E-learning in mental health

Proposal for a cooperative project with mediterranean and african partnership

Supported by President of Regione Autonoma della Sardegna by means of E.U. Founds

Promoters: University of Cagliari

(Department of Public Health, E-learning Unit, Department of Medical Sciences)

European commissary for Neighbourhood and Partnership, Benita Ferrero Waldner

Sardinian Region is the management autority of the multilateral programme “Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument for Mediterranean Area”.

This Programme was supported by the European Union in order to remove obstacles to effective Cross-Border Cooperation (CBC) along the external borders of the European Union. CBC should contribute to integrate a sustainable regional development between neighbouring border regions and harmonious territorial integration across the Community and with neighbouring countries. This aim can best be achieved by combining external policy objectives with environmentally sustainable economic and social cohesion.

Neighbourhood and Partnership Instrument for Mediterranean Area

• This Programme will offer opportunity

and support for cooperation at political level but also for cultural and scientific collaboration in the mediterranean area.

E-learning in mental health: the general background

Mental Health is a critical area worldwide: • 4 of main disability causes concern mental health

(mood disorders, schizophrenia, learning disabilities and drug consumption and addiction)

• 31% of all years lived with disability are due to mental illness.

• Mental health problems are important in every country, even those with high burdens of illness due to infectious diseases (WHO 2001)

E-learning in mental health: the general background

Priority areas for action in the Mediterranean Region : human rights, mental hospitals and community care, drug abuse, and reconstruction of the health care system in post war countries (WHO 2001)

E-learning

-Easy to meet: more difficulties for interactive

e-learning, very simple with “traditional” supports (CD)

-Possibility to deal with other experiences

-Possibility to learn with other experiences

-Sharing difficulties, challenges and successes

Culture, income and mental health services

Wealthy countries generally have more services to combat mental health problems than low income countries. In many low income countries there is typically one psychiatrist per population of 1.000.000, with no multidisciplinary team and few regular drugs. Given this mismatch, it is easy to conclude that there is little that psychiatry in developed countries can learn from poorer countries, but this is not the case. Services in low income countries are often greatly under-resourced, under strain, and leave most people with mental health problems with no care. But there are examples of different ways to treat or prevent mental illness from which high income countries can learn. Some are born from the ingenuity of necessity, others from cultural knowledge. We do not aim to idealise low income countries, to demonise high technology and psychiatric care, or to offer the stereotype of cohesive traditional communities as a panacea, which could undermine the development of appropriate services. There are examples that challenge the orthodox, make us pause to think, and offer rational models for provision of care that high income countries may consider useful (McKenzie 2004).

E-learning in mental health: the general background in Mediterranean and

African countries

A great number of people has been affected by conflict in the past two decades. This has resulted in a high prevalence of depression, post-traumatic stress disorder and anxiety. A number of innovative, culturally sensitive interventions have been developed to meet the mental health needs of the populations. For example the use of 'focusing' in Afghanistan, the Education for Peace Programme in Lebanon, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency's work with refugees in Gaza, life skills education in Iran and the training of professionals in Afghanistan. May be useful an easily educational package on these experiences.

E-learning in mental health: the background in Italy

Mental Health Care is not homogeneous:

Areas with high level of community care internationally acknowledged

Areas with large unmeet needs in people with mental health problems (see Kovess et al. 2006)

Sardinian region is making great challenge for changing mental health care system

ERGOS STUDY 1994/1995The need for care of people with schizophrenia in Europe

Sardinia Europe

- Clinical Unmeet 29% 21%

Needs

- Social Unmeet 61% 40%

Needs

SARDINIA NEW UNPUBLISHED DATA(Cagliari, Iglesias, Tempio, Sanluri, Lanusei, Isili)

Versus ERGOS 1994/1995

ERGOS New

- Clinical Unmeet 29% 26%

Needs

- Social Unmeet 61% 38%

Needs

Proposal for E-learning packagein mental health

Contents concerning “traditional” psychiatric educational programs (e.g. diagnosis, epidemiology, treatment of psychiatric diseases) with specific “culture bound terapies”

Modules that tell what happens in specific contests in mental health networks care and/or innovative solutions in mental health care

Potentiality to add new contributions in a constructivist way

Proposal for E-learning packagein mental health

Each lesson must include 10-15 multiple choice questions for self-evaluation

In the future the scientific committee may transform the package in a veritable master degree (with residential final evaluation according with availability of founds)

Users will be primary care professionals with interest in mental health

Proposal for management

Tasks of the promoting group

1) Agreement for the contents of the first package course

2) Build a scientific committee to manage the educational package, to refer for new contributions, to implement the use of the package

3) Production of the modules for the first package

(4-5 months)

3) Final meeting and start of the e-learning package

Proposal for agreement for the contest

-Basic approach in at least the main psychiatric traditional fields (mood, anxiety disorders, schizophrenia, drug abuse...) with traditional lessons (power point + tv shoots)...who make what??

-Video with some interesting contest (for example Trieste)

-Language?? (English with some contents in arab?)

Contribution for producing modules

-Support for non italian partners

-Support for translations

-Possibility to receive material and editing in Cagliari the contribution (alternative: organise few day production session for each collaborative centre not a final collaborating meeting)

Low level of interactivity

-In the first proposal/package low level of interactivity

-Forum

-Asking to the expert (in this first proposal coordination in Cagliari and collaboration of the centres, possible implementation with multicentric approach)

Proposal for the Agenda of the Meeting

-Sunday 11 March 2007: agreement on the project, building the working group, agreement on topics for the package

-Monday 12 March 2007 : knowledge on e-learning centre potentiality for editing lessons, modality to work with the platform

-Tuesday 13 March 2007 : media meeting, last accommodations

Afternoon: Landscapes of south west Sardinia?

Sunday 11 March 2007: agreement on the project, building the working group, agreement

on topics for the package

-E-learning in Mental Health Mediterranean project scientific committee (at least 1 psychiatrist or researcher in mental health for each partecipating center)

-E-learning Mediterranean project scientific informatic committee (at least 1 researcher on informatics or e-learning in at least each partecipating center)

-Managing director dr Cecilia Atzei

-Organisation committee (possible organisation reference in each collaborating center)

Sunday 11 March 2007: agreement on the project, building the working group, agreement on topics for the package

Hypothesis on topics:1-Introduction module: goals of the course, human rights and

mental health, mental health in the mediterranean area 2-Anxiety disorders3-Post Traumatic Stress Disorders and conflict and post conflict

mental health issues4-Mood disorders5-Schizophrenia and other non affective psychosis6-Dementia7-Alcool and drug abuse8-Work and mental health9-Video on mental health care systems

Sunday 11 March 2007: agreement on the project, building the working group, agreement on topics for the package

Hypothesis on topics:

1-Introduction module: goals of the course, human rights and mental health, mental health in the mediterranean area

Goal of the course: Mauro Carta (Cagliari)

Human rights and mental health: Giuseppe dell’Acqua (Trieste)

Mental Health in the mediterranean area (Contributions from all partecipants)

Sunday 11 March 2007: agreement on the project, building the working group, agreement on topics for the package

2-Anxiety disorders (Khadija Mchichi Alami, Nadia Kadri)3-Post Traumatic Stress Disorders and conflict and post

conflict mental health issues (Vera Danes)4-Mood disorders (Mauro Carta)5-Schizophrenia and other non affective psychosis (Oye

Gureje)6-Alcool and drug abuse (Elie Karam)7-Work and Mental Health (Rafik Garbi)8-Video on other contests or specific interventionOther Topics: Women and mental health, eating

disorders, dementia...

Proposal for the Agenda of the Meeting

March 12th, 2007

Program of the day:• 9am-11am (Introductory meeting and exercises)• 11am-11.20am (coffee break)• 11.20am-13pm (Surfing around Moodle platform)• 13pm-15.30pm LUNCH BREAK• 15.30pm-17pm (Experimenting Moodle resources)• 17pm-17.15pm (Coffee break)• 17.15pm (Conclusions)