has completed her clinical placement as a Trainee Psychologist at South London and Maudsley NHS - Conduct, Adoption and Fostering Team; there she worked with adopted/fostered children having emotional, behavioral diffi culties, anxiety disorders, pervasive developmental disorders, attachment disorders, traumatic stress and got trained and worked on parenting intervention. Scholar’s Press published some of her academic works in various international journals and her MSc dissertation as a book.

Abstract:

Anorexia is, simply stated, starving yourself to death. It comes from an obsessive fear and a desperate desire to maintain control over that fear. The symptoms of anorexia nervosa include refusal to maintain the minimal normal body weight for corresponding height, body type, age and activity level, intense fear of weight gain or being fat, feeling fat or overweight despite dramatic weight loss, loss of menstrual periods in post pubescent women and girls. Along with excessive exercise, restrictive eating (or binge and purge type) and extreme concern with body weight and shape. Every holiday it was always the same. Endless, insipid observations about her appearance are how big she had become and how tall she was getting. Then last year that comment by her uncle, spoken in a whisper when no one else was around, about how much weight she had gained. She shivered in disgust every time she thought of it. The author was thinking about food or about what she had just eaten or what she was just about to get rid of every minute of every half hour of every day. It was all consuming. That is the obsession of an eating disorder. It takes over your life; it took over my life. The cost has been enormous. Waiting for the food to arrive is always the hardest part. The author was starving, because Ed never lets her to eat any other meal on days that she goes out to eat. All she can think about is food. The author cannot pay attention in the conversation with friends, she just nod her head in the right places. Th e main aim of this speech is to provide a deeper perspective into anorexia nervosa, a very serious mental disorder having the highest mortality rate among females, instead of giving book/lecture-based descriptions about what the disorder is.

Biography:

Dr. Mwansisya has a PhD from Central South University, People’s Republic of China- Majoring in Clinical Psychiatry and Mental Health that made him to obtained Doctorate of Medicine, He also has a Masters of Science in Mental Health from Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences (MUHAS) and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from University of Dares Salaam, Tanzania. Prior to joining Aga Khan University where he is working currently, he worked as the head of department of clinical nursing and community health at the University of Dodoma for 7 years and mental health specialist at Mirembe Psychiatric Hospital for 2 years. Dr. Mwansisya has extensive experience in clinical Psychiatry and mental health. To date, he published 38 peer reviewed articles in International SCI Journals in the area of neuroimaging and community services. He is a professional registered mental nurse in Tanzania with an excellent academic and community services.

Abstract:

Statement of the Problem: Age of onset has a significant influence on the course and overall outcome in schizophrenia. However, the similarities and differences in the pathophysiology of early-onset (EOS) and adult-onset schizophrenia (AOS) remain elusive. The purpose of this study was to characterize the convergent neurobiological abnormalities in EOS and AOS as compared to their respective healthy controls by using a multimodal MRI approach; combined VBM, DTI and fMRI techniques.
Methodology & Theoretical Orientation: Using Magnetic Resonance Imaging, we investigated the gray matter morphometry, white matter integrity and functional connectivity in 73 participants; 17 patients with EOS and 20 with AOS were compared with age-, sex-, and educational status - matched healthy controls (HC) (n=16 and 20, respectively).
Findings: Th e superior temporal gyrus (STG) showed convergent structural and functional impairment in in both EOS and AOS as compared to their respective HC. In a direct comparison between EOS and AOS, we found the EOS group to exhibit wider and increased FC of the STG, especially with the sensorimotor areas, default mode, visual recognition, subcortical and the auditory networks. The functional connections that exhibited hypo-connectivity in the EOS group were found to be correlated with clinical symptoms.
Conclusion & Significance: The variations in the structural and functional connectivity of this region in EOS and AOS subjects may explain the differences in psychopathology and treatment outcomes between these patients groups.

Biography:

Peter Zhukovsky specializes in neurobiology of compulsive disorders, with a focus on rodent models of psychostimulant addiction. His aims are two fold; firstly, to help identify vulnerability for drug abuse and thus help prevent it and secondly, to elucidate its key neural mechanisms to help fi nd treatments, both pharmacologicalmand behavioral. Using a recently developed rodent task measuring an aspect of cognitive flexibility, he combines a longitudinal approach with an ecologically valid self-administration paradigm to elucidate neural mechanisms of psycho stimulant addiction.

Abstract:

Statement of the Problem: Behavioral fl exibility is at the core of many disorders of compulsivity, including substance use disorder (SUD), obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and schizophrenia. Infl exible behavior has been found to be at the core of these disorders; yet the precise neural changes underpinning the behavioral impairments remain to be clarified. In addition, inflexibility could predispose to development of the disorder rather than arise as a consequence of it. We previously found that diminished serotonergic signaling is crucial to inflexible, perseverative behavior. The current objectives include testing the hypothesis that trait like variation in behavioral flexibility predicts SUD and exploring the neural mechanisms of compulsivity.
Methodology & Theoretical Orientation: Using rat models of human behavior, a carefully controlled study featuring baseline flexibility and anxiety assays, a long-access cocaine self-administration period and further flexibility assays was conducted. Neural changes in receptor availability, infl ammatory markers and neurotransmitter availability were examined exvivo using receptor autoradiography, qRT-PCRs and HPLC. Further, blood samples were analyzed for monoamine content and major serotonergic gene expression. Blood and brain biomarkers were linked to explore the translational role of blood serotonergic and dopaminergic measures in identifying addiction vulnerability.
Findings: The neural substrates of compulsive behavior include diff erent aspects of serotonergic circuits, including monoamine oxidase (MAO) activity, serotonin receptor availability and metabolism in prefrontal areas (OFC, mPFC), the striatum and dorsal raphe nuclei of the brainstem. Trait-like variation in compulsive behavior and anxiety has been found to predict subsequent escalation of drug taking along with impulsivity and other traits that were identified previously. Further, self-administration of cocaine resulted in differential changes in neuroinflammatory signals in prefrontal and striatal regions and was related to the changes in dopaminergic and serotonergic receptor binding.
Conclusion & Signifi cance: Identifying a predisposition to lose control over drug taking and seeking is crucial to developing interventions that help prevent substance abuse in the first place. Various personality traits, including impulsivity, anxiety and novelty seeking have been found to predict aspects of SUD and clarifying the neural substrates of these traits alongside their correlates in blood could prove vital to translational research seeking to identify the same vulnerabilities in humans.

Biography:

Bello Utoblo studied Mental Healthcare and obtained MSc in Mental Health. He is currently a Doctoral student at the School of Health and Community Studies in Leeds Beckett University, UK. He is keen on developing the understanding of the cause of schizophrenia and approaches to its recovery. He has built this current approach through exploration of the perceptions and experiences of male services users and their mental healthcare professionals within a community in Northern Nigeria.

Abstract:

Statement of the problem: Schizophrenia is a chronic and severe mental illness that affects over twelve million males worldwide. In Nigeria, estimates indicate that there are more males than females living with schizophrenia. Although, there have been studies on men and health in Nigeria, these have focused on sexual health. In contrast, men’s experience of schizophrenia and the role of gender in influencing their beliefs about recovery has not been studied. Th e purpose of this study is to explore the factors influencing men’s recovery from schizophrenia in northern Nigeria.
Methodology: Qualitative data obtained through in-depth interviews with, 30 male outpatients and 10 mental health professionals recruited through Nigerian psychiatric hospital outpatient clinics. Data were analysed for themes.
Findings: Participants in this study identified western medicine, traditional medicine, and family support as of significance to recovery from schizophrenia. The presence of gender flexibility within household members, where their contributions changed over time, was also a notion seen as influencing the men’s ability to become involved in recovery from the mental illness. In particular, providing for the family needs becomes a shared responsibility, where the departure from traditional gender expectations imposes fewer family hardships, thus aiding the men’s willingness to seek help, which rolls over to their recovery.
Conclusions & Significance: The influence of gender flexibility demonstrated in this study has implications for understanding men’s management of recovery from schizophrenia. Recommendations are made for gender transformative programs for the men and those involved in their care that would help engage participants in discussions relevant to facilitate change in gender expectations. Future research is needed to further explore what aspects of gender can impact on men’s mental health within the Nigerian and wider African context.

Figure 1: Emergent approach for men’s recovery from schizophrenia in Northern Nigeria