Mental illness is fast becoming a leading cause of global disease burden, yet this aspect of public health remains highly neglected in Nigeria. The public relies on newspapers for diverse information needs and the way newspapers portray mental illness-related issues tends to sway public perception of such ailments. This study examined the level of media attention and prime discursive resources utilized by newspapers to depict mental illness-related issues from 2015 to 2019. Using a qualitative approach and ethnographic design, the study analyzed the manifest contents of three major Nigerian national newspapers selected through a multistage sampling technique. Data collection was done using a coding spreadsheet that reflected relevant content categories and units of analysis. Of the 920 health articles analyzed, only 79 (8.6%) articles discussed mental illness. Also, 84.8% of all mental illness-related articles were tucked in the inside pages of the newspapers and 58.2% of the stories were reported using the conventional straight news. The negative themes of suicide (36.7%) and substance abuse (32.9%) were the prime discursive resources that echoed in many of the analyzed articles. Overall, mental illness-related issues were grossly under-reported by Nigerian newspapers when compared to other health issues, and wrong media depiction of the problem remains a risk factor. Hence, Nigerian newspapers must strive toward setting better agenda that will actuate necessary policy actions from health stakeholders by providing adequate coverage and positive representation of mental illness-related issues.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
---|---|
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10755510 | PMC |
http://dx.doi.org/10.4081/jphia.2023.1527 | DOI Listing |
Schizophr Bull
January 2025
Department of Radiology, and Functional and Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu 610041, China.
Background And Hypothesis: Identifying biomarkers at onset and specifying the progression over the early course of schizophrenia is critical for better understanding of illness pathophysiology and providing novel information relevant to illness prognosis and treatment selection. Studies of antipsychotic-naïve first-episode schizophrenia in China are making contributions to this goal.
Study Design: A review was conducted for how antipsychotic-naïve first-episode patients were identified and studied, the investigated biological measures, with a focus on neuroimaging, and how they extend the understanding of schizophrenia regarding the illness-related brain abnormality, treatment effect characterization and outcome prediction, and subtype discovery and patient stratification, in comparison to findings from western populations.
J Psychosoc Oncol
January 2025
Department of Oncology, School of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
Purpose: Compare demographic, care provision, and health-related characteristics of individuals fulfilling multiple illness-related caregiving roles (i.e. multicaregiving) versus singular (cancer only) caregiving and investigate factors associated with caregivers' mental and physical functioning.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFPsychooncology
January 2025
Department of Psychiatry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA.
Objective: To evaluate the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary efficacy of Families Addressing Cancer Together (FACT), a web-based, individually tailored, psychoeducational intervention for parents with cancer to improve illness-related communication with their minor children.
Methods: Parents with stage I-IV solid tumors who had children ages 3-17 were randomized to 6 weeks of FACT versus waitlist control. Feasibility was assessed by rates of recruitment and retention.
Pac Symp Biocomput
December 2024
Department of Mathematics, University of Houston, Houston, TX 77203, USA.
Illness related brain effects of neuropsychiatric disorders are not regionally uniform, with some regions showing large pathological effects while others are relatively spared. Presently, Big Data meta-analytic studies tabulate these effects using structural and/or functional brain atlases that are based on the anatomical boundaries, landmarks and connectivity patterns in healthy brains. These patterns are then translated to individual level predictors using approaches such as Regional Vulnerability Index (RVI), which quantifies the agreement between individual brain patterns and the canonical pattern found in the illness.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFSoc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol
December 2024
University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada.
Purpose: Stigma cultures in healthcare settings are the organizational-level norms values, assumptions, physical façades, and practices that govern day to day activities and interactions. Aspects include poor quality of care, coercive care, a punitive and patronizing atmosphere, and disempowerment to make treatment decisions. To evaluate the effectiveness of interventions to reduce stigma cultures in healthcare settings, valid and reliable measures are needed.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!