Mental health literacy: a pillar for the development of healthy communities

ABSTRACT

An integrated health perspective emphasizes the importance of assessing mental health literacy in different population groups. The level of literacy in Mental Health indicates individual educational needs for maintaining mental balance. Risk and protective factors for mental health are identified, and there is an urgent need to increase community literacy. The article refers to the study that will be carried out to determine and compare mental health literacy in the young and adult popula-tion of the Region. It will have two stages pilot study and main study. In this paper, we will use the Questionnaire for Evaluation of Literacy in Mental Health - QuALIS-Mental, developed by Jorm et al. in 1997, in the version adapted for Portugal of the National Survey of Mental Literacy in Young People - Interview version by Loureiro et al. in 2012 and the Inventory of Beliefs on Mental Illness - short version, also by Loureiro in 2008. The results will be representative of the population in study, resi-dent in the Region ́s municipalities. The pilot study will cover four groups residing in two municipalities, two aged between 14 and 18 years and two between 19 and 64. It will be a transversal, exploratory and quantitative study, with the collabora-tion of Health Centres nurses. After analysis, the results will be disseminated in the municipal communities, the population and the local entities. It will be considered useful to identify gaps in mental health literacy and to combine synergies using the knowledge gained to improve community mental health planning

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