A qualitative exploration of mental health knowledge among pediatric health professionals in the United Arab Emirates

BACKGROUND: Mental health literacy (MHL) is an essential competency for all healthcare professionals. In the United Arab Emirates, previous studies reported a low level of MHL among healthcare professionals working with vulnerable populations such as children and adolescents with chronic illnesses. Further in-depth exploration is necessary to build understanding of beliefs and knowledge about mental illness among pediatric health professionals. METHODS: Written narratives exploring mental health knowledge were collected from pediatric nurses and analyzed using content analysis. These written narratives were extracted from responses to open-ended questions embedded in a questionnaire completed as part of previous studies. The Standards for Reporting Qualitative Research were followed in reporting this study. RESULTS: The overarching theme that emerged from the data was that nurses struggled to negotiate the complexities of psychological distress and mental illness. Two overlapping sub-themes were identified: (1) professional knowledge was incomplete, confused, and lacking in clarity and (2) professional knowledge was impacted by cultural beliefs and stigma. A third sub-theme reflected how participants identified with others’ suffering and felt powerless to help themselves or others. Participants described stress and mental exhaustion. CONCLUSIONS: Participants’ narratives were characterized by struggles arising from insufficient knowledge, confusion, and deeply-held cultural and religious beliefs. Therefore, they were unable to resolve the conflict between professional knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs about mental illness and stigma arising from cultural and religious beliefs/attitudes. Culturally-specific education is needed for healthcare professionals that addresses contextual, cultural, and religious factors impacting on stigma while actively supporting the healthcare workforce and enabling access to mental health services.