WHO QualityRights Online Training for Mental Health Workers in Ghana

Background. People with psychosocial disabilities are commonly exposed to human rights violations within the mental health care system and in the general community. Such violations occur in all countries and are not only a problem from an ethical point of view but additionally have profound repercussions on the health of persons with psychosocial disabilities. Although psychiatric facilities are the very institutions responsible for the care and support of people with psychosocial disabilities, they are also often places in which persons with psychosocial disabilities are victims of inhumane treatments, including psychological, physical, and sexual abuse or violence. To stop these human rights violations, there is a need to reform mental health systems and thus change mental health professionals' practices leading to violations of people with psychosocial disabilities' rights. However, for this to happen, two main barriers need to be addressed. One barrier is the lack of human rights literacy among mental health professionals. The second barrier is that many mental health professionals hold negative attitudes towards people with psychosocial disabilities.

Recently, the World Health Organization (WHO) has developed the QualityRights (QR) online training. This training includes modules to increase knowledge about the rights of people with psychosocial disabilities and change the negative attitudes towards them and their role as rights holders. Furthermore, the training provides mental health providers with the skills necessary to advocate for a human rights-based approach in mental health. Currently, there is a growing interest in the QualityRights training, and the WHO is implementing it in different countries. However, the efficacy of this intervention has not been rigorously evaluated.

Objectives. To determine the efficacy of the QR online training compared with a placebo intervention (online training on Coronavirus Disease - 2019) in improving the knowledge about human rights, the attitudes towards people with psychosocial disabilities, and the practices related to substitute-decision making and coercion among mental health professionals.

Methods. This is a cluster randomized controlled trial (cRCT) being conducted in Ghana. An estimated sample of 252 mental health professionals will be recruited from across 28 clusters within three psychiatric hospitals. Participants will be divided in two arms to receive either the WHO QR online training on human rights issues in mental health or the WHO Coronavirus online training for health professionals. The primary outcomes, assessed post-training, at 3 months, and at 6 months are increase in the knowledge about human rights and mental health and improvement on the attitudes towards persons with psychosocial disabilities. Secondary outcomes, assessed at 3 and 6 months, consist of improvements in the mental health professionals' practices, burn-out levels, and well-being. All data will be collected online.

Discussion. Given the impact human rights violations have on the health of persons with psychosocial disabilities, an effort is needed to carry out methodologically strong research in this area. The study proposed will provide robust evidence to support further investment in interventions such as the WHO QualityRights training and make steps forward promoting the rights of people with psychosocial disabilities.