This critical need correlates with the "Improving the patients' experience of care" element in the IHI's Triple Aim. Patients with mental health concerns require specialized care to ensure their well-being and address potential behavioral changes during hospitalization. Proper training for healthcare professionals in a medical-surgical setting is essential to create a more comprehensive and satisfying patient experience. In addition, by addressing mental health needs, this initiative contributes to the broader goals of population health improvement, as individuals with psychiatric disorders are at risk for similar health problems as any other subset of the population. Therefore, investing in training for medical-surgical staff aligns with the Triple Aim's objective of enhancing patient experience and overall population health.
Part 2
An actual barrier to addressing the need for proper training on mental health illnesses in a medical-surgical unit is the gap in educational resources and curriculum for healthcare professionals working in medical-surgical settings. This gap is noticeable since many training programs predominantly focus on general medical-surgical care and leave mental health education as a secondary consideration. This lack of specialized training can result in a workforce ill-equipped to handle psychiatric emergencies and contribute to suboptimal patient care. Another actual barrier is resource allocation. Many healthcare organizations contend with limited resources in terms of time and funding. The high demand for resources across various healthcare priorities often leads to competing interests and makes it challenging to prioritize and invest in comprehensive mental health training initiatives (Endale et al., 2020).
Another actual barrier is institutional resistance to adopting new practices and integrating mental health training into existing workflows. Healthcare systems may resist change due to entrenched practices and prioritize other initiatives perceived as more immediate or aligned with established routines. The resistance can also be due to the general stigma surrounding mental health issues. This can hinder open discussions and prioritization of training in this area and impede progress in addressing the need. Furthermore, a potential barrier is a lack of awareness or advocacy for mental health training within the healthcare community. Although there is an increasing recognition of mental health's importance, there is still insufficient awareness regarding the specific needs and challenges faced by medical-surgical professionals. This lack of awareness could result in limited advocacy efforts to prioritize mental health training within broader healthcare agendas.
References
Endale, T., Qureshi, O., Ryan, G. K., Esponda, G. M., Verhey, R., Eaton, J., De Silva, M., & Murphy, J. (2020). Barriers and drivers to capacity-building in Global Mental Health Projects. International Journal of Mental Health Systems, 14(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13033-020-00420-4
Tesfa, S., Giru, B. W., & Bedada, T. (2020). Mental Distress and Associated Factors among Hospitalized Medical Surgical Adult Inpatients in Public Hospitals, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 2020. Cross-Sectional Study. https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-97696/v1
Mentors
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