Citation

Snodgrass WJ, Rayner V, Rice SM, Purcell R, Bowers J. Aust. J. Rural Health 2020; 28(4): 327-337.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2020, Association for Australian Rural Nurses; National Rural Health Alliance, Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/ajr.12656

PMID

32776400

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate Deadly Thinking, a social and emotional well-being promotion program targeted to remote and rural Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. Deadly Thinking aims to improve emotional health literacy, psychological well-being and attitudes towards associated help-seeking.
DESIGN: Participants completed pre/post-test evaluations via a brief self-report survey immediately before and after the Deadly Thinking workshop.
SETTING: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in rural and regional Australia.
PARTICIPANTS: Data were obtained from 413 participants (69.8% female, mean age 41.6 years), of whom 70.4% identified as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islanders.
INTERVENTION: Deadly Thinking workshops involve participant's engaging with a series of videos and facilitated group discussions with other participants related to social and emotional well-being topics relevant to individuals and communities.
MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Participants completed measures of psychological distress, suicidal ideation, substance use, changes in attitudes towards help-seeking and help-seeking intentions and satisfaction with the workshop. Additionally, participants in a train-the-trainer workshop rated their perceived confidence to deliver the program post-workshop.
RESULT: Participants reported positive perceptions of community safety and well-being and low rates of marked distress, with no significant difference between train-the-trainer and community workshop participants.

RESULTS indicated significant improvement in help-seeking intentions post-workshop and high rates of satisfaction with workshop components.
CONCLUSION: Initial evaluation indicates good acceptability and feasibility of delivering the Deadly Thinking program in rural and remote Indigenous communities; however, more robust evaluation of the program is warranted using controlled conditions to measure effectiveness, particularly for changing in help-seeking behaviour.

Language: en

Keywords

Adult; Attitude to Health; community intervention; Female; Health Promotion; Health Services, Indigenous; help-seeking; Humans; Male; mental health; Mental Health; mental health promotion; Middle Aged; Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander; Northern Territory; Risk Factors; rural and remote; Rural Population; Social Support; Suicide Prevention