Five-year outcomes of western mental health training for Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioners
Abstract Background There are increasing expectations for primary care practitioners to deal with mental health problems. In Hong Kong, 15 % of the general public consult Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) practitioners regularly for their primary health care needs. This study investigated the 5-yea...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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BMC
2016-10-01
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| Series: | BMC Psychiatry |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12888-016-1080-6 |
| _version_ | 1811237505974927360 |
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| author | Tai Pong Lam Ki Yan Mak Kwok Fai Lam Hoi Yan Chan Kai Sing Sun |
| author_facet | Tai Pong Lam Ki Yan Mak Kwok Fai Lam Hoi Yan Chan Kai Sing Sun |
| author_sort | Tai Pong Lam |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Background There are increasing expectations for primary care practitioners to deal with mental health problems. In Hong Kong, 15 % of the general public consult Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) practitioners regularly for their primary health care needs. This study investigated the 5-year outcomes of a western mental health training course for TCM practitioners in Hong Kong. Method Structured questionnaire surveys were conducted to compare the TCM practitioners’ confidence and engagement in mental health care before and after the Course. The data collected during 2011–2015 were analyzed. Results A total of 151 TCM practitioners returned both pre- and post-Course questionnaires, with a response rate of 95.6 %. After the course, there were significant increases in the proportions of participants being confident of recognizing patients with psychological problems (62.9 % before the course vs 89.4 % after), diagnosing common mental health problems (47.7 % vs 77.5 %), and managing them (31.2 % vs 64.3 %). Overall, 66.9 % of the participants reported some increase in their confidence in recognizing patients with psychological problems, diagnosing or/and managing patients with common mental health problems. Qualitative responses illustrated the major improvements were increased awareness of mental symptoms, better understanding of classification of mental disorders and management approaches. On the other hand, barriers included difficulties in understanding medical terms in English, consultation time constraints, and a lack of formal referral system to psychiatrists. Conclusions The Course has positive impact on TCM practitioners in handling mental health patients. The findings are useful for designing similar trainings on complementary and alternative medicine practitioners in other countries. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-12T12:24:40Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-a5eff97358144250acfd3526e22bb94a |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1471-244X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-12T12:24:40Z |
| publishDate | 2016-10-01 |
| publisher | BMC |
| record_format | Article |
| series | BMC Psychiatry |
| spelling | doaj.art-a5eff97358144250acfd3526e22bb94a2022-12-22T03:33:12ZengBMCBMC Psychiatry1471-244X2016-10-011611810.1186/s12888-016-1080-6Five-year outcomes of western mental health training for Traditional Chinese Medicine practitionersTai Pong Lam0Ki Yan Mak1Kwok Fai Lam2Hoi Yan Chan3Kai Sing Sun4Department of Family Medicine and Primary Care, The University of Hong KongMental Health Association of Hong KongDepartment of Statistics and Actuarial Science, The University of Hong KongDepartment of Family Medicine and Primary Care, The University of Hong KongDepartment of Family Medicine and Primary Care, The University of Hong KongAbstract Background There are increasing expectations for primary care practitioners to deal with mental health problems. In Hong Kong, 15 % of the general public consult Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) practitioners regularly for their primary health care needs. This study investigated the 5-year outcomes of a western mental health training course for TCM practitioners in Hong Kong. Method Structured questionnaire surveys were conducted to compare the TCM practitioners’ confidence and engagement in mental health care before and after the Course. The data collected during 2011–2015 were analyzed. Results A total of 151 TCM practitioners returned both pre- and post-Course questionnaires, with a response rate of 95.6 %. After the course, there were significant increases in the proportions of participants being confident of recognizing patients with psychological problems (62.9 % before the course vs 89.4 % after), diagnosing common mental health problems (47.7 % vs 77.5 %), and managing them (31.2 % vs 64.3 %). Overall, 66.9 % of the participants reported some increase in their confidence in recognizing patients with psychological problems, diagnosing or/and managing patients with common mental health problems. Qualitative responses illustrated the major improvements were increased awareness of mental symptoms, better understanding of classification of mental disorders and management approaches. On the other hand, barriers included difficulties in understanding medical terms in English, consultation time constraints, and a lack of formal referral system to psychiatrists. Conclusions The Course has positive impact on TCM practitioners in handling mental health patients. The findings are useful for designing similar trainings on complementary and alternative medicine practitioners in other countries.http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12888-016-1080-6Mental healthPostgraduate trainingPsychiatristsTraditional Chinese Medicine practitionersWestern medicine |
| spellingShingle | Tai Pong Lam Ki Yan Mak Kwok Fai Lam Hoi Yan Chan Kai Sing Sun Five-year outcomes of western mental health training for Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioners BMC Psychiatry Mental health Postgraduate training Psychiatrists Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioners Western medicine |
| title | Five-year outcomes of western mental health training for Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioners |
| title_full | Five-year outcomes of western mental health training for Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioners |
| title_fullStr | Five-year outcomes of western mental health training for Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioners |
| title_full_unstemmed | Five-year outcomes of western mental health training for Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioners |
| title_short | Five-year outcomes of western mental health training for Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioners |
| title_sort | five year outcomes of western mental health training for traditional chinese medicine practitioners |
| topic | Mental health Postgraduate training Psychiatrists Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioners Western medicine |
| url | http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s12888-016-1080-6 |
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