Stigma, as defined by the Oxford English dictionary, is a symbol of degradation associated with a particular person or circumstance. In mental health, stigma refers to the judgemental attitude and prejudices to individuals who have mental illnesses—labelling them as nothing more than the disease. People living with mental illnesses are amongst the most stigmatized groups in the society. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), mental health is a state of well being where individuals are able to cope with normal stresses, work productively, and able to contribute to the community. In this paper, the different elements of mental health stigmatization including the history, prevalence, and the Canadian effort of addressing the issue Training programs for nurses were created to ensure that persons who are mentally-ill were properly cared for. Although the program was called “caring for the insane”, proper caring for mentally-ill persons was finally in the nursing curriculum. The advanced nursing degree program was funded by the National Mental Health Act of 1946— the first legislation to provide funds for research and improved community service for persons with mental illness. More funding to support and continue the research in the field of mental health became available in 1949 when the National Institute of Mental Health was established. (Womble, 2015) In 1953, the National League for Nursing recommended the incorporation of psychiatric nursing in all nursing programs to minimize the stigmatization of the mentally- ill persons. Due to these political and social influences, the change in the community became visible and the roles of psychiatric nurses were improved. Numerous steps were taken to enhance the treatment methods to gain improved conditions for persons with mental The campaign is called Elephant In The Room—it is designed to raise funds and awareness towards mental health— displaying a blue elephant to symbolize how individuals care about the wellness of others and letting them feel that it is safe to talk about mental illness, without the fear of being judged or stigmatized. This organization also has other anti-stigma campaigns such as The Hurting Professions: Lawyers in Crisis, Mental health: Start talking to stop stigma, Coming Out: Edmontonians Living with Depression and
As medical advances are being made, it makes the treating of diseases easier and easier. Mental hospitals have changed the way the treat a patient’s illness considerably compared to the hospital described in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.
The stigma and negative associations that go with mental illness have been around as long as mental illness itself has been recognized. As society has advanced, little changes have been made to the deep-rooted ideas that go along with psychological disorders. It is clearly seen throughout history that people with mental illness are discriminated against, cast out of society, and deemed “damaged”. They are unable to escape the stigma that goes along with their illness, and are often left to defend themselves in a world that is not accepting of differences in people. Society needs to realize what it is doing, and how it is affecting these people who are affected with mental illness.
Mental health patients were considered innately inferior and treated as the weaker portion of the human race due to the prevailing dominant theory of Social Darwinism in the 1800s. They were put in mental asylums, where conditions had deteriorated substantially from earlier in the century. (Floyd) The public’s interest about the unsatisfactory care of the mentally ill, championed by Dorothea Dix, led to some reforms, such as higher medical standards, more oversight into asylum practices, and more research into mental health. (Floyd) Nevertheless, the status of the mentally ill did not elevate much higher, and by the 1890s the repeated failure of asylum therapy convinced most that insanity and mental illness was incorrigible. Finding no alternatives, however, patients continued to be sent to asylums to attempt to cure them as much as to isolate them from the rest of society. (Roberts) Unfortunately, people also began to fear the proliferation of the mentally ill. When sterilization became considered, unrealistic, more, cheaper asylums were built as a means of segregated them and preventing an increase in their numbers. (Roberts)
Stuart, G. W. (2009). Principles and Practice of Psychiatric Nursing (9th ed. pp 561). St. Louis, MO: Elsevier Mosby.
This article was written by several well educated professionals in the nursing field. The article appears in a peer reviewed nursing journal that covers topics in psychiatric and mental health nursing that has a 37-year history. The sources history, along with the use of various references from other professional sources establish the journal entries
The discussion of mental health is slowly being brought to the social surface to create a more inclusive society for those dealing with a mental illness. However, those with a mental illness are continuously being affected by stereotypes, prejudice and discrimination by those who simply don’t comprehend the complexity of the human brain (Glaser, G.2017). As more people become mental health activist, they are exposing the plethora of issues surrounding the overall mental and physical stability of those who are negatively affected by the social construct of what it means to be normal.
Throughout her presentation, she explains how public stigmas, once again, cause label avoidance pushing many who need help away from treatment. She then goes on to explain how these stereotyped behaviors cause discrimination towards people with a mental illness from employment to housing which only leads to the creation of more stigmas. Finally, she states how the impact of stigmas is associated with the reduction of self-esteem, overall poor health, and problems with interpersonal relationships (Willits). By using this presentation I am able to connect what we have learned about mental health stigmas to my article. First off, for example, Morris explains how psychiatric units invoke people to imagine a frightening place where insane patients are strapped down and poked and prodded for care (Morris). This stereotypical idea relates to how Willits described general stereotypes associated with mental illness such as crazy and dangerous (Willits). On top of that, Willits explained how these stigmas have negative consequences for patients (Willits). This relates to Morris’s explanation on how the stigma around institutions has caused these units to shut down forcing many people to be homeless or live in jail
Responses to Mental Health Stigma Questions: "The Importance of Social Desirability and Data Collection Method." Canadian Journal of Psychiatry. Mar. 1, 2012 -. Vol. 57, No. 3.
Rather than preparing graduates in education or consulting as previous graduate nursing programs had done, this program educated psychiatric-mental health nurses as therapists with the ability to assess and diagnose mental health issues as well as psychiatric disorders and treat them via individual, group, and family therapy (ANA, 2014). Thus, the Psychiatric Mental Health Clinical Nurse Specialist (PMH-CNS), one of the initial advanced practice nursing roles (Schmidt, 2013), was born. After Community Mental Health Centers Act of 1963 led to deinstitutionalization of individuals with mental illness, PMH-CNSs played a crucial role in reintegrating formerly institutionalized individuals back into community life (ANA, 2014). PMH-CNSs have been providing care in a wide range of setting and obtaining third-party reimbursement since the late 1960’s. In 1974 a national certification for PMH-CNSs was created (APNA, 2010). Subsequently, PMH-CNSs began to be granted prescriptive privileges in the Pacific Northwest in the late 1970s, that practice has now spread to 37 states and the District of Columbia (APNA,
In the nineteenth century the United States had established hospitals to house and care for the chronically ill and mentally ill. Several individual states assumed responsibility for mental hospitals in the 1980’s. At the beginning of the twentieth-century mental health treatments proved to have limited efficacy. Many of these patients received custodial care in state hospitals. New psychiatric medications were developed and introduced into state mental hospitals in 1955 as a result of the National Institutes of Mental Health (NIMH).The medicines that were developed brought new hope and addressed some of the symptoms of mental disorder. In 1963, President John F. Kennedy enacted the Community Mental Health Centers Act. This accelerated deinstitutionalization.
For many decades the mentally ill or insane have been hated, shunned, and discriminated against by the world. They have been thrown into cruel facilities, said to help cure their mental illnesses, where they were tortured, treated unfairly, and given belittling names such as retards, insane, demons, and psychos. However, reformers such as Dorothea Dix thought differently of these people and sought to help them instead. She saw the inhumanity in these facilities known as insane asylums or mental institutions, and showed the world the evil that wandered inside these asylums. Although movements have been made to improve conditions in insane asylums, and were said to help and treat the mentally ill, these brutally abusive places were full of disease and disorder, and were more like concentration camps similar to those in Europe during WWII than hospitals.
Close to six million Canadians live with mental illness; let alone the thousands that are undiagnosed. Mental illness has made big headlines in the news in the recent years. The people suffering from mental illness have been faced with discrimination a caused by a stigma towards them. Mental illness can be caused by many different factors whether they are psychological or environmental. Although only twenty percent of Canadians personally experience mental illness in their lifetime, it affects everyone in their lives. Many of the people suffering from mental illness live their lives in silence because of the stigma attached to the illness. They would rather nobody know about their condition than face the stigma and discrimination of the public. Society has come a long way from a hundred years ago when they would use trepanation. Trepanation is a primitive method used to heal head injuries; they truly believed that carving a hole in ones skull would release any mental injuries the patient had. A decade ago people suffering from mental illness were treated as if they were less than others. Now a days, people suffering from mental illness are not treated as poorly as before, they have larger support group than before, and society is more understanding of mental illness now. However, there is still much room for improvement.
In the past, nursing was not considered a career. It was the women’s job to care for the sick. Care of the sick took place at their homes. Sending the sick to hospitals was considered a last resort. Hospitals were viewed as poor houses because of their high death rates, poor hygiene, and lack of infection control. (Balch). Today nursing is viewed completely different thanks to the contribution of nursing theorist, such as: Florence Nightingale, Dorothea Dix, Lavinia Dock, Mary Nutting, Dorothea Orem, Abraham Maslow, to name a few. Nursing has evolved from being a simple occupation to an important profession. A profession
In the article Issues and Controversies says, "Throughout most of human history, people with mental illness were ostracized, isolated, and persecuted." ( Infobase,1) This belief system can give causation of mental illness in different cultures and such influences in a community will always be in a negative manner. Various societies struggle with the notion of mental health. The standards of every culture believe to be considered normal, natural, or healthy. These views lead to disagreements about the causes, diagnosis, and the treatment of the disorders. Many people with mental problems are discriminated against because of their mental disorder. Mental illness and stigma refers to the view of the person with mental illness as having undesirable traits. Stigma leads to negative behavior, stereotyping, and discriminatory behavior towards the person with mental health issues. This stigma causes the affected person to experience denial or shame of their condition. Perceived stigma can result in the patient being scared to seek help. Stigma can be divided into two perspectives, public and self stigma. Upadhyay says, "Public stigma occurs when the general
There are many ways in which the mentally ill are degraded and shamed. Most commonly, people are stated to be “depressed” rather than someone who “has depression”. It is a common perception that mental illnesses are not a priority when it comes to Government spending just as it is forgotten that most mental health disorders can be treated and lead a normal life if treatment is successful. The effect of this makes a sufferer feels embarrassed and feel dehumanized. A common perception is that they should be feared or looked down upon for something they have not caused. People experience stigma as a barrier that can affect nearly every aspect of life—limiting opportunities for employment, housing and education, causing the loss of family ...