Treatment Multiplicity in a Nigerian Psychiatric Hospital

Area of Science:

• Medical Anthropology
• Global Mental Health
• Psychiatry

Background:

• Mental healthcare practices vary significantly across different cultural contexts.
• Understanding the interplay of biomedical, sociocultural, and spiritual factors is crucial for effective treatment.
• Aro Neuropsychiatric Hospital in Nigeria provides a unique case study for examining diverse mental healthcare approaches.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the multiplicity of mental healthcare practices at Aro Neuropsychiatric Hospital, Nigeria.
• To explore the intersection of biomedical, sociocultural, and spiritual dimensions in mental healthcare delivery.
• To analyze how global standards are adapted within a resource-constrained, culturally specific setting.

Main Methods:

• Ethnographic research conducted over nine months within the hospital setting.
• Application of Annemarie Mol's theory of multiple bodies to analyze care practices.
• Qualitative analysis of formal interventions and complementary healing practices.

Main Results:

• Mental healthcare at the hospital integrates formal biomedical interventions (psychotropic medication, occupational therapy) with spiritual counseling and moral rehabilitation.
• Yoruba ontology and local cultural beliefs about personhood and recovery significantly shape treatment approaches.
• Global holistic frameworks are adapted to suit the specific resource limitations and cultural realities of the setting.

Conclusions:

• Mental healthcare in Nigeria demonstrates a complex integration of diverse healing modalities.
• Culturally resonant recovery models are essential for effective and ethical mental healthcare in diverse global settings.
• This study contributes to the global mental health discourse by highlighting context-specific adaptations of care.