Abstract
BackgroundChanging global health and development trends have resulted in a need for continued professional development (CPD) within the health and development sectors. In low-resource settings, where the need for training and CPD may be highest, there are significant challenges for disseminating information and skills. There is a need to improve mental health literacy and reduce levels of stigma about maternal mental illness. The Bettercare series of distance learning books provides a peer-based format for CPD. We aimed to evaluate the Bettercare Maternal Mental Health book as a format for CPD.AimThe aim of this study was to determine whether the Bettercare Maternal Mental Health book significantly improves knowledge and decreases stigma around mental health for care providers from the health and social development sectors.SettingOne hundred and forty-one participants (social workers, nursing students and health professionals) were provided with the Bettercare Maternal Mental Health book to study.MethodsBefore and after studying the book, the same multiple-choice knowledge test and the Mental Illness Clinicians’ Attitude Scale were used to assess cognitive knowledge and mental health stigma, respectively.ResultsParticipants’ knowledge showed a statistically significant (p < 0.001) improvement between the pre- and post-test results, for all six chapters of the book. However, participants’ attitudes towards mental illness did not show a statistically significant change between the pre- and post-test results.ConclusionWe found that this method of learning elicited significant improvement in mental health knowledge for care providers. Continued professional development policy planners and curriculum developers may be interested in these findings.
Highlights
Changing global health and development trends have resulted in a need for continued professional development (CPD) within the health and development sectors
We aimed to evaluate the changes in mental health knowledge and stigma in non-specialist health and social workers using the Bettercare Maternal Mental Health book as an innovative educational strategy for distance learning CPD
We found that this method of learning elicited significant improvement in maternal mental health knowledge for care providers in the health and social development sectors but was not effective at changing participants’ attitudes towards mental illness
Summary
Changing global health and development trends have resulted in a need for continued professional development (CPD) within the health and development sectors. More traditional forms of CPD include conferences and workshops,[3] with more recent initiatives including the use of social media platforms.[4] numerous challenges have been identified. These include juggling workload and time for study, inflexible education systems with scheduled lectures that do not take the work shift timetable into account and a gap between theory and practice.[1] Further, the uptake and impact of professional development is influenced by lack of relief cover, inability to take paid study leave and an unsupportive learning culture,[5] together with other constraints such as a lack of funding to support training initiatives and experienced trainers. We aimed to evaluate the Bettercare Maternal Mental Health book as a format for CPD
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