Facilitators:
• Prof. Dr. Mazhar Malik, Head of Psychiatry Department, Watim Medical College, Islamabad
• Dr. Sawera Mansoor, Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Foundation University, Islamabad
• Dr. Usama Bin Zubair, Executive Director, Pakistan Institute of Mental Health, Rawalpindi Abstract:
This symposium explores how social psychiatry can play a transformative role in caring for the most vulnerable populations in Pakistan, where clinical relevance must intersect with socio-cultural realities. With internal displacement, socioeconomic adversity, and stigma shaping mental health outcomes, our symposium presents empirical insights and culturally anchored responses to these challenges.
The presentation, “Health Belief Model and Barriers to Care in Mental Health Settings,” investigates the structural and attitudinal barriers faced by patients in a private psychiatric facility in Islamabad. Using the Health Belief Model as a framework, the study highlights how low perceived need, stigma, and lack of access significantly delay psychiatric care, especially among women, the undereducated, and rural residents.
The second presentation, “Post-Traumatic Growth and Religious Coping Among Refugees in Azad Jammu and Kashmir,” shifts the lens from trauma to resilience. This correlational study examines how positive religious coping mechanisms contribute to psychological growth among displaced individuals living in refugee camps. Findings show that younger, single, and employed individuals with higher income are more likely to demonstrate post-traumatic growth, particularly when they engage in constructive spiritual practices.
Together, these presentations underscore the need to integrate culturally sensitive, community-based interventions into psychiatric care. This symposium offers a powerful call to action to ground clinical practices in lived experiences, bridge belief systems with biomedical models, and redefine how we care for the vulnerable in fragile settings.
MazharMalik
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