The growing demand of mental health services among the population and the stigma associated with mental health conditions have resulted in a shortage of skilled nurses competent in delivering quality care to persons experiencing mental health conditions. This suggests the need to develop a systematic and comprehensive curriculum to prepare nursing students for a career in mental health nursing. An integrative review on empirical studies was conducted based on Cooper's five-stage integrative review framework to investigate the different pedagogies and to highlight the elements of an effective curriculum for teaching mental health nursing. All quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-method studies published between 2009 and 2019 that examined pedagogies in mental health nursing for nursing undergraduates were included in this review. Databases of interest included PubMed, Cochrane, PsycINFO, Embase, Scopus, Web of Science, and ProQuest Dissertations and Theses. To ensure methodological rigour and validity, the 23 included studies were independently evaluated by two authors through critical appraisal tools developed by Joanna Briggs Institute for quantitative and qualitative studies. Results from this review were categorized into three themes: (i) the deployment of simulation; (ii) pedagogies in enhancing critical thinking; and (iii) importance of consumer-oriented educational experiences. These results suggested that students would benefit substantially from in-depth discussions, critical reflections, and real-life experiences. Mental health nursing curricula should incorporate simulations, pedagogies for critical thinking, and consumers' lived experience to supplement the clinical rotations.

The conceptualisation of recovery in mental healthcare, for which two definitions (‘clinical’ and ‘personal’) prevail, remains inconclusive. In most curricula of medical education, undergraduates are taught straightforward concepts of clinical recovery, which result in their perfunctory and rudimentary understanding. A qualitative descriptive approach was adopted to explore medical undergraduates’ perceptions of recovery for people with mental health conditions. Participants were recruited from a Singapore-based university through convenience sampling; the required sample size was determined by data saturation. Individual face-to-face interviews were conducted through Zoom, an online conferencing platform using semi-structured questions from March to July 2021. Recordings of the interviews were transcribed verbatim and thematically analysed. The Consolidated Criteria for Reporting Qualitative Research (COREQ) checklist guided the reporting of this study. Seventeen medical students with the majority (fifteen) of them in their fourth year of medical undergraduate education participated in this study. Four themes were identified: the relationship between mental illnesses and well-being; opinions on mental well-being; understanding of mental illnesses; and perceptions of recovery from mental illnesses. The medical undergraduates in this study predominantly conceptualised recovery based on functions, although many also agreed on respecting patients’ perspectives in defining it. This aligns with contemporary approaches that emphasise more shared decision-making opportunities and empowering people with mental health conditions. Accordingly, our findings highlighted the need for foundational medical education to incorporate these constructs in their curricula and strategise to provide more meaningful discussions about them.

Introduction: In occupational therapy, emphasis is placed on the complex interplay between the client, the occupation and the environment, providing an opportunity for its practitioners to adopt recovery-oriented outcomes in interventions for people with mental health conditions. In this study, we seek to understand occupational therapy undergraduates’ perceptions of recovery for people with mental health conditions. Method: A qualitative descriptive study was conducted at a university in Singapore, which provides a pre-registration occupational therapy programme. Seventeen undergraduates were recruited (year 1, n = 5; year 2, n = 7 and year 3, n = 5). A semi-structured interview guide was used during the interview. Data collection took place from June to August 2022. Results: Using thematic analysis, two macro themes were discerned: the understanding of mental health conditions and the meanings of recovery. Sub-themes were created under each grouping to describe the data. Conclusions: This study explored the perceptions of mental health recovery among occupational therapy undergraduates. Occupational therapy students appeared to be well-aligned with personal and functional recovery perspectives when providing support for people with mental health conditions. However, there seems to be a need to emphasise the more nuanced aspects of delivering care within the culturally diverse setting of Singapore.