The magnitude and correlates of internalized stigma among people with mental illness attending the outpatient department of Amanuel Mental Specialized Hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

INTRODUCTION: Internalized stigma is an ongoing process of psychological assimilation of the community labels towards mental illness, in which people with mental illness (PWMI) gradually lose their current positive belief and confidence in themselves and their future wishes. It affects the treatment and help-seeking behavior which leads to poor drug adherence, social marginalization, unemployment, socio-economic devastation, and poor quality of life for PWMI. Therefore, the current study aimed to determine the magnitude and correlates of high internalized stigma among People with Mental Illness (PWMI) attending the outpatient department of Amanuel mental specialized hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. METHODS: Institution based cross-sectional study was conducted from March 03 to March 28, 2019. A consecutive sampling technique was used to select an estimated 406 study participants. Internalized stigma was assessed using a 29 Item Internalized Stigma of Mental Illness (ISMI-29) tool. Data were entered and analyzed using SPSS 22 software. A Binary logistic regression model was fitted to identify correlates of internalized stigma. An adjusted odds ratio (AOR) with a 95% confidence interval was computed to determine the strength of association and the level of significance was declared with a p-value <0.05. RESULT: Of the total study participants, 388 respondents agreed to participate in the study giving a response rate of 96%. The magnitude of high internalized stigma among the study participants was 61.3% (95% CI: 58.2, 64.4). Poor social support (AOR = 1.973; 95%CI = 1.189, 3.27) and being unemployed (AOR = 2.87, 95% CI = 1.192–6.931) were significant correlates of high internalized stigma among PWMI. CONCLUSION: Overall, around three in five PWMI experienced high internalized stigma. Poor social support and being unemployed were significant correlates of high internalized stigma. Large scale community-based study supplemented by qualitative design is highly recommended to identify additional correlates of internalized stigma and understand perspectives of PWMI.