Mental Illness Among Us: A New Curriculum to Reduce Mental Illness Stigma Among Medical Students

• Published in: Academic psychiatry 2013-11, Vol.37 (6), p.385-391
• Main Authors: Aggarwal, Anuj K., Thompson, Maxwell, Falik, Rebecca, Shaw, Amy, O’Sullivan, Patricia, Lowenstein, Daniel H.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Anxiety Disorders; Attitude Measures; Attitudes toward Disabilities; Behavioral Sciences; Classification; Core curriculum; Course Descriptions; Curricula; Curriculum Development; Curriculum Implementation; Depression (Psychology); Emotional Disturbances; Health Services; Illnesses; Integrated Curriculum; Intervention; Medical Care Evaluation; Medical Education; Medical schools; Medical Students; Medicine; Medicine & Public Health; Mental Disorders; Mental Health Programs; Modeling (Psychology); Neurology; Neurosciences; Original Article; Peer Groups; Peer Teaching; Physicians; Pretests Posttests; Psychiatry; Psychotherapy; Resistance (Psychology); Schizophrenia; Scores; Social Bias; Social Distance; Stigma; Student Attitudes; Student Evaluation; Surveys; Well being
• ISSN: 1042-9670; 1545-7230
• DOI: 10.1007/BF03340074

Objectives Medical students have been shown to have high levels of psychological distress, including self-stigmatization and unwillingness to seek care. The authors hypothesized that a student-led curriculum involving personal mental illness experience, given during the first-year neuroscience course, and titled “Mental Illness Among Us (MIAU), ” would reduce stigma of mental illness. Method In 2010 and 2011, students completed voluntary pre- and post-MIAU surveys measuring attitudes regarding mental illness in relation to MIAU. Also, in 2011, the authors categorized topics mentioned in student responses to an open-ended, free-response question on the course final examination. Results Of 298 enrolled students, 250 submitted surveys that were matched pre- and post-intervention. Participants in the curriculum showed a significant difference in Social Distance, indicating an increased willingness to interact with individuals with mental illness, and a significant difference in the Mental Illness: Clinicians’ Attitudes (MICA) score representing a stronger agreement with positive statements regarding mental illness. The non-participants’ scores showed no changes in measures from pre-to post. Respondents most frequently reported that the neuroscience course prepared them to be a physician because it taught about compassion and the importance of treating the whole patient. Conclusion The results indicate that participation in MIAU leads to a decrease in stigmatization of mental illness and a greater sense of compassion among UCSF medical students. This finding is consistent with previous research suggesting social and cognitive congruence among peers and peer-teachers can result in meaningful learning experiences. MIAU may represent a sustainable model to supplement current systems to promote well-being of medical trainees.