Attitudes of mental healthcare workers towards persons with mental illness in Vietnam.

There is a shortage of research specifically examining the stigma among mental health workers toward people suffering from mental illness in Vietnam. Therefore, this study investigates the factors that are related to their attitudes. A cross-sectional study was conducted in June and July 2021. Participants were mental health staff from ten different psychiatric hospitals throughout Vietnam. Using the Mental Illness: Clinician's Attitudes Scale version 4 (MICA-4) was used to measure their stigma towards persons with mental illness. A stepwise multiple regression analysis, one-way ANOVA, post hoc analyses and Pearson's correlation were performed. There were a total of 1121 participants. The multiple regression model yielded three significant predictors: level of education (ß = -0.192, p < 0.001), working duration ((ß = 0.101, p < 0.001), and type of occupation (ß = 0.084, p = 0.006). A Games-Howell post hoc test showed that nurses had significantly more negative attitudes toward patients with mental illnesses compared to general doctors, psychiatrists and psychotherapists. Individuals with higher level of education had more positive attitudes towards individuals with mental disorders. The findings also highlight the need for significant improvements in the mental health care system of a low-middle-income country like Vietnam.