SynthesisJournal of global health2019
Awareness challenges of mental health disorder and dementia facing stigmatisation and discrimination: a systematic literature review from Sub-Sahara Africa.
Synthesis in Journal of global health, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 29 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
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Who cites it
29 citing papers in PubMed, 57 citations in OpenAlex.
- Patterns of and Factors Associated With Mental Health Service Utilization Among School-Going Adolescent Girls in Southwestern Uganda: A Latent Class Analysis.The Journal of adolescent health : official publication of the Society for Adolescent Medicine · 2023Trial
- Neuropsychiatry genetics in Africa.Nature communications · 2026Review
- Toward culturally responsive dementia recognition and assessment in Sub-Saharan Africa: lessons from empirical research in West Africa.The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences · 2026Article
- Mental health literacy and stigma among culturally and linguistically diverse adolescents in Australia: a comparative study.Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology · 2026Article
- Community perceptions and barriers to brain health and dementia care in rural communities in Cameroon: a qualitative study.BMC neurology · 2026Article
- Challenges and coping strategies of family caregivers of older adults with dementia in Africa: a systematic review and meta-synthesis.BMC nursing · 2025Article
- Factors Associated with Acceptance of Screening and Knowledge About Dementia in Older Adults in China: A Cross-Sectional Study.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Health and well-being of older adults in rural and urban Rwanda: epidemiological findings from a population based cross-sectional study.Journal of global health · 2025Article
- Biomarkers of neurodegeneration across the Global South.The lancet. Healthy longevity · 2024Review
- Exploration of family caregivers' experiences on coping in dementia care in Ghana: a phenomenological study.BMC psychology · 2024Article
- "If You Need a Psychiatrist, It's BAD": Stigma Associated with Seeking Mental Health Care Among Obstetric Providers in Ghana.International journal of women's health · 2024Article
- A response to criticism of the global mental health movement. How polarization can be overcome in theory and in west African social psychiatric practice.Global mental health (Cambridge, England) · 2024Review
- Challenges in evaluating cognitive impairment in diabetics in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.Dementia & neuropsychologia · 2024Article
- Nigeria mental health law: Challenges and implications for mental health services.The South African journal of psychiatry : SAJP : the journal of the Society of Psychiatrists of South Africa · 2024Review
- Stigma and infectious diseases in Africa: examining impact and strategies for reduction.Annals of medicine and surgery (2012) · 2023Review
- Navigating unique challenges and advancing equitable care for children with ADHD in Africa: a review.Annals of medicine and surgery (2012) · 2023Review
- A call for clinical trial globalization in Alzheimer's disease and related dementia.Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association · 2023Article
- Mental healthcare services in Kenyan counties: a descriptive survey of four counties in Western Kenya.BMC health services research · 2023Article
- The need for a tailored national dementia plan in Ethiopia: A call for action.Frontiers in neurology · 2023Review
- Misconception of dementia-related disorders in Sub-Saharan Africa.Frontiers in neurology · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundMental health disorders (MHD) are leading causes of disabilities. Awareness of MHD in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is crucial to both health care professionals and general community if those affected by MHD are to be allowed to live in dignity and be socially included, rather than being treated as outcasts or witches, as is presently the case. Therefore, this review aims to map and summarise the extent to which awareness of MHD and dementia in SSA challenges stigmatisation issues.
methodsA systematic review was conducted using electronic databases (PubMed, CINAHL, PsycINFO). A content analysis of selected studies was performed. Findings on awareness challenges and stigmatisation were identified and categorised.
resultsA total of 230 publications were screened, 25 were selected for this review. The results demonstrate strong supernatural beliefs influencing peoples' perceptions of diseases. These perceptions promote stigmatising attitudes towards people with MHD and dementia. The education level correlated with stigmatising attitudes, whereby higher educated people were less likely to distance themselves socially from people with MHD and from people living with dementia (PwD). Astonishingly, even people educated in health issues (eg, nurses, medical practitioners) tended to have strong beliefs in supernatural causations of diseases, like witchcraft, and hold negative attitudes towards MHD and PwD.
conclusionsThis review provides some evidence on the influence of traditional beliefs on MHDs in SSA. Those beliefs are powerful and exist in all segments in SSA-communities, promoting superstitious perceptions on diseases and stigmatisation. Awareness and education campaigns on MHD are absolutely mandatory to reduce stigmatisation.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.