Justin O’Dowd Case Study Mental Health
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Added on 2020-04-15
Justin O’Dowd Case Study Mental Health
Added on 2020-04-15
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JUSTIN O’DOWD CASEJustin O’Dowd CaseName of the UniversityName of the StudentAuthor Note0
JUSTIN O’DOWD CASEAnswer 1: Justin O’Dowd, a 24-year-old indigenous Australian was diagnosed with Type 2Diabetes Mellitus when he was just 15 years old.Justin’s journey was not smooth growing up. Belonging to a community that was culturallydistanced from the mainstream way of Australian life, Justin had difficulty coping with thebullying at high school. At 16, Justin had to drop out from school owing to his father’s ill health(Healthinfonet.ecu.edu.au, 2017). When his father’s health improved and Justin began to lookfor jobs and even started working as a transport driver, another incident happened thatchanged his life. Uncle Reggie, who was very close to him, passed away from heart attack. Thisevent shook Justin from the core and he was unable to recover from the shock. His well-beingwas hugely impacted by this incident.All these life-events deeply affected Justin’s well-being. Purdie, Dudgeon and Walker (2010),have identified certain factors that affect the well-being of Aboriginal peoples especiallychildren. These compriseeducational experience and alteration, parting from parents, death ofclose ones and so on. Justin’s life was affected by these factors as mentioned. He had a difficulttransition to high school and had to drop out and he had lost his family member as well.Answer 2: Justin comes from the Aboriginal community and hence his upbringing would bedifferent from other Australians. His culture, tradition and ideologies would also be unique toAboriginal peoples. This leads to the fact that Justin’s mental health is bound to be interpreteddifferently by Aboriginal peoples and those by other Australians (Browne et al. 2012, p. 59).According to the Aboriginal peoples, their way of interpreting emotion and social well-being is1
JUSTIN O’DOWD CASEmarkedly different from the Western understanding of psychological healthiness. To theAboriginal peoples, an individual’s culture, his spirituality, family, ancestry and community formthe core of his life. Any disturbance or alteration in any of these facets may lead to mentalillness.Justin’s later predicament was due to the disturbances in his social life. First was his unwantedexperience in high school where he used to be bullied. Then his father’s ill health forced him todrop out of school. Thirdly, he lost his interest in searching for or doing any job, as he could notachieve his desired goal. His mental health deteriorated further after the death of his uncle(Harlow & Clough 2014, p. 310). All these indicate the difference in the interpretation of mentalhealth of Aboriginal peoples being different from others.Answer 3: In order to help Justin come out of his mental trauma, one has to understand thecomplexities of his problem. To Aboriginal peoples, material belongings hold little value as doemotional and psychological possessions (Kelaher, Ferdinand & Paradies 2014, pp. 45-6). Onehas to acquire the understanding of the values and traditions of Aboriginal peoples tocommunicate with him. To a common Australian, it might be difficult to comprehend thedesires and necessities of an Aboriginal individual, as their way of life is very different fromothers. In addition, the impact of the low socio-economic condition of Aboriginal peoples alsocontributes to their mental illness (Beyondblue.org.au 2017). However, those belonging to asocio-economically sound family might not value the Aboriginal people’s problems and it leadsto a gap in communication. 2
JUSTIN O’DOWD CASEJustin too had to face communication problems with his peers during high school that lead tohim being bullied. This provides an instance that Aboriginal peoples need to be talked to in theway they can comprehend. Thus, if a healthcare practioner wants to communicate with Justinregarding his mental illness, one has to first recognize his actual problem and value his socialand economic background (YouTube 2017). Once the attitude towards Aboriginal peoplesaltered, it would be easier for the healthcare practitioner to communicate with Justin and helphim.Answer 4: Family connection is most valued in Aboriginal cultures. Family gives them acollective identity. When a child goes through the phase of depression, it is important for thehealthcare practitioner to contact his family and develop a bond with them. Family mightinclude uncles, aunts and cousins as well. In case of Justin, his extended family was more closeto him than even his immediate family. He was devastated by the death of his Uncle Reggie. To help Justin recover from his mental condition, it is imperative for the health care staff todevelop a good bond not only with Justin but also with his family. A healthcare practitioner hasto follow certain things in order to establish a partnership or bond with Justin and his family.Respect towards their social and cultural background should be the top priority for a healthcarepractitioner in order to develop partnership with Justin or his family. The healthcarepractitioner must understand the fact that Justin has great value and respect for his family andcommunity (YouTube 2017). Keeping this mind, he or she can approach Justin and startconversing with him on these topics. The same thing can be done to develop bond with Justin’s3
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