Search

Background: Stigma towards people diagnosed with a severe mental disorder (SMD) is one of the main obstacles for these service users to receive timely and relevant healthcare. This study was undertaken to understand how stigmatizing attitudes are demonstrated towards people with SMD in primary healthcare centers (PHC) from the perspective of those affected and primary healthcare professionals., Methods: We used a qualitative exploratory research design to contrast the differences and similarities regarding stigmatizing attitudes towards people with SMD in primary healthcare centers (PHC) from the perspective of two groups: (i) people diagnosed with a severe mental disorder, and (ii) healthcare professionals. Data was collected through semi-structured interviews and discussion groups and subsequently analyzed using Atlas.ti software., Results: Our results indicate that both service users and healthcare professionals manifest stereotypes, prejudices, and discriminatory behavior in health care. In addition, structural aspects of the health system and organizational culture appear to contribute to stigmatization. Both groups agreed that there is a need for healthcare professionals to have more education, specialization, and skill development related to mental health issues., Conclusions: Interventions to reduce the stigma towards people with SMD in PHC must consider delivery of information about mental disorders, development of skills in the healthcare professionals, and modifications in the culture of the health centers., Competing Interests: Competing interestsThe authors declare that they have no competing interests., (© The Author(s) 2020.)

A determinant of particular relevance in human development is the socioeconomic status (SES) and, specifically, low SES and poverty. Likewise, family environment is essential in the development of children and a potential mediator or moderator of the effect of broader social conditions., Objective: To analyze the role of parenting stress as a mediating variable of the relationship between SES and both externalized and internalized behaviors in preschool children., Subjects and Method: Descriptive secondary base study based on the Longitudinal Survey of Chilean First Infancy that selected a stratified sample, representative by clusters, of 9.996 children from 3 to 5 years old and their caregivers, that completed a battery of instruments for measuring SES variables, parenting stress and externalized and internalized behaviors. The analysis used a linear model with least square estimate. As hypothesis testing, the Dm (an adaptation of the F-test for multiple imputation method) was used., Results: The mediation model of parenting stress in the relationship between SES and both externalized and internalized behaviors was confirmed for the latter; regarding externalized behaviors a model of moderation was observed, being the stress influence lower on the low SES., Conclusions: Parental stress showed a clear relationship with the presence of externalized and internalized behaviors, stronger than the SES. The relationship between SES and parenting stress is very important to understand the processes that affect children’s development.