Chima Teddie, Mkwinda Esmie, Machaya Tendai
Library, Research and Information Resource Centre, Saint John of God College of Health Sciences, Mzuzu, Malawi.
Nursing Department, Saint John of God College of Health Sciences, Mzuzu, Malawi.
J Multidiscip Healthc. 2023 Aug 28;16:2513-2526. doi: 10.2147/JMDH.S425614. eCollection 2023.
Psychosocial counselling is vital for addressing mental health challenges in Malawi, a low-income country in sub-Saharan Africa. However, there is a shortage of qualified mental health professionals, including Psychosocial counsellors. The Saint John of God College of Health Sciences aims to produce competent graduates in psychosocial counselling, but there is a lack of information on the quality of graduates and their ability to meet employer expectations. This qualitative study aimed to explore employers' feedback on psychosocial counselling graduates' performance in selected healthcare facilities in Malawi.
This qualitative approach employed an explorative research design. Eighteen participants were selected purposefully from ten healthcare facilities across three regions of Malawi. They were interviewed independently using a semi-structured interview guide. The data were analysed thematically using content analysis approach.
The study reveals the assigned responsibilities of psychosocial counselling graduates, including providing HIV/AIDS therapeutic services, individual and group counselling, crisis intervention, and coordinating referrals. Employers recognize the graduates' competence in communication skills, empathy, theoretical knowledge, and professionalism. However, some weaknesses were identified, such as difficulties in maintaining boundaries, limited knowledge of health-related terms, and a lack of proactivity. Suggestions for improvement include teaching professionalism, incorporating health-related terms in the curriculum, following up with graduates, continuing the practicum aspect, establishing partnerships, and expanding training in evidence-based practices.
The study explored employer feedback on psychosocial counselling graduates from Saint John of God College of Health Sciences in Malawi. The study to identified strengths, areas for improvement, and recommendations were made to improve the Psychosocial counselling academic programme. Implementing them can improve graduates quality and mental health outcomes in Malawi.
心理社会咨询对于应对撒哈拉以南非洲低收入国家马拉维的心理健康挑战至关重要。然而，包括心理社会咨询师在内的合格心理健康专业人员短缺。上帝之约翰健康科学学院旨在培养胜任的心理社会咨询专业毕业生，但缺乏关于毕业生质量及其满足雇主期望能力的信息。这项定性研究旨在探索雇主对马拉维选定医疗机构中心理社会咨询专业毕业生表现的反馈。
这种定性方法采用探索性研究设计。从马拉维三个地区的十个医疗机构中有目的地挑选了18名参与者。使用半结构化访谈指南对他们进行独立访谈。采用内容分析法对数据进行主题分析。
该研究揭示了心理社会咨询专业毕业生的指定职责，包括提供艾滋病毒/艾滋病治疗服务、个体和团体咨询、危机干预以及协调转诊。雇主认可毕业生在沟通技巧、同理心、理论知识和专业精神方面的能力。然而，也发现了一些弱点，如难以保持界限、对健康相关术语的了解有限以及缺乏主动性。改进建议包括教授专业精神、在课程中纳入健康相关术语、对毕业生进行跟进、延续实习环节、建立伙伴关系以及扩大循证实践方面的培训。
该研究探索了马拉维上帝之约翰健康科学学院心理社会咨询专业毕业生的雇主反馈。该研究确定了优势、改进领域并提出了建议，以改进心理社会咨询学术项目。实施这些建议可以提高马拉维毕业生的质量和心理健康成果。
