Emmanuel Obimah, Council of Deans of Health 150 Student Leader, chairs an interactive session for health professionals to discuss African and Afro-Caribbean views of mental health.
By Mr Shamim Quadir (Senior Communications Officer), Published
On Thursday 9 March 2023, the School of Health & Psychological Sciences hosted an event for nurses and other health professionals to discuss African and Afro-Caribbean views of mental health, including their own experiences of mental health practice.
The session was structured around a talk delivered by Audley Graham, Head of the Division of Mental Health and Learning Disabilities at London South Bank University, and Fellow of the Council of Deans of Health. The event was organised and chaired by Emmanuel Obimah, Council of Deans of Health 150 Student Leadership Fellow and Postgraduate Mental Health Nursing student at City, University of London.
In his talk, Graham spoke of his previous experience working in clinical practice on mental health wards in the UK, including how he sometimes witnessed a lack of cultural sensitivity toward patients from ethnic minority backgrounds from his British colleagues. This included a lack of awareness of the importance of praying to Muslim patients and their families, and the vocalisation of the views of some families of African patients regarding what caused their family member’s illness. He also shared the every-day prejudice he faced as a black, Jamaican nurse. For example, some white patients associated having black stools with being treated by black nurses.
Graham stressed that cultural sensitivity needs to improve from both the UK healthcare establishment and those from African and Afro-Caribbean cultures. However, he maintained that the focus needs to be upon the establishment understanding that when it comes to people's beliefs and values it takes time to influence them. He shared that education is key, but that change happens slowly. Graham suggested that it is better to ‘nudge’ people, to entice them, and show them the benefits of what your perspective offers them. As opposed to trying to ‘drag’ them, which does not work.
The group then broached why people from black communities may be hesitant to accept the positions of the western health establishment, particularly with regard to its historical exploitation of them. Discussion included the Tuskegee Study, which began in 1930’s Alabama, and recruited African American men to a syphilis study without their informed consent. It did not offered them penicillin for the disease when it became the treatment of choice in the US.
The group discussed how mistrust of the establishment could be seen in black communities up to present. This included the mention of research that suggests a lower uptake of the COVID-19 vaccine by black Londoners relative to people who identify as white British, which the authors argued was driven by mistrust.
Discussion also included whether racism in the healthcare professions had improved over the years. Views shared included that of people being less openly racist, but still having not yet ‘decolonised their own minds’.
One participant remarked upon visiting family in Africa in a rural setting, with no hospitals, or formal education system, and the challenge of expressing western ideas of mental health to them within that context.
Michelle Ellis is Associate Dean for Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion at the School, who sponsored and supported the event.
Reflecting on the interactive session, she said:
The event is aligned with the commitment of the School of Health & Psychological Sciences to the Athena SWAN Charter, a framework which is used across the globe to support and transform gender equality within higher education (HE) and research. Do look out for future student and staff events.
Find out more
Visit the Council of Deans of Health Student Leadership Programme webpage.
