title: Stigma and discrimination experienced by people living with severe and persistent mental illness in assertive community treatment settings.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To describe the perceived experiences of stigma and discrimination among people living with severe and persistent mental illness in assertive community treatment (ACT teams) settings in New South Wales (NSW), Australia.
  
  
  METHODS
  The Discrimination and Stigma Scale (DISC) was used in this cross-sectional study with people living with severe and persistent mental illness. The DISC is a reliable and valid, quantitative and qualitative instrument used to explore and measure levels of negative, anticipated and positive discrimination. Relevant clinical history and socio-demographic information were also collected.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 50 clients participated, with 40 (80%) reporting experienced negative discrimination in at least one life area. Negative discrimination was most commonly experienced in being avoided or shunned (n=25, 50%), by neighbours (n=24, 48%) and family (n=23, 46%). Anticipated discrimination was common, with half of participants (n=25, 50%) feeling the need to conceal their mental health diagnosis.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Discrimination was highly prevalent in everyday aspects of life. While healthcare professionals often tend to increase perceived stigma and discrimination, this was only experienced in interactions with general health professionals, while interactions with ACT team members decreased perceived stigma and increased positive discrimination. This indicates that healthcare professionals potentially have a significant role in reducing stigma and discrimination in mental health and that such an effect may be optimised in an ACT team setting.
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Pharmacy, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
authors.forename: Jing
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Ye
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Pharmacy, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
authors.forename: Timothy F
authors.initials: TF
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Lower North Shore Assertive Outreach Team, North Shore Ryde Mental Health Service, Northern Sydney Local Health District, St Leonards, NSW, Australia.
authors.forename: Diane
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Paul
authors.affiliation: Lower North Shore Assertive Outreach Team, North Shore Ryde Mental Health Service, Northern Sydney Local Health District, St Leonards, NSW, Australia.
authors.forename: Rebecca
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: McCahon
authors.affiliation: Lower North Shore Assertive Outreach Team, North Shore Ryde Mental Health Service, Northern Sydney Local Health District, St Leonards, NSW, Australia.
authors.forename: Sumitra
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Shankar
authors.affiliation: Brain & Mind Centre, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia Illawarra Institute for Mental Health, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia.
authors.forename: Alan
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rosen
authors.affiliation: Faculty of Pharmacy, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, Australia claire.oreilly@sydney.edu.au.
authors.forename: Claire L
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: O'Reilly
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003156:Community Mental Health Services; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006282:Health Personnel; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy; D008603:Mental Health; D008875:Middle Aged; D009517:New South Wales; D063508:Social Discrimination / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D057545:Social Stigma
keywords: Schizophrenia; discrimination; healthcare professionals; mental disorders; mental health services; social stigma