The design and evaluation of a training program on culturally competent psychosocial care provision for men who have sex with men in Senegal.

Men who have sex with men (MSM) experience a high degree of discrimination and marginalization in Senegal. Homophobia is pervasive in Senegalese society at the cultural, religious, and political levels. Its effects are reflected in the disproportionately high levels of depression, anxiety, and substance abuse among men who have sex with men when compared to the general population. Given the widespread stigma and the lack of structural support, healthcare providers play a critical role in reconciling the physical and psychological needs of men who have sex with men. This led to the design of a training program that aimed to improve the capacity of healthcare providers to deliver MSM-competent psychosocial care. The training was delivered virtually to 37 Senegal-based nurses and physicians. The program was quantitatively and qualitatively evaluated using pre- and post-testing. The findings demonstrate a general post-training increase in knowledge acquisition (9. 23%, p-value = 0.0021) and a 6.39% reduction in homophobia, which was statistically significant (p = 0.0376); with male providers outperforming female providers, and physicians outperforming nurses. This demonstrates the effectiveness and applicability of the program to support the psychosocial needs of men who have sex with men, and its capacity for future and broader implementation among healthcare providers.

Feminist contributions on sexual experiences of women with serious mental illness: a literature review.

This paper aims to explore the contributions of research that include gender perspective in analysing the sexual experiences of women diagnosed with serious mental illness and to identify any barriers and systems that impede sexual fulfilment. We have developed a qualitative literature review using the PRISMA statement. The databases SCOPUS, WOS and PsychINFO were used in this review. Studies were included if they were published up to March 15, 2022, and only studies in English were included. An initial database search was preformed; upon screening for eligibility, there remained 16 studies that explored the sexual experiences of women with diagnoses of serious mental illness. The studies were analysed by a thematic synthesis. Data was coded line-by-line which generated descriptive themes, resulting in four synthesised findings. The four synthesised findings that derived from the reviewed studies were stigma and subjectivity, the experience of interpersonal relationships, the socialisation of women and the effects of psychiatric hegemony. A feminist perspective highlights the interrelationship between gender and stigma as it relates to serious mental illness and sexuality. A feminist perspective and an intersectional approach should be adopted at the intersubjective and structural level to account for the complexity of human experience and to subvert the heteropatriarchal system.