An African proverb says, "You cannot uproot the baobab tree with one hand," meaning that people's hesitancy or trust towards modernization is sometimes ingrained in the traditional belief system. One must first explore the strength or depth of the belief system. I recently came across a research publication on Pubmed titled "Indigenous Mental Healthcare and Human Rights Abuses in Nigeria. Reading this report allows me to reflect on how these beliefs and the stigma of mental illness persist among African immigrants in the diaspora, affecting seeking appropriate care. I was eager to contact the researchers of the paper, Dr. Adegboyega Ogunwale and Dr. Oladayo Bifarin, to further discuss their findings. I wanted to further explore with both guests how traditional beliefs played a role in Africans' perception and management of mental illness. And to explore how the stigma hinders patients from seeking the appropriate mental health care both among Africans. Our discussion covers so many areas of issues on mental health care in Nigeria, including internalized and externalized stigma on mental health framework. The guests discussed the importance of cultural competency in mental health care and the language used by the caregivers. There was a discussion on limited government resources for citizens suffering from mental illness. My guests further discussed how the stigma surrounding mental illness or lack of availability of quality care contributes to addiction or an increase in the number of people addicted to drugs, alcohol, or other forms of addiction. Dr. Adegboyega explained how gender influences the experience of abuse in Indigenous mental health treatment settings. For example, women who may be going through mental disorders or experiencing psychosis may be labeled as witches and/or stoned to death.
Bios:
Dr. Adegboyega Ogunwale is the Chief Consultant Psychiatrist at Neuropsychiatric Hospital Aro, Abeokuta, and Chair of the Emerging Forensic Systems Interest Group, International Association of Forensic Mental Health Services. Dr. Ogunwale's key areas of expertise include Forensic Psychiatry, General Adult Psychiatry, Mental Health Legislation, and Medical Law & Ethics. His research work has focused on general adult psychiatry, abnormal homicide, mental health services in prison, and mental health legislation. He was awarded the Rafaelsen Young Investigator's Award of the International College of Neuropsychopharmacology in 2011 and the UK Chevening Scholarship in 2017. Dr Adegboyega Ogunwale joined the Department of Forensic & Neurodevelopmental Sciences as an MPhil/PhD student in June 2022 and is looking forward to completing his studies in 2026. Dr. Ogunwale completed his MBBS (Medicine & Surgery) at the University of Ilorin, Nigeria, and his MSc in Forensic Mental Health Research at King's College, London. Dr Ogunwale is a member of the Royal College of Psychiatrists (UK) and a fellowship with the West African College of Physicians.
Dr. Oladayo Bifarin is a Clinical academic- Registered Nurse (Mental Health), Research & Effectiveness Lead at Mersey Care NHS FT, Liverpool, and a Sr. Lecturer (Mental Health Nursing). Dr. Bifarin is an applied health researcher with a keen interest in examining mental health care pathways across the lifespan, specifically focusing on understanding culture's influence on the caregiving process and reducing health inequalities. He is a Sr. Research Leader (SRL) within the NIHR Sr. Research Leader Program for Nurses and Midwives. Dr. Bifarin teaches pre- and post-registration nursing modules such as Evidence-based Practice and contributes to teaching ethics, clinical governance, social gerontology, and Qualitative research paradigms and methods. Dr. Bifarin holds PhD from the University of Bradford, United Kingdom; he earned his MSc from Edge Hill University, United Kingdom, and his BSc from Obafemi Awolowo University, Nigeria.
(Photo Time Magazine The Niger Delta, Nigeria. October 2012)