Lee Yang Jae, Mbabazi Rita, Jevremov Ondine, Nakaweesi Shakira, Brodey Ella, Wykoff Jason, Sivakumar Roshan, Kazungu Rauben, Ssekalo Ibrahim, Rosenheck Robert, Tsai Alexander C
Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA.
Empower Through Health, Iganga, Uganda.
BJPsych Open. 2025 Jul 8;11(4):e146. doi: 10.1192/bjo.2025.10066.
Mental illnesses constitute a large and escalating portion of the global burden of disease, particularly in low- and middle-income countries like Uganda. Understanding community perceptions towards mental illness is crucial for developing effective interventions.
To explore beliefs about the perceived causes and treatment of common mental illnesses (depression, anxiety, alcohol use disorder) and suicidality in rural eastern Uganda.
Qualitative study using 31 in-depth interviews and 4 focus group discussions with healthcare workers, community health workers, community leaders and general community members in Buyende District, Uganda. Vignettes were used to depict mental illnesses to elicit perceptions, and data were analysed using the framework method.
Two main themes emerged: perceived causes and treatment of mental illness. Participants identified three primary perceived causes: psychosocial (predominantly financial stress), biological and supernatural. Community support was most frequently endorsed as a perceived effective treatment, followed by biomedical interventions and alternative therapies.
This study identifies common beliefs regarding the causes and perceptions of mental illness in rural Uganda. The predominant focus on financial stressors as a cause of mental illness, coupled with strong emphasis and belief in the effectiveness of community-based support as treatment, highlights the need for context-specific mental health interventions.
精神疾病在全球疾病负担中占比很大且呈上升趋势，在乌干达等低收入和中等收入国家尤为如此。了解社区对精神疾病的看法对于制定有效的干预措施至关重要。
探讨乌干达东部农村地区对常见精神疾病（抑郁症、焦虑症、酒精使用障碍）和自杀倾向的认知病因及治疗方法。
采用定性研究方法，对乌干达布延德区的医护人员、社区卫生工作者、社区领袖和普通社区成员进行了31次深入访谈和4次焦点小组讨论。通过案例描述来呈现精神疾病，以引出相关看法，并运用框架法对数据进行分析。
出现了两个主要主题：精神疾病的认知病因和治疗方法。参与者确定了三个主要的认知病因：心理社会因素（主要是经济压力）、生物因素和超自然因素。社区支持最常被认为是一种有效的治疗方法，其次是生物医学干预和替代疗法。
本研究确定了乌干达农村地区对精神疾病病因和认知的常见看法。将经济压力源作为精神疾病的一个病因的主要关注点，以及对基于社区的支持作为治疗方法的有效性的强烈强调和信念，凸显了针对具体情况的心理健康干预措施的必要性。
