A study by epidemiologist Puja Nair has revealed alarming levels of public stigma towards mental illness among Fiji National University students.
The research surveyed 400 non-medical and medical students across various campuses. This Revealed that stigma affects students’ willingness to seek help. It exacerbates mental health issues and contributes to social exclusion.
A significant proportion of students reported feeling stigmatized due to their mental health status. We align with global trends observed by the World Health Organization (WHO) and regional studies.
Nair’s research emphasizes the urgent need for targeted interventions to combat mental health stigma among university students.
The majority of students agreed that people with mental illness should be employed and were willing to advise them to seek professional help. Medication and psychotherapy were popular treatments.
Students had good knowledge of depression, stress, schizophrenia, and drug addiction. Nair emphasizes addressing these issues to improve students’ mental health and well-being.
This will create a more empathetic and supportive academic community. Higher mental health knowledge scores result in lower attribution scores.
It will indicate that individuals with higher mental health knowledge are less likely to stigmatize others.
Click to read more about Fiji
