[Social representations of psychiatric care in Tunisia]

The progress in the field of the treatment of the mental illnesses is considerable. However, the clinical reality confirms the delay in access to care for numerous patients. This avoidance is due,in big part, to the pejorative representations of the psychiatrics'system care.

To assess the social images in the Tunisian population, regarding 3 stereotypes: "insane", "mentally ill" and "depressive".

The used instrument is the socio-anthropological questionnaire of the " Mental health in general population: images and realities" survey.

The medicinal treatment occupies the first place of the planned care for an "insane" and for the "mentally ill". For the "depressive" and for our self, population would rather use relational support. Also, we notice that the family, in spite of its suffering and of the undergone daily load, is given is a central place in perception of the care for psychiatric pathologies.

Finally, an "insane" is not perceived as possibly cured while it is more expected for the "mentally ill" and even more for the "depressive", even without any medical intervention. In the term of our analysis, let us underline the misunderstanding of the available therapeutic possibilities in psychiatry and the necessity of large-scale raising awareness.