Social distance towards the mentally ill persons among medical undergraduates in Uyo, Nigeria. The impact of mental health education and training on its magnitude

Abstract

Background: A high level of stigmatizing attitudes and social distance towards persons with mental illness has been reported in the medical community. Objective: This study was conducted to assess the social distance of medical undergraduates towards persons with mental illness and the impact of medical education and training on its magnitude. Methods: This was a two stage cross-sectional descriptive study conducted on a sample of medical undergraduates. Participants were interviewed using an adapted version of the questionnaire developed for the “World Psychiatric Association Program to Reduce Stigma and Discrimination Because of Schizophrenia”, and Bogardus social distance scale. Results: A total of 86 respondents participated in the study in both pre-clerkship and post-clerkship phase. The average age of respondent was 23.86 ± 4.2 years, consisting of 52.3% males and 47.7% females. The mean social distance score decreased significantly from 2.68±1.02 at the pre-clerkship period to 2.03±1.05 at the post clerkship period (p=0.006). The social distance was significantly associated with perception of dangerousness. Conclusion: The social distance towards the mentally ill was significantly reduced by mental health education and training. Health educational approaches will be helpful in reducing stigma and social distance towards the mentally ill persons.

Keywords

• Mental illness
• medical undergraduates
• social distance
• Nigeria