Volume_6_Issue_1_Digest

1 TPC Digest A lthough the prevalence of mental disorders in Africa in general, and Malawi in particular, is a significant health problem, treatment remains a low priority and is often placed at the bottom of the public health care agenda. Developing communities in countries like Malawi have historically lacked opportunities for mental health training, skill development and capacity building, although mental health research supports the notion that better care management is achieved when people receive education, training and support to carry out the role of informal caregivers. Children and their families with mental health issues are too often invisible, voiceless and living at the margins of society. Moreover, they are rarely mobilized to advocate for themselves. In Africa, mental health receives less attention due to a plethora of problems with communicable diseases and malnutrition, and the contribution of mental distress to morbidity, as well as mortality, largely goes underappreciated. A large proportion of the population of Malawi does not receive mental health services for four basic reasons—first, few services are available ( resources and needs ); second, when services are sought out they are inadequate ( outcomes ); third, people often prefer self-care and traditional healers ( processes ); and lastly, stigma leads people to hide their mental health problems ( processes and outcomes ). These reasons are all relevant to school children and communities in that mental health can no longer be ignored as a building block of population health as well as social, educational and economic development. The National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC) International developed the Mental Health Facilitator (MHF) curriculum as well as an implementation method that is making an impact in Malawi. The MHF program utilizes a population-based curriculum and has been implemented in Malawi for the past 7 years. This study demonstrates that the MHF program addresses many mental health concerns and is making a modest impact in Malawi. Ethnographic investigators explored how 40 MHF stakeholders have experienced the MHF program. This transdisciplinary program is a 30-hour training in community mental health that focuses on fundamental helping skills, identification of stress, distress and mental disorders, and appropriate community referral and follow-up. Results indicated four interrelated themes representing participants’ beliefs about their experiences with the training, including the curriculum’s responsiveness to the Malawian context, the availability and limitations of resources, the processes involved, and a variety of identified outcomes. Implications for community implementation and future directions are identified. Melissa Luke, NCC, is an Associate Professor at Syracuse University. J. Scott Hinkle, NCC, is the Editor of The Professional Counselor. Wendi Schweiger, NCC, is a Vice President at NBCC International, Greensboro, NC. Donna Henderson, NCC, is a Professor at Wake Forest University. Equal authorship is intended. This article is dedicated to Professor Kenneth Hamwaka, Executive Director of the Guidance, Counselling and Youth Development Centre for Africa and Vice Chancellor of the Africa University of Guidance, Counselling and Youth Development. Correspondence can be addressed to J. Scott Hinkle, 3 Terrace Way, Greensboro, NC 27403, hinkle@nbcc.org . 1 TPC Digest