A radical proposal to deal with our prejudices

Citation:

Atwoli L. A radical proposal to deal with our prejudices. In: Oxford Transitional Justice Research. Debating International Justice in Africa (OTJR Collected Essays 2008-2010). Oxford: The Foundation for Law, Justice and Society & The Centre for Socio-Legal Studies, University of Oxford; 2010. p. 117-118.

Recent Publications

Takahashi R, Wilunda C, Magutah K, Mwaura-Tenambergen W, Atwoli L, Perngparn U. {Evaluation of alcohol screening and community-based brief interventions in rural western Kenya: A quasi-experimental study}. Alcohol and Alcoholism. 2018;53.Abstract

© The Author 2017. Medical Council on Alcohol and Oxford University Press. All rights reserved. Aims: To assess the effectiveness of community-based alcohol brief interventions (ABI) implemented by community-health workers with and without motivational talks (MT) by former drinkers, in reducing harmful and hazardous alcohol consumption.Methods: We conducted a three-arm quasi-experimental study (one control and two intervention groups) between May and December 2015 in Kakamega County, Kenya. Participants were hazardous or harmful alcohol drinkers with an Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) score of 8-19 at baseline. One intervention group received only ABI while the other received ABI + MT. The interventions' effects on AUDIT scores were analysed using linear mixed models. Logistic regression was used to analyse the interventions' effects on low-risk drinking (AUDIT score {\textless} 8) after 6 months.Results: The study included 161 participants: 52 in the control group, 52 in the only ABI group and 57 in the ABI + MT group. The mean AUDIT scores were lower in the intervention groups at 1, 3 and 6 months post-intervention; the ABI + MT group showed a greater reduction. The mean AUDIT scores over a 6-month period were lower in both intervention groups compared with the control group. The odds of low-risk drinking were almost two times higher in both intervention groups than in the control group, although the effect of only ABI on low-risk drinking was not significant.Conclusions: ABI + MT and only ABI were associated with a reduced mean AUDIT score among hazardous and high-risk drinkers in this resource-limited setting. ABI + MT was also associated with low-risk drinking in this population.Short summary: Community-based alcohol brief interventions implemented by community-health workers accompanied by motivational talks by former drinkers were associated with reduced hazardous and harmful alcohol consumption in a rural setting in western Kenya.

Fayyad J, Sampson NA, Hwang I, Adamowski T, Aguilar-Gaxiola S, Al-Hamzawi A, Andrade LHSG, Borges G, de Girolamo G, Florescu S. {The descriptive epidemiology of DSM-IV Adult ADHD in the World Health Organization World Mental Health Surveys}. ADHD Attention Deficit and Hyperactivity Disorders. 2017;9.Abstract

© 2016, Springer-Verlag Wien. We previously reported on the cross-national epidemiology of ADHD from the first 10 countries in the WHO World Mental Health (WMH) Surveys. The current report expands those previous findings to the 20 nationally or regionally representative WMH surveys that have now collected data on adult ADHD. The Composite International Diagnostic Interview (CIDI) was administered to 26,744 respondents in these surveys in high-, upper-middle-, and low-/lower-middle-income countries (68.5{%} mean response rate). Current DSM-IV/CIDI adult ADHD prevalence averaged 2.8{%} across surveys and was higher in high (3.6{%})- and upper-middle (3.0{%})- than low-/lower-middle (1.4{%})-income countries. Conditional prevalence of current ADHD averaged 57.0{%} among childhood cases and 41.1{%} among childhood subthreshold cases. Adult ADHD was significantly related to being male, previously married, and low education. Adult ADHD was highly comorbid with DSM-IV/CIDI anxiety, mood, behavior, and substance disorders and significantly associated with role impairments (days out of role, impaired cognition, and social interactions) when controlling for comorbidities. Treatment seeking was low in all countries and targeted largely to comorbid conditions rather than to ADHD. These results show that adult ADHD is prevalent, seriously impairing, and highly comorbid but vastly under-recognized and undertreated across countries and cultures.

Koenen KC, Ratanatharathorn A, Ng L, McLaughlin KA, Bromet EJ, Stein DJ, Karam EG, {Meron Ruscio} A, Benjet C, Scott K. {Posttraumatic stress disorder in the World Mental Health Surveys}. Psychological Medicine. 2017;47.Abstract

Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2017. Background Traumatic events are common globally; however, comprehensive population-based cross-national data on the epidemiology of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), the paradigmatic trauma-related mental disorder, are lacking. Methods Data were analyzed from 26 population surveys in the World Health Organization World Mental Health Surveys. A total of 71 083 respondents ages 18+ participated. The Composite International Diagnostic Interview assessed exposure to traumatic events as well as 30-day, 12-month, and lifetime PTSD. Respondents were also assessed for treatment in the 12 months preceding the survey. Age of onset distributions were examined by country income level. Associations of PTSD were examined with country income, world region, and respondent demographics. Results The cross-national lifetime prevalence of PTSD was 3.9{%} in the total sample and 5.6{%} among the trauma exposed. Half of respondents with PTSD reported persistent symptoms. Treatment seeking in high-income countries (53.5{%}) was roughly double that in low-lower middle income (22.8{%}) and upper-middle income (28.7{%}) countries. Social disadvantage, including younger age, female sex, being unmarried, being less educated, having lower household income, and being unemployed, was associated with increased risk of lifetime PTSD among the trauma exposed. Conclusions PTSD is prevalent cross-nationally, with half of all global cases being persistent. Only half of those with severe PTSD report receiving any treatment and only a minority receive specialty mental health care. Striking disparities in PTSD treatment exist by country income level. Increasing access to effective treatment, especially in low- and middle-income countries, remains critical for reducing the population burden of PTSD.

Lukoye Atwoli

Associate Professor of Psychiatry

A radical proposal to deal with our prejudices

Citation:

Recent Publications