Citation

Hassan AN, Ragheb H, Malick A, Abdullah Z, Ahmad Y, Sunderji N, Islam F. Community Ment. Health J. 2020; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2020, Holtzbrinck Springer Nature Publishing Group)

DOI

10.1007/s10597-020-00699-0

PMID

32844327

Abstract

The stigma of addiction in Muslim communities is a significant barrier to accessing mental health services. The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of a newly developed spiritually-adapted addictions psychoeducational program with adult Muslims in the mosque setting. Ninety-three individuals were recruited from nine different mosques within Toronto, Canada. Ninety-minute seminars were presented. This study used a convergent mixed method design. There was a significant increase in the participants' self-reported knowledge (t = 3.6; p < 0.001), a more positive attitude on two scales (t = 3.7; p < 0.001 and t = 2.9; p = 0.005) and an increase in willingness to seek help from a medical doctor and mental health professional (t = 4.4; p < 0.001 and t = 2.2; p = 0.03, respectively) post-seminar as compared to baseline. Qualitative data confirmed these changes. Evidence-informed spiritually-adapted outreach program in the mosque setting can help reduce addiction related stigma in Muslim communities.

Language: en

Keywords

Attitude; Knowledge; Mental health; Addiction; Help-seeking; Muslims; Psychoeducation