title: The impact of a mental health teaching programme on rural and urban secondary school students' perceptions of mental illness in southwest Nigeria.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Available evidence suggests that children hold negative views about mental illness. Studies show that it is possible for schools and mental health services to jointly undertake child and adolescent mental health promotion. This study aimed to assess the impact of a school based mental health awareness programme aimed at increasing mental health literacy and reducing negative views about persons with mental illness.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 154 secondary school students in Ibadan, southwest Nigeria, were allocated into an intervention and a control group. Students in the intervention group received a three-hour mental health awareness session. All students completed a pre-, immediate post, and six month post-intervention questionnaire on their views about mental health and illness.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was a significant difference in the mean knowledge scores between the intervention and the control group post-intervention, but no significant differences in attitude and social distance scores.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Brief training workshops appear able to produce small but positive changes in the mental health knowledge of young Nigerians.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine , University of Ibadan, University College Hospital , Ibadan , 200212 Nigeria.
authors.forename: Tolulope
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Bella-Awusah
authors.forename: Babatunde
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Adedokun
authors.forename: Nisha
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Dogra
authors.forename: Olayinka
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Omigbodun
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D004493:Education / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D006266:Health Education / Q000379:methods*; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000523:psychology*; D009549:Nigeria; D015397:Program Evaluation / Q000379:methods* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D012424:Rural Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D013334:Students / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014505:Urban Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*