Ethnic minority experiences of detention in secure settings

• Research type

  Research Study

• Full title

  Exploring the lived experiences of adults from ethnic minority and racially minoritised backgrounds who have been involuntarily detained in hospital for mental health reasons.

• IRAS ID

  338095

• Contact name

  Krishna Chauhan

• Contact email

  krishna.chauhan@mpft.nhs.uk

• Sponsor organisation

  Staffordshire University

• Duration of Study in the UK

  1 years, 9 months, 25 days

• Research summary

  The objective of this qualitative research is to explore experiences of adults from ethnic minority/racialised backgrounds who have been involuntarily detained in mental health hospitals.

  Research shows:
  - Involuntary detention and readmission for many years has been significantly higher for those from ethnic minority and racially minoritized backgrounds and migrant populations, versus those from white-British backgrounds which significantly impacts wellbeing (Barnett et al., 2019)
  - Common reasons are cited to be lack of psychology support (Solanki et al., 2023), perceived risk of violence, poorer detection of mental health, increased police-contact, drug-use, psychosis, societal racism; this is based mainly on quantitative and correlational data (Barnett et al., 2019; Lawrence et al., 2021) which fails to identify in-depth data about the inequalities faced by these groups
  - Most research in this area is currently quantitative and focusses mainly on Black participants, however with increased rates of compulsory detention prevalent amongst other ethnicities, more qualitative research is needed overall to add diverse voices to the limited literature that exists about ethnic minority people’s experiences of involuntary detention to help understand why there is inequality faced in order to support systemic change and promote health equality
  - The government acknowledges the disproportionate rates of compulsory detentions amongst ethnic minority people and reducing this is a key aim

  Therefore, this research aims to conduct a qualitative study carrying out 1-hour interviews with adults who identify as being of an ethnic minority background (Black, Asian, Mixed, any migrant population, etc.) who have experienced involuntary detention in mental health hospitals (currently detained/under community teams/ previously detained and no longer under mental health provision) to understand their experiences in detail. Interviews would be conducted either in inpatient settings, face-to-face clinic spaces, or online. Participants must be able to speak English due to lack of funding for this research (e.g. interpreters).

• REC name

  South West - Central Bristol Research Ethics Committee

• REC reference

  24/SW/0057

• Date of REC Opinion

  3 Jun 2024

• REC opinion

  Further Information Favourable Opinion