Free Essay. Mental Health Problems Among Immigrants in the UK.

In this paper, the main question that will be determined is the impact of the strategies that are adopted by the government in its move to manage the mental health issues among the Caribbean and Black communities in the United Kingdom. Details on the prevalence levels of mental health issues will also be highlighted. Mental health issues is a major problem among the Caribbean and the Black Africans in the United Kingdom and the fact that there exist disparities on the way that the problem is handled among the various communities is an indication that necessary measures need to be adopted if the right solution is to be realized. The main areas that will be addressed will be the prevalence of the mental health issues among the Caribbean and the Black communities in the United Kingdom. There will also be a review of the impact of the measures that have been adopted by the authorities towards tackling the mental health problem. Mental health problems are a major issue that affects many people around the world, and it is often caused by disorders, as well as, mood changes. The mental health problem can be depicted in different ways, such as depression, eating disorders, and schizophrenia and anxiety disorders. In the United Kingdom, the Caribbean and the Black African societies form part of the group that is usually affected by the problem, and the authorities have implemented various procedures that they usually desire to use with a move to eliminate the problem from the society (Semlyen, King, Varney and Hagger-Johnson 2016, 67).

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Background and Rationale

Based on article titled One in four people have been diagnosed with a mental illness, a study was done in the United Kingdom involving 5,000 adults, and it was found that around 25% of the people in this region experience mental health issues at a given point in their lifetime (Reynolds, 2017). A significant portion of the society thinks that the issue is mainly caused by the lack of willpower and self-discipline. The study found that around 18% of the adults had mental illness issues though they were not diagnosed. Depression is the common diagnoses made in addition to the phobias, anxiety, schizophrenia and eating disorders among other related illnesses (Reynolds 2017). The living background was noted to be among one of the notable factors that led to the prevalence of the mental health issues in the United Kingdom. People that were living in low-income backgrounds were likely to be diagnosed with the illness in comparison to the people in high-income backgrounds. Around 27% of men in low-income backgrounds in comparison to 15% in high-income areas and 42% of women in comparison to 25% are likely to be affected by the issue (Reynolds, 2017). The patterns were noted in the different categories like serious mental illnesses, mental disorders, drug and alcohol dependence which are the other factors that trigger the mental illnesses among the various communities living in the United Kingdom. The problem has been made worse by the issue of stigma arising, and a good number of study participants claimed they have fears on whether they can trust women who had been diagnosed with the illness as baby sitters. The issue of attitude that is directed towards the mental illness is another factor that causes differences in the way that the problem exists in society (Holden et al. 2014, 57). The people who are in the low-income areas are likely to be less sympathetic towards the patients meaning that the chances of the victims getting treated are low. In high-income regions, the patients are usually taken to the healthcare settings once the signs of the problem are detected, and this tends to reduce the prevalence of the problem. One of the strategies that have been taken by the authorities with the move to help solve the problem has been undertaking the mental health campaigning, and this has led to the shift on the way of recognizing and undertaking the mental illness issue (Arday 2018, 167). Some of the campaigns that have been used include the Time to Change. Other studies have been conducted regarding this topic, and statistical evidence has been provided to enable the researcher to make conclusions.

Discrimination and the public stigma on matters related to the mental problems are likely to affect people that are suffering from the disease. When the level of public stigma is high, there is the likelihood of the victim and the society in general experiencing a rise in self-stigma, employment issues, increases in cases of suicide issues, reduction on the number of persons that are seeking for help on matters regarding the treatment of mental issues among other adverse issues. All these factors trigger a rise in the health inequalities in the society, and this is based on factors like religious affiliation, gender or ethnic background (Wallace, Nazroo and Becares 2016, 1297). The Time to Change is one of the largest programs in the United Kingdom that is aimed at finding a solution to the issue of the mental illness discrimination among the minority groups, such as the Caribbean and black Africans.

In an article titled Effect of the Time to Change anti-stigma campaign on trends in mental-illness-related public stigma among the English population in 2003-13: an analysis of survey data, a study was done to determine the effect of one of the campaigns that were undertaken in managing the mental problems. According to the author, a study was done, and the data used to determine the effectiveness of the campaign was for the period 2003 to 2013 and the details provided were regarding the support for the community care, tolerance, as well as, the attitude items that were related to the exclusion and prejudice (Evans-Lacko, Corker, Williams, Henderson and Thornicroft 2014, 123). The number of persons involved in the study every year was 1,700 people, an increase in the positive attitudes on the issue of prejudice and exclusion after the program were detected as shown below. It is an indication that the campaign process led to the realization of positive and expected outcome for it helped in improving attitudes held by society towards the people who were suffering from the illness. However, the author notes that the positive attitudes held in the society are likely to deteriorate at the times when the anti-stigma programs are not available or in cases of economic hardships.

The topic on the impact of the strategies adopted by the United Kingdom authorities regarding the handling of the mental illness patients of the Caribbean and African descent is in line with the topic of study in various ways. The research process makes it possible to understand the prevalence of the problem in modern day society. Additionally, it makes it possible to understand the measures that have been taken by the government regarding managing the issue among the various ethnic societies (Aggarwal, Pieh, Dixon, Guarnaccia, Alegria and Lewis-Fernandez 2016, 203). The social, economic and financial background have been identified to have an influence on the way mental issues are managed and the possibility of the society playing a role in managing them. The measures that can be adopted to help resolve the problem can only achieve the desired target is identity, its prevalence and the major factors that are triggering its existence (Mindell et al. 2014, 1137). Therefore, it is important to understand the benefits that the topic will have on the topic under discussion. The reason why I am interested in this topic is to know the impact of the treatment strategies that are adopted in the United Kingdom. The impact can either be negative or positive, and there is a need to understand how the adverse outcomes will be managed. It is not logical to solve a problem and rather than realizing a positive outcome of 100%, another problem can be created (Johl, Patterson and Pearson 2016, 742). Having an understating of the facts that are associated with the mental health issues among the Caribbean and African communities in the UK will be critical in finding a solution to the matter at hand.

In most of the cases, it is expected that the measures that are adopted in ending the healthcare inequalities lead to positive outcome among the Caribbean and the black Africans based in the United Kingdom. When the measures are implemented in the right way, the authorities will realize the desired goals, but adequate resources need to be used for the process is to achieve the desired goals. The prevalence of the problems in these two communities is high, and this is triggered by various factors, such as depression and the difficulties in life that are due to economic and financial problems.

Aims and Objectives

The study aim is knowing the impact of government strategies in handling the mental health issues, and this is in the Black Africans and Caribbean communities that are based in the United Kingdom. What needs to be achieved with this study is have an understanding of the impacts that arise from the strategies taken by the UK authorities in their move to manage the mental health issues among the Caribbean and black Africans in the country. Knowing the prevalence of the problem in the region will be critical in understanding the measures to take and handle the problem in the right way. The study objectives are

Understanding the prevalence of mental issues among the Caribbean and the black Africans communities in the United Kingdom

1. The need to make an explanation of the factors that are associated with the problem among the stated communities
2. The impact of the strategies that are undertaken by the United Kingdom authorities in managing the problem
3. Make an analysis of the effects of mental challenges among the Caribbean and the black African societies.

The highlighted aims and objectives of the study are realistic, and they can be achieved through undertaking research. They can be determined based on facts and figures, making it possible to realistically analyze the mental issues prevalence and impacts of the strategies.

Methodology

Secondary research will be used in determining the data and information that is pertaining to the topic under study. The literature review process involves making use of the works that have been done by other researchers and the information that they have compiled regarding the topic. The strengths of this method of research is that it encourages and leads to deep learning, and makes it possible to make an assessment of the student's knowledge and understanding. It also assists in making an assessment of the various cognitive levels, and whenever the right procedures, practices and supervision are made, there is the possibility of making lifelong learning meaning that the topic under study will be thoroughly analyzed. Useful resources can be easily determined for this makes it possible to collect the right information and details for use in making conclusions on the topic under study. The critical and analytical skills are enhanced, and this is through the process of making identification of the various research works that they are using in facilitating the study.

The weakness of the literature review process includes the fact that students may lack access to some of the details that they are researching.