Global Mental Health: Latin America and Spanish-Speaking Populations

by Javier I Escobar MD, MSc (Editor), Stanley Nkemjika (Contribution by), Humberto Marin (Contribution by), Miwa Yasui (Contribution by), Kathleen Pottick (Contribution by)

Overview

Global Mental Health provides an outline of the field of mental health with a particular focus on Latin America and the Spanish-speaking world. The book details evidence-based approaches being implemented globally and presents ongoing state of the art research on major mental disorders taking place in Latin America, including work being done on understanding Alzheimer’s, Bipolar Disorder, Schizophrenia, and other psychoses. While supporting the initiative for building capacity of care in low income countries, the book warns about some of the potential risks related to the abuse of psychiatry, using examples from the past, focusing on early 20th century Spain.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780813595917
Publisher:	Rutgers University Press
Publication date:	01/17/2020
Series:	Rutgers Global Health
Pages:	174
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.60(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Javier I. Escobar, MD is Associate Dean for global health, and professor of psychiatry and family medicine at Rutgers-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.

Table of Contents

Series Foreword Javier I. Escobar ix

Introduction 1

1 A Brief Review of Global Mental Health: Challenges, Developments, and Needs Stanley Nkemjika Javier I. Escobar Humberto Marin 5

2 Looking at Cultural Aspects of Global Mental Health: The Culturally Infused Engagement Model in Latin American and Asian Populations Miwa Yasui Kathleen J. Pottick 41

3 The Abuse of Psychiatry Globally: A Focus on a Little-Known Historical Example from Francoist Spain Ethan Pearlstein Javier I. Escobar 84

4 Task-Shifting Strategies in Latin America: The Key Role of Primary Care Health Agents in Mental Health Policy and Research in Northern Argentina Maria Calvo Gabriel De Erausquin Mariana Figueredo Aguiar Eduardo Padilla Javier I. Escobar 105

5 Genetic Research on Chronic, Severe Mental Disorders in the Paisa Population in Latin America: A Review of Past and Current Research Carrie E. Bearden Carlos Lopez Jaramillo Javier I. Escobar 120

6 A Brief Rejoinder and Future Projections Javier I. Escobar 143

Acknowledgments 147

Notes on Contributors 149

Index 151

Editorial Reviews

This global health collection is wide-ranging topically and geographically.  New works from South America are a welcome counterbalance to available sources.  Remarkably fresh sourcebook of broad interdisciplinary interest.”
 

Professor of Anthropology and Psychiatry, Director, Center for Global Mental Health, UCSD - Janis H. Jenkins

Reviewer: Ann M Cheney, PhD (University of California Riverside School of Medicine)
Description: As the second book in the Global Health series, this volume focuses on mental health and discusses the challenges and needs of the field, cultural considerations in mental health services use, and innovative models of mental healthcare delivery, while calling attention to potential abuses in the field of psychiatry and medicine.
Purpose: The book provides a snapshot of global mental health with a focus on Latin American and Spanish-speaking populations employing a case-study approach to illustrate the opportunities and challenges in this growing field. The authors discuss ongoing research, including mental health services, genetics, and historical research, discussing successes and challenges in the field with particular attention to research, past abuses in the field of psychiatry and medicine, and future directions. The field of global mental health is a new and burgeoning field. As such, the authors stress the importance of multi-disciplinary and collaborative efforts to address the rising costs of mental health disorders both in terms of financial cost and disability, which have significant consequences for individual, community, and population health. While the book highlights diverse and multicultural perspectives, it lacks representation from grassroots advocates and patient-centered perspectives and a discussion of these perspectives in global mental health practice and research.
Audience: Conceptualized and written by clinician-researchers, academics, and practitioners in mental health services, this book is intended for both researchers and practitioners. The focus on collaborative work offers insights into the value of multilevel stakeholder engagement — including local, national, and international partnerships. It encourages on-the-ground practitioners, policymakers, and researchers to come together to address the global mental health burden both locally and globally.
Features: A major strength of this book is the recognition that the peoples and places of Latin America and Spanish-speaking countries are not homogenous and the heterogeneity across Spanish-speaking populations has important implications for understanding lived experiences of mental illness, diagnosis, and treatment. That said, the authors also emphasize the use of culturally grounded perspectives in research, arguably a new approach in the assessment and treatment of mental health conditions and disorders in a global context, which includes countries populated by Latin American and Spanish-speaking immigrants and refugees such as the United States. Another important feature is the acknowledgement that there is a need to train researchers and practitioners in low- and middle-income countries, or the regions where studies take place, in order to develop local capacity and develop meaningful investigations that address local mental health concerns. While this book provides an excellent overview of current research and direction in global mental health in the Spanish-speaking world, it is top down, limiting insight into how patient-centered frameworks and community action factor into global mental health discussions and future directions. Given the focus on cross-sector collaborations, I would have liked a chapter on grass-roots efforts or partnership building in the context of global mental health issues. Also, the book would have had more impact if it had included a map to illustrate the geographic distribution of Latin American and Spanish-speaking populations across the globe. The chapters are well written, interesting, and engaging.
Assessment: This book brings together experts in the field of global mental health to offer an excellent overview of current mental health practice and research for Latin American and Spanish-speaking populations. The chapters draw upon psychiatry, medical anthropology, health services research, social work, and public health, offering a multidisciplinary snapshot of mental health among Spanish-speaking populations, including those living in their home countries and immigrant and refugees living abroad. It is a foundational book. It is a must read for researchers in academic medicine, practitioners treating Latin American and Spanish-speaking patient populations, public health professionals, and graduate students and scholars entering the field of global mental health.

Doody's Review Service

This innovative book reviews what is known while telling the story of efforts to fill gaps in services and science in global mental health in Latin America and Spanish-speaking groups.  While reviewing epidemiology and services research, they describe recent issues including even political abuses, and new studies highlighting growth of this field.

Director of UCLA Semel Institute Center for Health Services and Society - Kenneth Wells