Impact of COVID-19 Lock Down on Quality of Life among Primary Caregivers of Individuals with Schizophrenia in Rural Areas

BACKGROUND: The lockdown would become the primary strategy for facing covid-19 as it quickly mutates which might cause repeated pandemics;however, it negatively affects individuals' quality of life (QOL). The schizophrenia caregivers experience considerable stress. The research on the impact of the COVID-19 lockdown on QOL of schizophrenia caregivers is essential, especially for those who reside in rural areas. AIM: This study aimed to investigate the impact of lockdown-related COVID-19 on QOL among primary caregivers of schizophrenia patients living in a rural area. METHOD(S): This study recruited 204 primary caregivers (15-79 years). This study used the World Health Organization Quality of Life instrument (WHOQOL-BREF) to asses QOL's primary caregiver. Evaluate the possible change in caregivers' QOL before and during the COVID-19 lockdown using paired t-test for repeated measures. RESULT(S): The mean age of the caregivers was 46.61 years (SD = 12.79), ranging from 15 to 79 years, with a preponderance of male (54.5%), aged 38-47 years old (29.7%), married (81.2%), employed (57.4%), and had senior high school level of education (34.7%). Majority were parents (26.2%) of the ill relative, and took care of the patients more than 5 years (52.5%). There was a statistical difference (p < 0.05) in caregivers' QOL between before and during the COVID-19 lockdown, including in physical health, psychological, social relationships, and environment domain. CONCLUSION(S): Implementing a lockdown policy related to COVID-19 has negatively impacted the caregivers' QOL. The degradation of caregivers' QOL showed from before to during COVID-19 lockdown. Further study needs to explore the QOL of other mental illness caregivers regarding COVID-19 lockdown. This finding becomes a reference for a government to modify some policy-related lockdowns to minimize their negative impact.Copyright © 2023 Utomo Utomo, Eko Mulyadi, Endang Fauziyah.

Critical Feminista Dimensions to Informal Writing Groups for Women of Color Pursuing Doctoral Degrees

The anti-colonial struggle against literary assimilation and the claim to our linguistic space in validating our own stories as W°C, first generation college students, first generation college graduates, and caregivers to dependents, elders, and extended family members requires an activist spirit. [...]someone posted that they would be hosting a virtual writing group on Saturday mornings. A few text messages, utilization of social capital to invite non-M°CA members and a few electronic RSVPs later, we had commitments from the four of us. Being genuine and vulnerable through convivencia allowed us to place extreme care and attention on building social relationships while tearing down the conventional power structure often found in groups.

Engagement during post-acute care transition: Perceptions and experiences of family caregivers of older adults with dementia

Older adults with dementia experience hospitalizations and post-acute care transitions more than people without dementia and rely on family caregivers for support. Family caregivers of older adults with dementia, therefore, play a crucial role during care transitions, and caregiver engagement is acknowledged as a critical factor in promoting quality of care. Despite this, "engagement" has been exclusively defined from the perspective of clinical care providers in other settings, and little is known about the post-acute care experiences and perceptions of family caregivers. The purpose of this dissertation was to describe the meaning of engagement to family caregivers navigating post-acute care transition, to elucidate their perspectives on barriers and facilitators of engagement, and to explore their support needs.Following an interpretive descriptive approach and guided by Meleis's Middle Range transition theory, semi-structured interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of 15 family caregivers of older adults with dementia. Using an inductive coding process, similar codes were categorized by grouping codes that describe similar concepts related to the caregiver experiences and perceptions. The process helped to develop themes from the categories and a conceptual framework that described the meaning of engagement.Thematic findings revealed family caregivers' descriptions of the meaning of engagement during post-acute care transitions is linked to being there, having meaningful connection with professional care providers, and having communication with the person with dementia. Limited communication and not being able to be there were seen as barriers to engagement. Nine family caregivers' level of engagement was impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic new visitation policies. Facilitator to engagement were linked to having good communication with professional care providers and having past post-acute care transition experience. The support needs of family caregivers were also related to their relationship with healthcare providers and receiving support from family and friends. The study supports highlighting communication as an integral part of transition and makes an argument to expanding the Meleis's Middle Range transition theory. Findings of the study contribute to the dementia caregiving literature and make an appeal to healthcare providers and policymakers to include family caregivers as part of the care team. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Predictors of early literacy skills in kindergarteners with dyslexia familial risk

This dissertation research study aimed to determine the predictors of early literacy skills in kindergarteners with dyslexia familial risk. The home literacy environment, preschool attendance, and parental self-efficacy are known predictors of early literacy skills, specifically letter naming knowledge, in typically developing children. Letter naming knowledge is an early literacy skill that is important to future reading achievement and outcomes. Letter naming knowledge is also a powerful pre-literacy predictor of dyslexia. Dyslexia commonly manifest as difficulties in acquiring basic reading skills and is highly heritable. The population for this study was primary caregivers of kindergarteners with a first degree relative with a diagnosis of dyslexia. Participants completed the Home Literacy Checklist, Tool to Measure Parenting Self-Efficacy via an online survey with questions regarding preschool attendance, letter naming knowledge skills, and the presence of a diagnosis of dyslexia among first degree relatives. SPSS Statistics (Version 28) was used to run descriptive statistics. The sample was comprised of 12 primary caregivers. This sample size was not appropriate for the chosen analysis of multiple regression. Using exploratory data analysis, the data was organized and summarized. Due to an inadequate sample size caused by a low response rate, no conclusions could be drawn from this data. The research questions were not answered and there were no findings. COVID-19 restrictions impacted research sites and the level of participation, with participants being less available, school closures, and mandatory quarantines, creating a difficult atmosphere for completion of this research study. As a result, the lack of data during the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns led to several revisions of the research plan. The revisions involved eliminating the need for standardized test scores, using primary caregiver report to determine the level of difficulty of letter naming knowledge of the kindergarten student, and using social media to recruit participants. Recommendations for further research were comprised of ways to increase the pool of participants by expanding inclusion criteria, eliminating the use of standardized test scores, considering the length of the survey, and the use of social media along with an incentive. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

Experiences of accumulated stress among aging parent caregivers of adults with autism spectrum disorder

With the continuing increased incidence rate of autism spectrum disorder over the decades, there are increasing numbers of adults with autism who require varying levels of lifelong care, typically from parents. It is necessary to understand parents' lived experience of lifelong caregiving, and how their own aging process further impacts life quality. Furthermore, greater understanding of stressors, resources, appraisals, and coping among parent caregivers of children with "high functioning autism" who are transitioning into young adulthood is particularly necessary as services, needs, and experiences for both are nuanced due to functional status, deficits in the service system, and demographic disparities. Given lifespan aspects past research has not addressed, the study focused on development of a measure of parent accumulated stressors, and on interrelations of stressors, perceived social support, future time perspective, burden, satisfaction, and coping on health-related quality of life and meaning in life among 28 parents of young adults with autism. Although proposed quantitative analyses were not completed due to sample size, qualitative analyses on parent experiences and stressors revealed common themes of concern for child's future quality of life, complicated dynamics of providing help to their child overtime, and increased stress related to others' lack of understanding of their child. In total, 10 themes and multiple subthemes were identified in relation to aspects of accumulated stressors. Findings suggest parent stress with this specific population is complex, manifesting in nuanced ways at different life stages. Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic are also explored, and implications for scientific advancement and clinical services are discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

When Trials Stumble, Mobile Research Nursing Lends a Helping Hand

Bringing the trial to the patient Industry guidelines advise sponsors to reduce the emotional and physical burden of study participation and to consider the convenience of participation for both patients and their caregivers.1 With mobile research nursing, a nurse goes to that patient's home -or any other location that is convenient for the patient-to conduct off-site visits and perform studyrelated assessments and data collection. According to the Deloitte Center for Health Solutions, more than 70% of all clinical trial participants live more than two hours away from the clinical research site. [...]one survey of clinical trial participants found that 38% of those who dropped out of a study did so because they found site visits to be stressful.2 Mobile research nursing contributes to reductions in patient stress without compromising study design or data quality. Altogether, it makes the mechanics of clinical trial participation less disruptive to a patient's family life, as well as to their educational and professional lives. [...]mobile research nursing offers the patient-centric features of customization and personalization of the clinical trial experience, delivering care in a manner that reflects a patient's individual preferences and personal situation.

So, You Want to Build a Program?

This article will help dementia care service organizations develop and evaluate intervention programs in the absence of evidence-based solutions, which is key, given: the limited access family caregivers have to evidence-based intervention programs;and the need for organizations to use limited resources to develop and test new programs to serve families living with dementia. It draws upon two case studies of interventions developed at an academic-service center: KINDER and Ayudando a Quien Ayuda;evaluates lessons learned in assessing the two programs to refine them by applying the Exploration, Preparation, Implementation, Sustainment (EPIS) framework, and recommends ways organizations can refine interventions prior to efficacy-testing.

Innovations Meet Growing Demand for Prefilled Syringes

Syringe innovations also increase patient and caregiver safety and efficiency and reduce waste of product and packaging materials. "Since it is already packaged ready for the injection, the prefilled syringe saves time and avoids unneeded handling prior to the actual application, minimizing the risk of the injection errors, dilution errors, or non-sterility issues [that are a risk in] multi-dose containers," explains Wenzel Novak, global senior director of business development at Gerresheimer Medical Systems. [...]the advent of a silicone-free design, "Pharmaceutical manufacturers seeking to avoid silicone-induced aggregation and sub-visible particles have had to choose vials even when they wanted to offer other delivery options," said Christiane Gumera, product specialist at W.L. Gore & Associates. [...]automation decreases labour requirements, diminishes the difficulties of working in a cleanroom with full personal protective equipment, and reduces the likelihood of repetitive motion injuries." [...]information technology systems supporting serialization can communicate with the customer's system to ensure that the serial numbers applied are unique and traceable across the network of product manufacturing sites the customer may be using."

(Re)designing the continuum of care for older adults: The future of long-term care settings

This book broadens the visioning on new care environments that are designed to be inclusive, progressive, and convergent with the needs of an aging population. The contents cover a range of long-term care (LTC) settings in a single collection to address the needs of a wide audience. Due to the recent COVID-19 pandemic, rethinking the spatial design of care facilities in order to prepare for future respiratory and contagious pathogens is one of the prime concerns across the globe, along with social connectedness and autonomy in care settings. This book contributes to the next generation of knowledge and understanding of the growing field of the design of technology, programs, and environments for LTC that are more effective in infection prevention and control as well as social connectedness. To address these issues, the chapters are organized in four sections: Part I: Home- and community-based care;Part II: Facility-based care;Part III: Memory care and end-of-life care;and Part IV: Evidence-based applied projects and next steps. (Re)designing the Continuum of Care for Older Adults is an essential resource for researchers, practitioners, educators, policymakers, and students associated with LTC home and healthcare settings. With diverse topics in theory, substantive issues, and methods, the contributions from notable researchers and scholars cover a range of innovative programming, environments, and technologies which can impact the changing needs and support for older adults and their families across the continuum of care. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved)

From a generational disembodiment to the opening of an inheritance box: a current clinic with children of Holocaust survivors, former Jewish children hidden during the Occupation

This article reports on a particular clinic with caregivers of spouses and parents suffering from Alzheimer's disease who are survivors of the Shoah, more precisely former Jewish children hidden in France during the Second World War. After a description of this innovative system and the particularity of the psychopathology of the former hidden Jewish children and their descendants, we will show how the lockdown imposed in 2020 due to the health crisis produced by the circulation of Covid-19 impacted these clinical follow-ups and functioned as a magnifying glass effect of the "telescoping of generations”, like a generational nesting. From a particular clinical follow-up, we will show how the reception of an inherited box made it possible to work on a generational disembedding and to support a dynamic of elaboration. © 2023 Boeck Universite. All rights reserved.

Rare Disease Patients Overlooked During COVID

Survey data shows individuals are not informed on how COVID-19 could affect their conditions Collectively, rare diseases affect around 4%-6% of the global population-about 300 million people, where half are children living with rare genetic disorders. Meaning less likelihood to seek treatment in a doctor or hospital setting. 27% of participants also said they are now more likely to search for new treatment options. [...]they are spending more time than ever before actively searching for information, yet they find their anxieties and uncertainties unanswered.

HELLENIC LEAGUE'S AGAINST RHEUMATISM'S SCHOOL OF HEALTH EDUCATION

BackgroundThe more time healthcare professionals spend with patients the better the health outcomes become. Therefore, education seems to play a crucial role for the quality of life not only for the patients but also for the health care costs and the future cost projections that depend on the health outcomes of everyone.ObjectivesAim of the School of Health Education is to give the opportunity to participants to familiarize themselves with frequently used terminology in everyday clinical practice, to become accustomed in using the common medical language when describing their symptoms to their doctors so that they will have a common ground. Basic goal of this education is for every patient to understand a bit more about concepts such as medications, adverse events, pharmacovigilance etc.MethodsInteractive live events, of approximately 2hour duration, have already take place in 15 cities of Greece. In the year 2020 COVID restrictions did not allow for such events to be organized. The project will start again during 2023. Speakers in the events were: rheumatologists, general physicians, anesthesiologists, psychiatrists, psychologists, gynecologists, clinical pharmacologists and others.ResultsOver 1800 patients, caregivers, members of the public, stakeholders, members of the local authorities, healthcare professional and others participated in the live events. Handouts and printed material from HELAR/ELEANA were given to participants as well an evaluation form to complete. The events generated a lot of press locally and nationally, with 4 press conferences, 25 press releases, 18 TV interviews and 10 radio interviews.ConclusionPublicity and participation in the events showed that patient education is quite important for the patients and the local communities. Since 2020 and the COVID pandemic there has been a shift towards public health issues and health education creating a unique opportunity for HELAR/ELEANA's School of Health Education to be adapted and become once more available for the patients living with an RMD. This time the new version could be either a virtual version or a live version for many more patients, caregivers and the public to be able to attend.AcknowledgementsHellenic League Against Rheumatism is grateful to Dimitrios Kouvelas, MD, BPharm, PhD, Professor of Pharmacology and Clinical Pharmacology, Head of the Dept of Clinical Pharmacology, School of Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki for his precious scientific contribution, implementation and for being the main speaker voluntarily.The School of Health Education was awarded the bronze prize by the Health Care Business Awards in 2019.Disclosure of InterestsKATY ANTONOPOULOU: None declared, ATHANASIA PAPPA: None declared, DIMITRIOS KOUVELAS Consultant of: DEMO, STILVI, Nadia Malliou: None declared, Katerina Tsekoura: None declared, MACHI SALAMALIKI: None declared, EVANGELIA OIKONOMOULA: None declared, KATERINA ROUSTA: None declared.

Q&A

Woods: Home-health visits can lower risk and make it easier for a research subject to participate because there's no negotiating going into a doctor's office, clinic, or hospital, where the perceived risk is often far higher. Woods: Home health services are appropriate for participants with compromised mobility or underlying conditions. Mental health assessments and scales that are used for behavioral analysis can be administered by home health if the nurse is trained to apply those tools.

What are the experiences of supportive care in people affected by brain cancer and their informal caregivers: A qualitative systematic review.

PURPOSE: To critically synthesise qualitative research to understand experiences of supportive care in people affected by brain cancer and their informal caregivers. METHODS: A qualitative systematic review was conducted according to the Joanna Briggs methodology and has been reported according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) Guidelines. Electronic databases were searched by an expert systematic review librarian for all qualitative studies irrespective of research design. All publications were double screened by two reviewers using a pre-determined exclusion and inclusion criteria. The review was managed using Covidence systematic review software. Methodological quality assessment and data extraction were performed. Qualitative findings accompanied by illustrative quotes from included studies were extracted and grouped into categories, which created the overall synthesised findings. RESULTS: A total of 33 studies were included which represented a total sample of 671 participants inclusive of 303 patients and 368 informal caregivers. There was a total of 220 individual findings included in this review, which were synthesised into two findings (1) caregivers and patients perceived supports which would have been helpful and (2) caregiver and patient experiences of unmet supportive care needs. CONCLUSION: This review highlighted the suffering and distress caused by brain cancer and associated treatments. Both patients and their informal caregivers experienced disconnect from themselves in renegotiating roles, and a profound sense of loneliness as the physical deterioration of the disease progressed. Both patients and informal caregivers reported similar unmet needs within the current service provision for brain cancer. However, what is apparent is that current cancer services are provided solely for patients, with little or no consideration to the support needs of both the patient and their informal caregiver. Service re-design is needed to improve care coordination with individualised informational support, implementation of holistic needs assessments for both the patients and their caregivers, better community support provision, improved opportunities for emotional care with early referral for palliative care services. IMPLICATIONS FOR CANCER SURVIVORS: It is recommended that members of the multidisciplinary brain cancer team reflect on these findings to target holistic needs assessments and develop shared self-management care plans for both the patient and the informal caregiver.

Examining the Needs of Family Caregivers of People Living with Dementia in the Community during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a disproportionate effect on older adults and their family caregivers (FCGs). For FCGs, the pandemic has impacted almost every dimension of their lives and caregiving routines, from their own risk of becoming ill to their access to resources that support caregiving. The purpose of this mixed-methods study was to examine the impact of COVID-19 on FCGs' ability to provide care for their family member with dementia. A total of 115 FCGs who identified as having their family member living with dementia residing in the community completed the survey. Ten family caregivers participated in the follow-up focus groups. Recommendations to address the needs of FCGs now and in the future include: (1) making resources for care provision consistently available and tailored, (2) providing support for navigating the health care system, and (3) supplying concise information on how to provide care during public health emergencies.

Benefits and Challenges of a Telehealth Eating and Mealtime Intervention for Autistic Children: Occupational Therapy Practitioners' Perspectives.

Eating and mealtime challenges are common in autistic children, yet intervention access is limited. Telehealth may provide opportunities to address this gap and increase access for underserved families. This study examined the occupational therapy practitioner's perceptions of transitioning from a caregiver-mediated, in-home eating, and mealtime intervention for autistic children to telehealth owing to COVID-19 while considering the impact on accessibility, challenges, and benefits. Family characteristics were compared between groups. Thematic analysis of semi-structured interviews explored practitioners' experiences of telehealth. Statistical findings and themes were directly compared and contrasted. The following three themes emerged: Intervention Adaptations, Challenges for Interventionists, and Benefits of Telehealth. The differences in the families' geographic location were identified. Themes and family characteristic differences supported increased intervention accessibility for the telehealth group. This study provides preliminary evidence that telehealth can increase access to specialized services. There are benefits and challenges to implementing telehealth with families and autistic children.

Experience of patients and their caregivers with telepsychiatry consultations: An exploratory study.

Background: While telepsychiatry became a prominent and widely used service in the COVID-19 pandemic-related lockdown, data regarding the patient's experience of telepsychiatry consultations is lacking. Materials and Methods: In this study, we attempted to understand the experience and level of satisfaction of 129 patients receiving psychiatry consultations over video consultations from April 2021 to December 2021. We also tried to understand the factors that might be associated with the satisfaction of the patients. Results: About three-fourths (77.5%) of the respondents were very satisfied with the quality of care provided and the overall experience of the consultation. The majority (92.2%) of the respondents reported that they would "definitely" recommend the telepsychiatry service to a friend or relative in need of a psychiatric consultation. The majority of the patients expressed high levels of satisfaction with the amount of time spent, the amount of freedom in expressing themselves, the amount of freedom in choosing the treatment option, the prescription provided, and the number of medications prescribed. The clarity of voice and the quality of connectivity throughout the consultation were found to be associated with the level of satisfaction. Conclusions: The present study suggests that overall satisfaction with teleconsultations was high among patients and/or caregivers for telepsychiatry consultations.

Quality of Life in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Patients and Care Burden of Caregivers in Sardinia during COVID-19 Pandemic.

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is a rare neurogenerative disorder whose median survival ranges from 2 to 4 years after symptomatic onset. Therefore, the global Quality of Life (QoL) assessment in these patients should be carefully evaluated to guarantee an adequate care level, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic period, given the increased social isolation and the pressure on healthcare services. Caregiving has been recognized as an important source of physical and psychological burden, with a possible QoL impairment. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the QoL of ALS patients and the burden of their caregivers across Sardinia, Italy. The ALS Specific QoL Instrument-Short Form (ALSSQOL-SF) and the Zarit Burden Inventory (ZBI) tools were used to assess patient's QoL and the burden on their caregivers, respectively. The questionnaires were supplemented with items specific for the COVID-19 period. Sixty-six family units of patients with advanced ALS were interviewed between June and August 2021 across Sardinia. Patients' psychological and social well-being were found to significantly affect the patients' QoL, regardless of their physical condition. In addition, the caregiver burden resulted as being inversely proportional to the patient's perceived QoL. Lack of adequate psychological support was reported among the caregivers during the emergency period. Providing adequate psychological and social support might be useful to improve QoL in middle and late stages of ALS patients and to decrease caregivers' perceived home care burden.

The Electronic Surviving Cancer Competently Intervention Program-a Psychosocial Digital Health Intervention for English- and Spanish-Speaking Parents of Children With Cancer: Protocol for Randomized Controlled Trial.

BACKGROUND: The psychosocial needs and risks of children with cancer and their families are well-documented including increased risk of parental distress, posttraumatic stress, and anxiety. There is a critical need to provide evidence-based psychosocial care to parents and caregivers of children with cancer. Digital health interventions are important to address many barriers to in-person intervention delivery but are not widely used in pediatric psychosocial cancer care. The COVID-19 pandemic has reinforced the need for flexible, acceptable, and accessible psychosocial digital health interventions. The Electronic Surviving Cancer Competently Intervention Program (eSCCIP) is an innovative digital health intervention for parents and caregivers of children with cancer, delivered through a combination of self-guided web-based content and supplemented by 3 telehealth follow-up sessions with a trained telehealth guide. A Spanish language adaptation of eSCCIP, El Programa Electronico de Intervencion para Superar Cancer Competentemente (eSCCIP-SP), has been developed. The self-guided web-based cores of eSCCIP/eSCCIP-SP are a mix of didactic video content, multifamily video discussion groups featuring parents of children with cancer, and hands-on web-based activities. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study is to test eSCCIP/eSCCIP-SP in a multisite randomized controlled trial, compared to an internet-based education control condition consisting of information specifically focused on concerns relevant to parents and caregivers of children with cancer. METHODS: Using a randomized controlled clinical trial design, 350 eligible parents and caregivers of children with cancer will be randomly assigned to the intervention (eSCCIP/eSCCIP-SP) or an education control condition. Data will be collected at 3 time points: preintervention (prior to randomization), immediately post intervention (after 6 weeks), and at a 3-month follow-up (from baseline). Participants randomized to either condition will receive study material (eSCCIP/eSCCIP-SP intervention or education control website) in English or Spanish, based on the primary language spoken in the home and participant preference. RESULTS: The primary study end point is a reduction in acute distress from baseline to postintervention, with secondary end points focused on reductions in symptoms of posttraumatic stress and anxiety, and improvements in coping self-efficacy and cognitive coping. An additional exploratory aim will be focused on implementation strategies and potential costs and cost-savings of eSCCIP/eSCCIP-SP, laying the groundwork for future trials focused on dissemination and implementation, stepped-care models, and intervention refinement. CONCLUSIONS: This trial will provide necessary data to evaluate the efficacy of eSCCIP/eSCCIP-SP. This intervention has the potential to be an easily scalable and highly impactful psychosocial treatment option for parents and caregivers of children with cancer. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT05294302; https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT05294302. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): PRR1-10.2196/46339.

Short-Term Impact of "Amaka Amasanyufu" Multiple Family Group Intervention on Mental Health Functioning of Children With Disruptive Behavior Disorders in Uganda.

OBJECTIVE: We evaluate the mid-intervention (8 weeks) and short-term (16 weeks) impact of a culturally adapted multiple family group (MFG) intervention, "Amaka Amasanyufu," on the mental health of children with disruptive behavior disorders (DBDs) and primary caregivers in Uganda. METHOD: We analyzed data from the Strengthening mental health and research training in Sub-Saharan Africa (SMART) Africa-Uganda study. Schools were randomized to the following: a control group; an MFG facilitated by parent peers (MFG-PP); or an MFG facilitated by community health workers (MFG:CHW). All participants were blinded to interventions provided to other participants and study hypotheses. At 8 weeks and 16 weeks, we evaluated differences in depressive symptoms and self-concept among children and in mental health and caregiving-related stress among caregivers. Three-level linear mixed-effects models were fitted. Pairwise comparisons of post-baseline group means were performed using the Sidak adjustment for multiple comparisons and standardized mean differences. Data from 636 children with DBDs and caregivers (controls: n = 243, n = 10 schools; MFG-PP: n = 194, n = 8 schools; MFG-CHW: n = 199, n = 8 schools) were analyzed. RESULTS: There were significant group-by-time interactions for all outcomes, and differences were observed mid-intervention, with short-term effects at 16 weeks (end-intervention). MFG-PP and MFG-CHW children had significantly lower depressive symptoms and higher self-concept, whereas caregivers had significantly lower caregiving-related stress and fewer mental health problems, than controls. There was no difference between intervention groups. CONCLUSION: Amaka Amasanyufu MFG intervention is effective for reducing depressive symptoms and improving self-concept among children with DBDs while reducing parental stress and mental health problems among caregivers. Given the paucity of culturally adapted mental health interventions, this provides support for adaptation and scale-up in Uganda and other low-resource settings. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION INFORMATION: SMART Africa (Strengthening Mental Health Research and Training); https://clinicaltrials.gov/: NCT03081195.