Paper
Saturday, July 24, 2004
Understanding the Meaning of Mental Health and Illness in an Urban Nicaraguan Community: A Focused Mini-Ethnography
Rick Zoucha, APRN, DNSc, CTN1, Leah Vota Cunningham, RN, MNEd1, and Janet Gross, RN, DSN2. (1) School of Nursing, Duquesne University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA, (2) Department of Nursing and Allied Health Sciences, Morehead State University, Morehead, KY, USA
| Learning Objective #1: Understand the unique cultural meaning of mental health and illness in an urban Nicaraguan community |
| Learning Objective #2: Utilize the unique cultural view of mental health and illness in promoting health and well-being from the urban Nicaraguan perspective |
Objective: The focus of this qualitative focused mini-ethnography research study was to discover the meaning of mental health and illness of residents of an urban Nicaraguan community. Design & Method: A small scale qualitative focused ethnography method was used for this study. The method included: observation-participation, writing and interpreting field notes, semi-structured interviews and focus groups were used to elicit an understanding of the meaning of mental health and illness from the unique cultural perspective of the informants. Leininger’s Four Phases of qualitative data analysis were used for this study: Collecting and documenting raw data; identification of descriptors and categories; identifying patterns and contextual analysis; identification of themes and theoretical formulations. Population: A voluntary sample of twenty female informants was included in the study. Five individual interviews and one focus group of nurses with a history of working in the community were conducted for inclusion for data analysis. The research site was Villa Libertad, a poor, high-risk barrio in Managua, Nicaragua. Research Questions: What are the cultural perceptions and meaning of mental health of residents of an urban Nicaraguan community? What are the cultural perceptions and meaning of mental health and illness of residents of an urban Nicaraguan community? Findings: The major theme uncovered was that mental health was viewed as the absence of psychopathology. Issues of depression, anxiety and stress were viewed as part of living and life and one was mentally healthy if they did not experience loss of reality or disturbed thoughts. Conclusion and Implications: The focus of this presentation will be to discuss the perceptions of mental health and illness in barrio Villa Libertad. Understanding mental health and illness from the unique cultural perspectives of this community is essential in promoting their mental health needs. Future suggested research includes a full scale focused ethnography.
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Sigma Theta Tau International
July 22-24, 2004