Abstract
BackgroundNepal is representative of Low and Middle Income Countries (LMIC) with limited availability of mental health services in rural areas, in which the majority of the population resides.MethodsThis formative qualitative study explores resources, challenges, and potential barriers to the development and implementation of evidence-based Comprehensive Community-based Mental Health Services (CCMHS) in accordance with the mental health Gap Action Programme (mhGAP) for persons with severe mental health disorders and epilepsy. Focus Group Discussions (FGDs, n = 9) and Key-Informant Interviews (KIIs, n = 26) were conducted in a rural district in western Nepal. Qualitative data were coded using the Framework Analysis Method employing QSR NVIVO software.ResultsHealth workers, general community members, and persons living with mental illness typically attributed mental illness to witchcraft, curses, and punishment for sinful acts. Persons with mental illness are often physically bound or locked in structures near their homes. Mental health services in medical settings are not available. Traditional healers are often the first treatment of choice. Primary care workers are limited both by lack of knowledge about mental illness and the inability to prescribe psychotropic medication. Health workers supported upgrading their existing knowledge and skills through mhGAP resources. Health workers lacked familiarity with basic computing and mobile technology, but they supported the introduction of mobile technology for delivering effective mental health services. Persons with mental illness and their family members supported the development of patient support groups for collective organization and advocacy. Stakeholders also supported development of focal community resource persons to aid in mental health service delivery and education.ConclusionHealth workers, persons living with mental illness and their families, and other stakeholders identified current gaps and barriers related to mental health services. However, respondents were generally supportive in developing community-based care in rural Nepal.
Highlights
Nepal is representative of Low and Middle Income Countries (LMIC) with limited availability of mental health services in rural areas, in which the majority of the population resides
The burden of mental disorders has significantly increased by 37·6% at the duration of 20 years between 1990 and 2010 accounting for 7.4% of disability adjustment life years (DALY), and 22.9% of all years lived with disability [2]
According to World Health Organization (WHO), more than 13% of the global burden of disease is due to neuropsychiatric disorders and almost three quarters of this burden lies in low-income and middle-income countries [LMICs] [6]
Summary
Nepal is representative of Low and Middle Income Countries (LMIC) with limited availability of mental health services in rural areas, in which the majority of the population resides. According to World Health Organization (WHO), more than 13% of the global burden of disease is due to neuropsychiatric disorders and almost three quarters of this burden lies in low-income and middle-income countries [LMICs] [6]. Nepal is an LMIC that has suffered through a 10-year long conflict (Maoist insurgency), which further increased the mental health burden. Since most LMICs do not routinely conduct their own population-based surveys, several studies on mental health in the general population during and after the Maoist insurgency in Nepal have shown high prevalence rates of mental illness [7,8,9,10]. A recent study revealed a 22.7% prevalence of anxiety and 11.7% prevalence of depression in Nepal’s population [11]
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