Assessing Mental Health as an Integral Part of Health in Dandenong

This report examines mental health as an integral component of overall health within the Dandenong community, Australia, highlighting the prevalence of mental health conditions and their connection to biological, experiential, and social factors. It reflects on the impact of social determinants of health, particularly economic inequalities, on the mental wellbeing of residents aged 18-24, who are identified as a high-risk group. The report uses Gibb’s reflective cycle to analyze personal feelings, evaluation, and analysis of mental health issues in Dandenong. It concludes that stigma and lack of community support hinder the effective utilization of available health interventions. An action plan is proposed for nursing practitioners to understand socio-cultural factors and develop tailored care plans, emphasizing harm reduction and empowerment within the Dandenong community. Desklib offers a platform for students to access similar solved assignments and past papers for enhanced learning.

Running head: Mental health as the health in Dandenong as the community
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Mental health as the health in Dandenong as the community
Student’s Name
University

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Mental health as the health in Dandenong as the community
Introduction
The World Bank defines mental health as a state of well-being for realizing one’s
potential to cope with the stress of life, work productively and make a contribution to the
community. In Australia, 45% of the population is assumed to experience mental health
condition through anxiety and depression. The city of Dandenong is not a direct provider of
mental health solutions but rather only promotes the well-being and health of residents (Greater
Dandenong City of Opportunity, 2018). This transcript is a presentation on mental health and
wellbeing on the Dandenong community.
Why mental health exists
The condition exists due to challenges in dealing with biological factors, life experiences
and family history of health problems. This is due to the inability of people to cope with life thus
making them exhibit certain behavioral tendencies (Nordqvist, 2017). This, therefore, is a
characteristic of a lack of emotional and social maturity due to a lack of adequate integration of
instincts to both the individual and others. The outcome is a lack of balance of love, work and
leisure. The Mental Health Foundation (2016) suggests that mental health mostly exists through
mental disorders that people experience like anxiety disorders, mood disorders, and
schizophrenia. Anxiety disorders exist in the form of panic disorders, phobia, obsessive-
compulsive disorder, and post-traumatic stress. Mood disorders can exist through major
depressions, people with bipolar disorders, seasonal affective disorder, and persistent depressive
disorder.
How the issue exists in the community

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Mental health does not exist as a disease but rather a pattern of behavior that
characterizes people as having the problem. This means that the condition exists as a social
construct in the community due to the variation in the normal behavior expected by the society
(Compton & Shi, 2015). Therefore, the condition exists as a challenge of coping with intra-
personal, spiritual, economic and political challenges that people face.
Who is more likely to be affected?
According to Allen, Balfour, Bell, & Marmot (2014), the condition is common to people
aged between 18-85 years who are prone to experience the mental disorder at one point in life.
Since the condition is related to managing life conditions, it means that most people experience
this condition in the Dandenong community but the difference exists in how people manage the
condition. The prevalence of mental health in decreases with age and is thus more in people aged
between 18-24 years where 26% of this population is affected (Heary, Hennessy, Swords, &
Corrigan, 2017). This is the preference population since it is mostly affected by social factors
that affect the risk for mental illness.
Reflection
Hampton (2010) suggests that the Gibb’s reflective cycle provides a basis for students to
reflect on their actions and develop better outcomes for improving their learning
Description
Risk factors for mental health are associated with social, economic and physical factors
within the stages of life. This means that the poor and disadvantaged suffer from the conditions
that they go through. These hard economic conditions make people in Dandenong to develop
mental stress that eventually leads to mental health problems (Australian Institute of Health and

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Welfare, 2018). When people are experiencing many inequalities, they become emotionally and
psychologically affected thus increasing their mental challenges.
Feelings
From the analysis, I discovered that people within the age of 18-24 years suffer more
because they have more social issues to deal with as compared to older and younger people
(Richards, Campania, & Muse-Burke, 2010). This is the population at risk since they are in their
active life stage. This means that they are prone to mental disorders easily as compared to the
rest of the populations.
Evaluation
From the analysis, Dandenong mental health issues related to several factors within the
community that are related to the social life that people lead. The mental health that people suffer
relates to the social life situations that people face. However, there is little that the Dandenong
city council can do since it lacks adequate resources to handle the challenge.
Analysis
From my analysis, the most common healthcare being provided to the affected population
is therapy and promoting mental health and wellbeing. These approaches focus on reducing the
burden of mental disorders that people feel and ways of ensuring that they can handle the social
issues that they face in society (Kohn, Kohn, Levav, & Saraceno, 2004). Therefore, I believe that
social wellbeing approaches are better since they focus on restoring the condition of the patient.
Conclusion
Despite people with mental health problems existing in the society, stigma creates gaps in
utilization of health interventions available within the community. This means that people fear
coming out thus making it difficult to diagnose and develop the best solutions for the community

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(Hinshaw, 2005). In most cases, people only come out when they realize that the condition has
become unmanageable. Further, although Dandenong community council offers support by
reinforcing and promoting health promotion approaches, there is a lack of support within the
community which makes it difficult to intervene.
Action plan
As a nursing practitioner, I need to understand the role of social determinants of health
and their effect on mental health. These factors cause mental health problems and at the same
time inhibit people from accessing support services in the community in Dandenong. Therefore,
the practitioner needs to understand the socio-cultural factors that affect people and develop
individualized care plans tailored to meet the needs of the individual. Therefore, practitioners
need to identify safety issues and reduced harm approaches that can empower the people in the
locality to develop better approaches for handling the health challenges that they face.

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References
Allen, J., Balfour, R., Bell, R., & Marmot, M. (2014). Social determinants of mental health.
International Review of Psychiatry, 26(4).
AustralianInstituteofHealthandWelfare. (2018). Mental health services in Australia. Retrieved
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https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/mental-health-services/mental-health-services-in-
australia/report-contents/summary-of-mental-health-services-in-australia/prevalence-and-
policies
Compton, M. T., & Shi, R. S. (2015). Social determinats of health. Focus, 13(4), 419-425.
GreaterDandenongCityofOpportunity. (2018). Mental Health. Retrieved from Greater
Dandenong City of Opportunity:
http://www.greaterdandenong.com/document/19759/mental-health
Hampton, M. (2010). Reflective Writing: A Basic Introduction. The Guide for Curriculum
Quality and Enhancement. Portsmouth: University of Portsmouth.
Heary, C., Hennessy, E., Swords, L., & Corrigan, P. (2017). Stigma towards Mental Health
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Hinshaw, S. (2005). The Stigmatization of Mental Illness in Children and Parents:
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Kohn, R., Kohn, R., Levav, I., & Saraceno, B. (2004). The treatment gap in mental health care.
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MentalHealthFoundation. (2016). Fundamental Facts About Mental He. London: Mental Health
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Nordqvist, C. (2017). What is mental health? Retrieved from Medical News Today:
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Richards, K., Campania, C., & Muse-Burke, J. (2010). Self-care and Well-being in Mental
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