Mental health training for health workers in Africa: a systematic review.

Journal: The lancet. Psychiatry

Volume: 3

Issue: 1

Year of Publication: 2017

Affiliated Institutions:  School of Medicine, King's College London, Guy's Campus, London, UK. Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, De Crespigny Park, Denmark Hill, London, UK; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA. Electronic address: Helen.jack@kcl.ac.uk. Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, De Crespigny Park, Denmark Hill, London, UK. Department of Psychiatry, University of Zimbabwe College of Health Sciences, Mount Pleasant, Harare, Zimbabwe. Department of Psychology, Women's University in Africa, Education Services Centre, Mount Pleasant, Harare, Zimbabwe. School of Medicine, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA.

Abstract summary 

Commitment to building mental health treatment capacity in Africa is increasing but little agreement exists on strategies to train health workers on mental health or evaluation of training efforts. We systematically reviewed published literature on interventions to train health-care workers in Africa on mental health. 37 studies met our inclusion criteria. Training outcomes focused on changes in knowledge and attitude, with few studies evaluating skill and practice and only two studies measuring clinical outcomes. Quality of study methodology was generally not high, with scarce follow-up data and use of control cohorts. Existing studies provide examples of many training and evaluation strategies, but evidence to draw conclusions about the efficacy of different training techniques is inadequate. Key knowledge gaps include development and testing of innovative educational strategies; development of standardised, competency-based learning objectives and outcome measures; and training that facilitates implementation of integrated mental health systems. African institutions need to be empowered to do research in these areas to encourage the development of best practices for the continent.

Authors & Co-authors:  Liu Germaine G Jack Helen H Piette Angharad A Mangezi Walter W Machando Debra D Rwafa Chido C Goldenberg Matthew M Abas Melanie M

Study Outcome 

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Statistics
Citations : 
Authors :  8
Identifiers
Doi : 10.1016/S2215-0366(15)00379-X
SSN : 2215-0374
Study Population
Male,Female
Mesh Terms
Africa
Other Terms
Study Design
Study Approach
,Systemic Review
Country of Study
Publication Country
England