Effects of family-based dignity intervention and expressive writing on anticipatory grief in family caregivers of patients with cancer: a randomized controlled trial.

Family caregivers of dying cancer patients may suffer from grief experiences and bereavement complications. Previous studies have proposed some psycho-emotional interventions for the management of these complications. However, little attention has been given to family-based dignity intervention and expressive writing. This study was conducted to examine the effects of family-based dignity intervention and expressive writing, combined and alone, on anticipatory grief in family caregivers of dying cancer patients. This was a randomized controlled trial, in which 200 family caregivers of dying cancer patients were randomly assigned to four intervention groups: family-based dignity intervention (n = 50), expressive writing intervention (n = 50), combined family-based single dignity intervention and expressive writing (n = 50), and control group (n = 50). In three times (baseline, 1 week, and 2 weeks after the interventions), anticipatory grief was assessed by a 13-item anticipatory grief scale (AGS). Finally, we found a significant reducing effect of family-based dignity intervention on AGS (-8.12 ± 1.53 vs. -1.57 ± 1.52, P = 0.01) and its subscales including behavioral (-5.92 ± 0.97 vs. -2.17 ± 0.96, P = 0.04) and emotional (-2.38 ± 0.78 vs. 0.68 ± 0.77, P = 0.03) subscales compared to the control group. However, no significant effect was seen for expressive writing intervention and combined interventions of expressive writing and family-based dignity intervention. In conclusion, family-based dignity intervention may be a safe intervention for relieving anticipatory grief among family caregivers of dying cancer patients. Additional clinical trials are needed to confirm our findings. Registration number: IRCT20210111050010N1. Trial registration date:2021-02-06.

Mental Health System Responsiveness during COVID-19 in People with Pre-Existing Psychiatric Disorders: Experiences from Iran.

Mental health system responsiveness (MHSR) is one of the important indicators in measuring the performance of mental health systems. Recognizing this function can be effective in responding appropriately to the needs of People with Pre-Existing Psychiatric Disorders (PPEPD). This study aimed to investigate MHSR during the COVID-19 period in PPEPD in Iran. Using stratified random sampling, 142 PPEPD who were admitted to a Psychiatric Hospital in Iran one year before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic were recruited for this cross-sectional study. Participants completed a demographic and clinical characteristics questionnaire as well as a Mental Health System Responsiveness Questionnaire through telephone interviews. The results show that the indicators of prompt attention, autonomy, and access to care were reported as the worst-performing and the confidentiality indicator as the best-performing. The type of insurance affected the access to care and the quality of basic amenities. MHSR has been reported to be poor in Iran in general and this problem worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic. Considering the prevalence of psychiatric disorders in Iran and the degree of disability of these disorders, structural and functional changes are needed for adequate MHSR.

Caregivers' experiences and perspectives of factors associated with relapse in Iranian people living with schizophrenia: A qualitative study.

BACKGROUND: Relapse in People Living with Schizophrenia (PLS) has several reasons and recognizing these can increase the effectiveness of treatment interventions. Formal and informal caregivers are an informed source to reduce relapse in PLS. AIM: This study explores the caregivers' perspective in Iran on the factors affecting relapse in PLS. METHOD: A total of 28 caregivers (16 formal caregivers and 12 informal caregivers) of PLS were enrolled in our qualitative study. A content analysis was conducted using individual and group, semi-structured in-depth interviews with informal and formal caregivers of PLS. This study was conducted in a hospital, three universities, and a non-governmental organization in Tehran, Iran. RESULTS: The majority (69%) of the participants were females. About half of the informal caregivers were over 60 years old and about 40% of the formal caregivers were in the age range of 30 to 40 years. The average number of years of work for informal caregivers was 17.6 years and the average of work experience among the formal caregivers was 14.1 years. Seven key dual themes were identified from data: 'awareness-stigma', 'social support-social exclusion', 'treatment adherence-treatment discontinuation', 'holistic approach - one-dimensional approach', 'supported employment-social dysfunction', 'emotional management in family - family with high emotional expression', and 'access to treatment-treatment gap'. CONCLUSION: The results of this research can help practitioners and policymakers to enable evidence-based practices to reduce relapse in PLS by emphasizing and acting on factors identified in our analyses.

The design and process of a family and community-based intervention for relapse prevention in people living with schizophrenia in Iran.

BACKGROUND: People living with schizophrenia (PLS) suffer frequent relapse accompanied by emergency room visits, premature mortality, lower quality of life and a substantial social and economic burden on families and health systems. There is a dearth of community-based relapse prevention interventions (RPIs) in Iran. AIMS: To determine an ideal model for a community-based RPIs for PLS. METHODS: A qualitative study with 27 experts in Iran was carried out to understand the ideal RPIs for PLS and the key components of such interventions. RESULTS: In 16 semi-structured interviews and 8 group-discussions, the participants identified six major stages of family and community-based RPIs including preparation, social mobilization, local team formation, design an RPI, implementing the RPI, participatory monitoring, and evaluation of the RPI. CONCLUSIONS: Given the suboptimal healthcare systems and lack of professionals and services, PLS in Iran may benefit from family and community-based RPIs. Our findings warrant pilot testing of such initiatives across developing communities like Iran to improve health outcomes of PLS.

Clergy's Viewpoint Change Toward Mental Health and Stigma on Mental Illness: A Short Course Training.

Background: As stigma is one of the main barriers in promoting the mental health, the present study was designed with the purpose of reviewing clergy's viewpoint regarding the effect of mental health workshops on these barriers. Methods: For this study, by order of Iran's Health Ministry, a questionnaire was designed to examine the clergy's viewpoint related to mental illnesses and the consequent stigma. Ten faculty members and psychiatrists confirmed the questionnaire's validity after some modifications. In this research, 30 members of the clergy from the main religious city in Iran's "Qom" Seminary attended the training workshops for 2 days. The data obtained from the clergy's responses were analyzed using the SPSS software (ver.16) and descriptive and analytical tests. Also, the significance level was considered p < 0.05 in all tests. The results exhibited that the mean and standard deviation (Mean ± SD) of the clergy's attitude domain and awareness before the workshop was 1.90 ± 26.30 and 8.31 ± 1.64, respectively. Also, average and standard deviation (Mean ± SD) of their attitude domain and awareness after the workshop was 1.95 ± 29.73 and 1.18 ± 10.70, respectively. Discussion: The present study, which was designed to examine the clergy's viewpoint toward mental illnesses and the consequent stigma in the most considerable religious base in the country, illustrated that one strategy for reducing mental illness stigma in religious communities can be by holding training sessions to promote the clergy's awareness of and attitude toward mental health. Conclusion: There was a significant statistical difference between their awareness and attitude scores before and after the workshop (p < 0.01). In the present research, the awareness and attitude of clergy toward mental health and stigma due to mental illness was relatively good and significantly increased by holding the workshop.

Effects of family-based dignity intervention and expressive writing on anticipatory grief of family caregivers of patients with cancer: a study protocol for a four-arm randomized controlled trial and a qualitative process evaluation.

BACKGROUND: Family caregivers of dying cancer patients are affected by grief experiences and bereavement complications. Several approaches such as psycho-emotional care and an increase in spirituality have been suggested to diminish these complications. However, the knowledge about the effects of family-based dignity intervention and expressive writing on anticipatory grief in family caregivers of dying cancer patients is limited. This is a study protocol describing a hospital-based mixed-methods study on the effects of family-based dignity intervention and expressive writing on anticipatory grief in family caregivers of dying cancer patients. METHODS: This mixed-methods study will be done in an embedded explanatory design with two quantitative and qualitative phases. In the first phase (quantitative), a randomized clinical trial will be done, in which 200 family caregivers of dying cancer patients will be randomly assigned to one of the four groups: family-based single dignity intervention (group 1), expressive writing intervention (group 2), combined family-based single dignity intervention and expressive writing (group 3), and control (group 4). At baseline, 1 week and 2 weeks after the interventions, anticipatory grief will be assessed by a 13-item anticipatory grief scale. After the quantitative phase, the qualitative phase will be conducted through the conventional content analysis approach of Granheim and Lundman, in which an individual semi-structured interview will be taken from participants in the first phase to collect data on their experiences on interventions. Finally, data from the quantitative and qualitative phases will be analyzed and discussed. DISCUSSION: Family caregivers of dying cancer patients usually experience depression, anxiety, and psychological distress due to isolation and inadequate social support. Psychological interventions such as dignity and expressive writing interventions may help caregivers to obtain a better understanding of themselves and to increase their abilities to cope with caregiving difficulties. Therefore, there is a need for a comprehensive study confirming the effects of mentioned interventions on family caregivers of dying cancer patients. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Iranian Registry of Clinical Trials ( www.irct.ir ) identifier: IRCT20210111050010N1. Date of trial registration: Feb 6, 2021. This is the first version of this protocol.

Supporting the victims of domestic violence in Iran: two decades of effort.

For years there were no organized supporting system helping victims of domestic violence in Iran. 16 years ago Ministry of Interior started a national survey which led to try legislating bills in order to improve preventive and supporting services. This has inspired many health care professionals, including Ministry of Health, Treatment and Medical Training, to pursue this field for research. Since then, many studies has been done; which were reviewed in this paper. We tried to build a stepping stone for the future researchers and activists, since despite all what has been done, still there is no legislated bill or enough organizations to protect the victims.

Develop the World Health Organization Assessment Instrument for Mental Health System (WHO-AIMS) In IRAN / Desarrollar el instrumento de evaluación de la Organización Mundial de la Salud para el sistema de salud mental (WHO-AIMS) en IRÁN

Introduction: The tool for assessing the Mental Health System of the World Health Organization has been used in different countries in different countries,by which examining the mental health system and identifying their problems along with finding out the instrumental problems are done simoltaneously. Objetive: this study was conducted in order to develop the means of evaluating the mental health system organization of the world health organization in iran. Method: This research is based on the implementation, analytical, and in terms of variables, combination (qualitative and quantitative), and purposeful, exploratory, and from the perspective of the result, an application that was carried out in six phases. Phase I: Review of texts that have been used to recognize the status of countries Different and Iran. Phase II: The status of mental health system in Khuzestan province was investigated and the problems of mental health system and instrumental problems were determined. Phase III: weaknesses and strengths of the mental health system evaluation tool were surveyed in Khuzestan province, Phase IV: To identify the key components of the WHO Mental Health Routing Program and the 2013-2015 operational plan for development of tools, in the fifth phase: The proposed components were embedded in each main field of the tool, and the content of the content validity and content validity index were evaluated by the experts. Result: Finally, 11 main components were identified and 95 questions were designed for them, which in the sixth phase these questions Mental Health Managers were given an exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis and identified their main factors and their impact on the development of the Mental Health Assessment System of the World Health Organization. Using PLS software from 11 components and 95 suggested questions, 6 factors influencing The development of tools has been identified whose impact coefficients include: Leadership and Governance (0.972), mental health and e-service use (0.929), Policy and Legislative Framework (0.697), status analysis (0.613), mental health services pattern for common disorders (0.413), mental health promotion services (0.259). Conclusion: The development of the Mental Health Assessment Tool of the World Health Organization in Iran will help identify the mental health gap and, with regard to the problems, will be the best pattern for providing mental health services

Introducción: La herramienta para evaluar el Sistema de Salud Mental de la Organización Mundial de la Salud se ha utilizado en diferentes países en diferentes países, mediante el cual el examen del sistema de salud mental y la identificación de sus problemas junto con el descubrimiento de los problemas instrumentales se realizan de forma simultánea. Objetive: este estudio se realizó con el fin de desarrollar los medios para evaluar la organización del sistema de salud mental de la organización mundial de la salud en Irán. Método: Esta investigación se basa en la implementación, analítica y en términos de variables, combinación (cualitativa y cuantitativa), y con una finalidad, exploratoria y, desde la perspectiva del resultado, una aplicación que se realizó en seis fases. Fase I: Revisión de textos que se han utilizado parareconocer el estado de países diferentes e Irán. Fase II: Se investigó el estado del sistema de salud mental en la provincia de Khuzestan y se determinaron los problemas del sistema de salud mental y los problemas instrumentales. Fase III: se examinaron las debilidades y fortalezas de la herramienta de evaluación del sistema de salud mental en la provincia de Khuzestan, Fase IV: para identificar los componentes clave del Programa de Enrutamiento de Salud Mental de la OMS y el plan operativo 2013-2015 para el desarrollo de herramientas, en la quinta fase : Los componentes propuestos se integraron en cada campo principal de la herramienta, y los expertos evaluaron el contenido de la validez de contenido y el índice de validez de contenido. Resultado: Finalmente, se identificaron 11 componentes principales y se diseñaron 95 preguntas para ellos, que en la sexta fase a estas Gerentes de Salud Mental se les realizó un análisis factorial exploratorio y confirmatorio e identificaron sus factores principales y su impacto en el desarrollo de la Salud Mental Sistema de evaluación de la Organización Mundial de la Salud. Utilizando el software PLS de 11 componentes y 95 preguntas sugeridas, se han identificado 6 factores que influyen El desarrollo de herramientas cuyos coeficientes de impacto incluyen: Liderazgo y Gobernanza (0,972), salud mental y uso de servicios electrónicos (0,929), Marco Político y Legislativo (0.697), análisis de estado (0.613), patrón de servicios de salud mental para trastornos comunes (0,413), servicios de promoción de salud mental (0,259). Conclusión: El desarrollo de la Herramienta de evaluación de salud mental de la Organización Mundial de la Salud en Irán ayudará a identificar la brecha de salud mental y, con respecto a los problemas, será el mejor patrón para proporcionar servicios de salud mental.

Situation Analysis for Promotion of Hot-Lines: An Experience from Iran.

BACKGROUND: The hot line services were developed in response to the perceived need for 24-hour help services in crises ranging from suicide to unwanted pregnancy. This study is aimed at analyzing the strengths, weaknesses, challenges, and suggestions of improving the performance of the help centers from the perspective of key stakeholders. METHODS: We conducted a qualitative study to elicit the key informants' opinion regarding the performance of Iranian hot-lines. All the conversations were audio-recorded with the permission of the participants. To reach the saturation limit, the number of interviews was completed in the saturation of data. Data was gathered from 15 individual in-depth interviews. Collecting and analyses of data was based on content analysis through which simultaneously during texts open coding, main concepts were extracted and then in axial coding similar concepts were categorized. RESULTS: According to the study results, there is no specific and independent system for assessing the hot- lines. One of the major weaknesses was the lack of standard protocols. Most participants believed that most of these guidelines came from the general principles of counseling and are not standard. As another point, the existence of referral services is one of the main problems of counseling lines. The most important suggestion from the majority of experts were the development of services and modification of their investments. CONCLUSIONS: The findings, in addition to providing the applied data for policy-making in the health system, will significantly contribute to the creation of scientific, technical, and skillful personnel in the community of researchers.

Who Can Provide Spiritual Counseling? A Qualitative Study from Iran.

BACKGROUND AND AIM: Given the increased prevalence of mental illnesses in recent years, many therapists and researchers use spiritual counseling (SC), which is one of the spiritual interventions. However, unfortunately, the use of this intervention by the therapists is nonscientific because the ambiguities of this issue are high in the mental health field of Iran. The aim of this study is to survey the following most important challenges: what groups are qualified to provide SC, what kind of knowledge should be known by suitable individuals, who can train spiritual counselors, what they should teach, and what teaching methods should be used. METHODS: The present conventional qualitative content analysis used deep semi-structured interview to collect data from the view of stakeholders. A total of 15 people were selected through purposive sampling. After transcription of the interviews, the data were analyzed based on the Graneheim and Lundman model. RESULTS: Results obtained from data analysis covered five main themes including SC candidates, general conditions, sciences required, SC curriculum, and spiritual counselors' training method. CONCLUSIONS: The present study has answered to the most basic questions in SC scope. Since spiritual services are rooted in our culture and religion, native guidelines should be created for them as soon as possible through conducting similar qualitative researches. Furthermore, it is worth considering teaching and training case in this scope to make spiritual service providers concern about solutions to promote these services.

Developing a Training Course for Spiritual Counselors in Health Care: Evidence from Iran.

BACKGROUND: Spiritual health can cause mental health promotion and well-being of the people's lives but it is still neglected in practice so that there is no trace of spiritual training in medical education in Iran. This study was conducted to develop a training course for spiritual counselors in the Iranian health-care system. METHODS: In this qualitative study, senior managers of the Ministry of Health (MOH) and experts in the related fields were purposively selected as the participants. Semi-structured interviews and focused group discussions (FGDs) were conducted to collect the data. After transcription of the interviews and FGDs, the data were analyzed using content analysis. RESULTS: In this package, community-based spiritual health services are offered in three forms of spiritual lifestyle education, introducing social facilities, and collaborating with the related organizations. Hospital services are offered in four forms of assessment of the spiritual status and referral, spiritual care, spiritual counseling, and providing a spiritual environment in the hospital. CONCLUSION: According to the results of the study, it is suggested that a strategic committee be established at the MOH level for establishment of these training courses as well as another strategic committee for evaluation, review, and service package promotion, and its training courses should be formed. In addition, a set of skills for spiritual assessment of patients and the related interventions should be designed for clinical skill centers of the country in the form of skill training packages.

Comparison of the Effects of Religious Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (RCBT), Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), and Sertraline on Depression and Anxiety in Patients after Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Surgery: Study Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial.

Objective: The present study aimed at comparing the effects of Religious Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (RCBT), Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), and sertraline on depression, anxiety, biomarker levels, and quality of life in patients after coronary artery bypass graft (CABG) surgery. Method: This was a randomized controlled trial with parallel groups. A total of 160 patients after CABG surgery will be screened for anxiety and depression according to clinical interviews based on Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition (DSM-IV) criteria and Hospital Anxiety Depression Scale (HADS) scores (≥ 8). To assess religious attitude, Golriz and Baraheni's Religious Attitude questionnaire will be used. Participants will be randomly allocated to 4 groups of 40 including 3 intervention groups (RCBT, CBT, and sertraline) and 1 control group (usual care). RCBT and CBT programs will consist of 12 one-hour weekly sessions. The participants in the pharmacological intervention group will receive 25-200 mg/d of sertraline for 3 months. The Short Form-36 Health Survey (SF-36) will be administered to assess the patients' quality of life. Blood samples will be taken and biomarker levels will be determined using the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The primary outcome will be reduction in anxiety and depression scores after the interventions. The secondary outcomes will be increase in quality of life scores and normalized biomarker levels after the interventions. Discussion: If RCBT is found to be more effective than the other methods; it can be used to improve patients' health status after CABG surgery. Irct ID: IRCT201404122898N5.

Spiritual Psychotherapy for Adolescents with Conduct Disorder: Designing and Piloting a Therapeutic Package.

Objective: Spiritual psychotherapy has been conceptualized in the context of love and belief as principles of existence. Spiritual psychotherapy can provide an opportunity to design programs to treat conduct disorder. The aim of this study was to introduce the Spiritual Psychotherapy Package for Adolescents with Conduct Disorder and execute it as a pilot study. Method: The intervention is a manual-guided program conducted over 14 group sessions, using the perspectives of object relations and attachment approach. It was executed for a group of eight adolescent boys with conduct disorder (mean age: 17.01 years) at Tehran reformatory. The Aggression Questionnaire and the Attachment to God Inventory were completed pre- and post-intervention. Results: There were no significant differences in outcome measures from pre- to post- intervention. Cohen's dav was applied to estimate the measure of the effect size in this study. Cohen's dav measures of avoidance and anxious attachment to God showed acceptable effect sizes. However, Cohen's dav measure of verbal aggression indicated a small effect size. Conclusion: We found evidence indicating acceptability of spiritual psychotherapy among adolescents with conduct disorder in attachment to God.

Spiritual Care for Cancer Patients in Iran.

BACKGROUND: Studies have shown that a return to spirituality is a major coping response in cancer patients so that therapists can adopt a holistic approach by addressing spirituality in their patient care. The present study was conducted to develop a guideline in the spiritual field for healthcare providers who serve cancer patients in Iran. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Relevant statements were extracted from scientific documents that through study questions were reviewed and modified by a consensus panel. RESULTS: The statements were arranged in six areas, including spiritual needs assessment, spiritual care candidates, the main components of spiritual care, spiritual care providers, the settings of spiritual care and the resources and facilities for spiritual care. CONCLUSIONS: In addition to the development and preparation of these guidelines, health policy-makers should also seek to motivate and train health service providers to offer these services and facilitate their provision and help with widespread implementation.

Effectiveness of Spiritual Group Therapy on Quality of Life and Spiritual Well-Being among Patients with Breast Cancer.

Cancer is deemed the century's major health problem, and its increasing growth during the last decades has made experts concerned more than ever. Of all types of cancer, breast cancer is regarded as the second most common disease among women. The aim of this study was to determine the effectiveness of spiritual group therapy on quality of life and spiritual well-being among patients suffering from breast cancer. The present research was carried out between March and June 2011. The sample consisted of 24 participants randomly assigned to 2 groups: an experimental group (n, 12) and a control group (n, 12). All the subjects completed questionnaires on quality of life and spiritual well-being in pretest and posttest. The experimental group received 12 sessions of spiritual group therapy. The results demonstrated improvement in quality of life and spiritual well-being in the experimental group. In conclusion, spiritual group therapy can be used to improve quality of life and spiritual well-being (religious health and existential health) among patients with breast cancer.

Integrating a suicide prevention program into the primary health care network: a field trial study in Iran.

OBJECTIVE: To describe and evaluate the feasibility of integrating a suicide prevention program with Primary Health Care services and evaluate if such system can improve screening and identification of depressive disorder, reduce number of suicide attempters, and lower rate of suicide completion. METHODOLOGY: This was a quasi-experimental trial in which one community was exposed to the intervention versus the control community with no such exposure. The study sites were two counties in Western Iran. The intervention protocol called for primary care and suicide prevention collaboration at different levels of care. The outcome variables were the number of suicides committed, the number of documented suicide attempts, and the number of identified depressed cases. RESULTS: We identified a higher prevalence of depressive disorders in the intervention site versus the control site (χ (2) = 14.8, P < 0.001). We also found a reduction in the rate of suicide completion in the intervention region compared to the control, but a higher prevalence of suicide attempts in both the intervention and the control sites. CONCLUSION: Integrating a suicide prevention program with the Primary Health Care network enhanced depression and suicide surveillance capacity and subsequently reduced the number of suicides, especially in rural areas.

Repetition of suicide attempts: data from emergency care settings in five culturally different low- and middle-income countries participating in the WHO SUPRE-MISS Study.

BACKGROUND: Attempted suicide is a strong risk factor for subsequent suicidal behaviors. Innovative strategies to deal with people who have attempted suicide are needed, particularly in resource-poor settings. AIMS: To evaluate a brief educational intervention and periodic follow-up contacts (BIC) for suicide attempters in five culturally different sites (Campinas, Brazil; Chennai, India; Colombo, Sri Lanka; Karaj, Islamic Republic of Iran; and Yuncheng, People's Republic of China) as part of the WHO Multisite Intervention Study on Suicidal Behaviors (SUPRE-MISS). METHODS: Among the 1,867 suicide attempters enrolled in the emergency departments of the participating sites, 922 (49.4%) were randomly assigned to a brief intervention and contact (BIC) group and 945 (50.6%) to a treatment as usual (TAU) group. Repeated suicide attempts over the 18 months following the index attempt - the secondary outcome measure presented in this paper - were identified by follow-up calls or visits. Subsequent completed suicide - the primary outcome measure - has been reported in a previous paper. RESULTS: Overall, the proportion of subjects with repeated suicide attempts was similar in the BIC and TAU groups (7.6% vs. 7.5%, chi(2) = 0.013; p = .909), but there were differences in rates across the five sites. CONCLUSIONS: This study from five low- and middle-income countries does not confirm the effectiveness of brief educational intervention and follow-up contacts for suicide attempters in reducing subsequent repetition of suicide attempts up to 18 months after discharge from emergency departments.