Mental health service norms in South Africa

Bibliography: p. 297-335.This thesis includes four main aspects. Firstly, a situation analysis was conducted of current national public sector mental health services in South Africa, using nine service indicators. Secondly, a model was developed for estimating the mental health service needs of people with psychiatric conditions in a local South African population. Thirdly, a set of service norms was proposed for each of the nine service indicators, informed by data from the situation analysis. Fourthly, a practical user-friendly planning manual was developed, using the situation analysis, model and norms to provide guidelines for the planning of mental health services by local and provincial planners

Staff/bed and staff/patient ratios in South African public sector mental health services

Objectives. To document staff/bed and staff/patient ratios in public. sector mental health services in South Africa.Design. Cross-sectional survey.Method. Aquestionnaire was distributed to provincial mental health co-ordinators requesting numbers of full-time equivalent (FTE) staff who provide mental health care at all service levels; numbers of psychiatric beds; and numbers of patients who attend outpatient departments, clinics and community health centres. The information was supplemented by consultations with mental health coordinators in each of the nine provinces.Results. The staff/bed ratio for the country as a whole was 0.3 staff per bed. For the provinces, the staff/bed ratios were as follows: Eastern Cape 0.30, Free State 0.50, Gauteng 0.22, KwaZulu-Natal 0.34, Mpumalanga 0.89, North-West 0.27, Northern Cape 0.26, Northern Province 0.26, and Western Cape 0.59. For the country as a whole, the staff/bed ratios for each category of staff were as follows: total nursing staff 0.25, occupational therapists 0.01, occupational therapy assistants 0.01, social workers 0.01, community health workers 0.00, psychologists 0.00, intern psychologists 0.00, psychiatrists 0.00, psychiatric registrars O.Dl, and medical officers 0.00. The ratio of ambulatory psychiatric service staff to daily patient visits (DPV) for the country as a whole was 0.6.Conclusions. Staff/bed ratios in South African mental health care are low relative to developed countries. Staff/DPV ratios highlight both the need to develop ambulatory care personnel for mental health care, and problems associated with monitoring the delivery and utilisation of mental health services within an integrated health system at primary level

Staff/population ratios in South African public sector mental health services

Objective. To document existing staff/population ratios per 100 000 population in South African public sector mental health services.Design. Cross-sectional survey.Method. A questionnaire was distributed to provincial mental health co-ordinators requesting them to provide the number of full-time equivalent (FTE) staff responsible for mental health care at all service levels. These data were supplemented by consultations with mental health coordinators in each of the nine provinces. Population data were obtained from preliminary findings of the 1996 census.Results. The overall staff/population ratio per 100 000 population was 19.5, with an interprovincial range of 5.7 - 31.5. The staff/population ratios per 100 000 population for selected personnel categories (with the interprovincial ranges in brackets) were as follows: total nursing staff 15.6 (4.4 - 28.4), occupational therapists 0.4 (0.1 - 0,8), occupational therapy assistants 0.5 (O.O - 1.3), social workers 0.5 (0.1 - 0.9), community health workers 0.3 (0,0 - 1,0), psychologists 0.3 (0.0 - 0.7), intern psychologists 0.3 (0.0-- 0.7), psychiatrists 0.4 (0.1 - 0.8), psychiatric registrars 0.4 (0.0 - 1.2), medical officers 0.4 (0.2 - 1.3), pharmacists 0.2 (Q.1 - 1.1), and pharmacy assistants 0.2 (0.0 - 0.6).Conclusions. Relative to international settings, there are low levels of mental health staff provision in South Africa, and there is a large amount of variability between provinces. There are considerable challenges in monitoring mental health staff resources within an integrated health service

Integration of mental health into primary care in low- and middle-income countries: the PRIME mental healthcare plans.

This supplement outlines the development and piloting of district mental healthcare plans from five low- and middle-income countries, together with the methods for their design, evaluation and costing. In this editorial we consider the challenges that these programmes face, highlight their innovations and draw conclusions

Predictors, moderators, and mediators of psychological therapies for perinatal depression in low- and middle-income countries:A systematic review

Psychological interventions have demonstrated effectiveness in treating perinatal depression (PND), but understanding for whom, how and under what conditions they improve symptoms in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) is largely unknown. This review aims to synthesise current knowledge about predictors, moderators and mediators of psychological therapies to treat PND in LMICs. Five databases were searched for studies quantitatively examining the effects of at least one mediator, moderator or predictor of therapies for PND in LMICs. The review sampled seven publications evaluating findings from randomised trials conducted in Asia and sub-Saharan Africa. The small number of included studies limited generalisability of findings. Analyses of trials with acceptable quality suggest that patient activation in Pakistan and social support in both India and Pakistan may mediate psychotherapy effectiveness, higher baseline depression severity may moderate treatment response in South Africa, and shorter depression duration at baseline may moderate intervention response in India. This review highlights current gaps in evidence quality and the need for future trials exploring PND psychotherapy effectiveness in LMICs to follow reporting guidelines to facilitate appropriate predictor, moderator and mediator analyses

Barriers to the participation of people with psychosocial disability in mental health policy development in South Africa: a qualitative study of perspectives of policy makers, professionals, religious leaders and academics

BACKGROUND: This paper outlines stakeholder views on environmental barriers that prevent people who live with psychosocial disability from participating in mental health policy development in South Africa.METHOD:Fifty-six semi-structured interviews with national, provincial and local South African mental health stakeholders were conducted between August 2006 and August 2009. Respondents included public sector policy makers, professional regulatory council representatives, and representatives from non-profit organisations (NPOs), disabled people's organisations (DPOs), mental health interest groups, religious organisations, professional associations, universities and research institutions. RESULTS: Respondents identified three main environmental barriers to participation in policy development: (a) stigmatization and low priority of mental health, (b) poverty, and (c) ineffective recovery and community supports. CONCLUSION: A number of attitudes, practices and structures undermine the equal participation of South Africans with psychosocial disability in society. A human rights paradigm and multi-system approach is required to enable full social engagement by people with psychosocial disability, including their involvement in policy development

Guest Editorial

Intellectual disability in South Africa: Addressing a crisis in mental health service

The association between neighbourhood-level deprivation and depression: evidence from the south african national income dynamics study

BACKGROUND: Depression contributes substantially to the burden of disease in South Africa. Little is known about how neighbourhoods affect the mental health of the people living in them. METHODS: Using nationally representative data (N=11,955) from the South African National Income Dynamics Study and the South African Indices of Multiple Deprivation (SAIMD) modelled at small-area level, this study tested associations between neighbourhood-level deprivation and depression, after controlling for individual-level covariates. RESULTS: Results showed a significant positive association between neighbourhood-level deprivation and depression using the composite SAIMD (β = 0.31 (0.15); p=0.04) as well as the separate deprivation domains. Living environment deprivation (β =0.53 (0.16); p=0.001) and employment deprivation (β = 0.38 (0.13); p=0.004), respectively, were the two most salient domains in predicting this relationship. CONCLUSIONS: Findings supported the hypothesis that there is a positive association between living in a more deprived neighbourhood and depression, even after controlling for individual-level covariates. This study suggests that alleviating structural poverty could reduce the burden of depression in South Africa

Validation of the 10-item Centre for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D-10) in Zulu, Xhosa and Afrikaans populations in South Africa

Abstract Background The 10-item Centre for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale (CES-D-10) is a depression screening tool that has been used in the South African National Income Dynamics Study (NIDS), a national household panel study. This screening tool has not yet been validated in South Africa. This study aimed to establish the reliability and validity of the CES-D-10 in Zulu, Xhosa and Afrikaans. The CES-D-10’s psychometric properties were also compared to the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), a depression screening tool already validated in South Africa. Methods Stratified random samples of Xhosa, Afrikaans and Zulu-speaking participants aged 15 years or older (N = 944) were recruited from Cape Town Metro and Ethekwini districts. Face-to-face interviews included socio-demographic questions, the CES-D-10, Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), and WHO Disability Assessment Schedule 2.0 (WHODAS). Major depression was determined using the Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview. All instruments were translated and back-translated to English. Construct validity was examined using exploratory factor analysis with varimax rotation. Receiver Operating Characteristics (ROC) curves were used to investigate the CES-D-10 and PHQ-9’s criterion validity, and compared using the DeLong method. Results Overall, 6.6, 18.0 and 6.9% of the Zulu, Afrikaans and Xhosa samples were diagnosed with depression, respectively. The CES-D-10 had acceptable internal consistency across samples (α = 0.69–0.89), and adequate concurrent validity, when compared to the PHQ-9 and WHODAS. The CES-D-10 area under the Receiver Operator Characteristic curve was good to excellent: 0.81 (95% CI 0.71–0.90) for Zulu, 0.93 (95% CI 0.90–0.96) for Afrikaans, and 0.94 (95% CI 0.89–0.99) for Xhosa. A cut-off of 12, 11 and 13 for Zulu, Afrikaans and Xhosa, respectively, generated the most balanced sensitivity, specificity and positive predictive value (Zulu: 71.4, 72.6% and 16.1%; Afrikaans: 84.6%, 84.0%, 53.7%; Xhosa: 81.0%, 95.0%, 54.8%). These were slightly higher than those generated for the PHQ-9. The CES-D-10 and PHQ-9 otherwise performed similarly across samples. Conclusions The CES-D-10 is a valid, reliable screening tool for depression in Zulu, Xhosa and coloured Afrikaans populations