Attitudes of Healthcare Professionals towards Mental Illness: A Survey Study in Ras Al Khaimah

Background: Negative and stigmatizing attitudes and behaviours towards people with mental health problems have the potential to lead to a lack of access to care, under-treatment, social marginalization, and can undermine the relationship between the patient and provider. The study aimed to measure attitude of healthcare professionals towards mental illness. Methods: Across sectional descriptive study was conducted over one month from April to May 2019 at Ras Al khaimah medical and health Science University and affiliated health care facilities. Mental Illness Clinicians’ Attitudes Scale version 4 Questionnaire was used to collect data from participants after obtaining their informed consent with assured confidentiality. Results: The study included 113 health care professionals. The mean score of attitude of health care professionals towards mental illness was 57.8 ± 10.8 out of 96. Negative attitudes were reported about the dangerousness, respect and suspicion over recovery of people with mental health problems, interactions with them in clinical practice, and fear of disclosure to colleagues or friends about mental health problems and confidence in capabilities of assessing mental health problems in primary care. The significant positive attitude was found among participants who were university faculty than those who worked in hospitals and Primary care centres (P = 0.04). Health care professionals who were university faculty and have reported more than 10 years of experience as health professionals reported significantly higher mean scores (P < 0.05). Neither age nor gender, or nationality appeared to be related to overall attitudinal responses towards mental illness. Conclusion: Educational programs might be useful to raise awareness towards the stigmatizing attitudes towards mental health and mental illnesses.

Intravenous Fluorouracil versus Oral Capecitabine: Postoperative Chemoradiation for Gastric Cancer

Purpose: Aim of this prospective, phase III trial was to compare the efficacy and toxicity of intravenous fluorouracil and oral capecitabine when given concurrently with radiation in adjuvant sitting for adenocarcinoma of the stomach after gastrectomy with D2 resection. Patients and Method: The study included 60 patients having histologically proven adenocarcinoma of the stomach or gastroesophageal junction;stage T2-4 N0-3 M0 after gastrectomy with D2 lymph node dissection. Eligible patients were randomly assigned to receive adjuvant radiotherapy concurrently with intravenous fluorouracil [arm A] or oral capecitabine [arm B]. Results: Ten patients cannot complete their whole treatment course because of either progressive [4 patients;2 arm A and 2 arm B] or G 3 toxicity [1 patient] or refuse to complete their treatment [5 patients;3 arm A and 2 arm B]. Patients received fluorouracil have significant increase grade 3 or 4 hematological [neutropenia] and gastrointestinal (diarrhoea, anorexia, and vomiting). During a median follow-up period of 24 months, the 2-year disease free and overall survivals in this study were 60% and 63.3%, for groups A and B respectively, while overall survival were 63.3% and 70% for groups A and B respectively without significant differences. Conclusion: Oral capecitabine concurrently with radiation therapy has comparable efficacy and favourable toxicity profile when compared to infusion fluorouracil as postoperative adjuvant therapy for gastric adenocarcinoma.