Thesis (MPhil)--Stellenbosch University, 2012. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Worldwide the stigma attached to psychiatric patients, psychiatric disorders, psychiatrists and the field of Psychiatry is of great concern. The stigmatising perceptions of medical practitioners and medical students towards psychiatric patients have a negative impact on effective treatment, considering the increasing burden psychiatric disorders are placing on communities and health systems.
Numerous efforts were attempted and recommendations made for destigmatising medical students' perceptions towards psychiatric patients. It was found that perception usually improved after a clinical rotation in Psychiatry, but the stigmatising perceptions mostly returned a year later.
The first clinical exposure to Psychiatry for medical students at the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, is during the fourth or fifth year of study. This rotation was revised in 2010 and a service-learning component added. The research question which consequently developed, is: What is the influence of a service-learning approach on destigmatising students' perceptions towards psychiatric patients?
The research followed a phenomenological school of thought in an interpretative paradigm with a qualitative-inductive approach. On the last day of a rotation students handed in their written reflections and an in-depth focus group interview was conducted. The focus group interviews were repeated a year later. Students' reflections and the transcribed texts were analysed. This served as the basis for conclusions from which recommendations were made.
It was found that students had stigmatising perceptions towards psychiatric patients before their first clinical rotation in Psychiatry. Directly after that students' perceptions were destigmatised to a greater extend. A year later non-stigmatising perceptions of understanding, acceptance, comfortableness, compassion, respect and responsibility were still present, although a few students experienced the limited return of stigmatising perceptions. Students attributed the positive changes to their service-learning experience in combination with the clinical placement at a psychiatric hospital with a friendly atmosphere and where they were exposed to patients not suffering from complex and extreme psychiatric disorders. The non-stigmatising perceptions a year after a clinical rotation in Psychiatry demonstrates the transformative value of service-learning. Service-learning is where meaningful and relevant service is rendered with and in the community, social responsiveness is purposefully emphasised and structured reflections are done to enhance academic learning.
As a result of this study medical schools worldwide can take cognisance that a service-learning approach made a significant contribution to the stained destigmatisation of medical students' perceptions towards psychiatric patients. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Stigma teenoor psigiatriese pasiënte, psigiatriese steurings, psigiaters en Psigiatrie as vakgebied is wêreldwyd ʼn groot bron van kommer. Medici en mediese studente se stigmatiserende persep-sies teenoor psigiatriese pasiënte het ʼn negatiewe impak op effektiewe behandeling, veral gesien in die lig van die groterwordende las wat die toename in psigiatriese steurings op gemeenskappe en gesondheidsisteme plaas.
Heelwat pogings is aangewend en aanbevelings gemaak om mediese studente se persepsies teenoor psigiatriese pasiënte te destigmatiseer. Daar is bevind dat persepsies gewoonlik verbeter direk na ʼn kliniese rotasie in Psigiatrie, maar dat stigmatiserende persepsies meestal binne ʼn jaar terugkeer.
Mediese studente aan die Fakulteit Geneeskunde en Gesondheidswetenskappe, Universiteit Stellenbosch, se eerste kliniese blootstelling aan Psigiatrie is tydens die vierde of vyfde studiejaar. In 2010 is dié rotasie hersien en ʼn diensleerkomponent bygevoeg. Die navorsingsvraag wat hieruit ontwikkel is, is: Wat is die invloed van ʼn diensleerbenadering op die destigmatisering van mediese studente se persepsies teenoor psigiatriese pasiënte?
Die navorsing het ʼn fenomenologiese denkrigting gevolg in ʼn interpretatiewe paradigma met ʼn kwalitatief-induktiewe benadering. Studente het skriftelike refleksies op die laaste dag van ʼn rotasie ingehandig en ʼn in-diepte fokusgroeponderhoud is gevoer. ʼn Jaar later is die fokus-groeponderhoude herhaal. ʼn Ontleding van studente se refleksies en die getranskribeerde tekste en gedoen. Dit het gedien het as basis vir die gevolgtrekkings waaruit aanbevelings gemaak is.
Daar is gevind dat studente voor hulle eerste kliniese rotasie in Psigiatrie, stigmatiserende persepsies teenoor psigiatriese pasiënte gehad het. Direk daarna was studente se persepsies grotendeels gedestigmatiseer. Na ʼn jaar was nie-stigmatiserende persepsies van begrip, aanvaar-ding, gemaklikheid, deernis, respek en verantwoordelikheid steeds teenwoordig, alhoewel stigma-tiserende persepsies tot ʼn mate by sommige teruggekeer het. Studente het die positiewe verande-ring toegeskryf aan die diensleerervaring in kombinasie met 'n kliniese plasing in die psigiatriese hospitaal waar ʼn vriendelike atmosfeer geheers het en waar daar blootstelling was aan pasiënte wat nie aan komplekse en ekstreme psigiatriese steurings gely het nie.
Die nie-stigmatiserende persepsies ʼn jaar na ʼn kliniese rotasie in Psigiatrie toon die transformatiewe waarde van diensleer. Met diensleer word sinvolle en relevante diens met en in die gemeenskap gelewer, doelbewuste klem word op sosiale verantwoordbaarheid gelê en ge-struktureerde refleksie word gedoen om beter akademiese leer te laat plaasvind.
Na aanleiding van hierdie studie kan mediese skole wêreldwyd kennis neem dat ʼn diensleer-benadering ʼn betekenisvolle bydrae gelewer het tot die volhoubare destigmatisering van mediese studente se persepsies teenoor psigiatriese pasiënte.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:sun/oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/71658 |
| Date | 12 1900 |
| Creators | Snyman, Isak Stefanus De Wet |
| Contributors | Smith-Tolken, Antoinette Rachelle, Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences. Centre for Health Professions Education. |
| Publisher | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Rights | Stellenbosch University |
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