Background: Mental health remains a highly stigmatized area of healthcare, and people often conceal their concerns rather than seek assistance or treatment. The Women Support Initiative Forum (WSIF) is a social media platform established in 2018 to provide expert and peer-led psychosocial support services to women of all ages in Bangladesh. The anonymous nature of the forum means that mental health concerns can be aired without fear of identification. Method: A content analysis was conducted on the anonymous posts retrieved from the WSIF platform between 8^th March 2020 and 7^th July 2022. Around 1457 posts were initially selected for analysis which was reduced to 1006 after removing duplicates and non-relevant posts, such as queries about the addresses of the doctors and other non-mental health-related issues. A thematic analysis of the data was conducted using an inductive approach. Result: The 1006 posts generated four themes and nine sub-themes. All the women mentioned mental health symptoms (n = 1006; 100%). Most also mentioned reasons for seeking mental healthcare (n = 818; 81.31%), healthcare-seeking behavior (n = 667; 66.30%), and barriers to seeking mental healthcare (n = 552; 54.87%). The majority of women described symptoms of stress, depression, and anxiety-like symptoms, which were aggregated under common mental health conditions. Mental health symptoms were ascribed to various external influences, including marital relationship, intrafamilial abuse, and insecurities related to the COVID-19 pandemic. A large proportion of posts were related to women seeking information about mental healthcare services and service providers (psychologists or psychiatrists). The analysis found that most women did not obtain mental healthcare services despite their externalized mental health symptoms. The posts identified clear barriers to women accessing mental health services, including low mental health literacy, the stigma associated with mental healthcare-seeking behavior, and the poor availability of mental health care services. Conclusion: The study revealed that raising mass awareness and designing culturally acceptable evidence-based interventions with multisectoral collaborations are crucial to ensuring better mental healthcare coverage for women in Bangladesh.

Bangladesh is a lower-middle-income country affected by a severe lack of mental health service availability due to a scarcity of mental health experts, limited mental health literacy, and community stigma. In other low and middle-income countries, the online provision of mental health care services has addressed issues affecting service availability, accessibility, mass awareness of services, and stigma. The current study sought to understand stakeholders' perceptions of the potential of digital media-based mental health care delivery in strengthening Bangladesh's mental health system. Online in-depth interviews were conducted with seven psychiatrists and eleven people with lived experiences of mental health issues. In addition, two online focus groups were conducted with ten psychologists and nine mental health entrepreneurs. A thematic analysis of the audio transcriptions was used to identify themes. Stakeholders perceived that the benefits of digital media-based mental health services included the potential of increasing the awareness, availability, and accessibility of mental health services. Participants recommended: the rehabilitation of existing pathways; the use of social media to raise awareness; and the implementation of strategies that integrate different digital-based services to strengthen the mental health system and foster positive mental health-seeking behaviors. Growing mental health awareness, combined with the appropriate use of digital media as a platform for distributing information and offering mental services, can help to promote mental health care. To strengthen mental health services in Bangladesh, tailored services, increased network coverage, and training are required on digital mental health.

Background: Globally, major emphasis has been placed on understanding the physiological consequences of losing a pregnancy. However, its mental health impact on socially disadvantaged women remains unexplored. To further inform the field the present study investigated the prevalence and factors associated with the development of depressive symptoms and anxiety among women with a history of spontaneous abortion living in the urban slums of Dhaka, Bangladesh. Methods: Information was obtained from 240 women who experienced a spontaneous abortion from July 2020 to December 2021. It was obtained through the urban health and demographic surveillance system (UHDSS) survey. Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7) and Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) were used to measure mental health symptoms. Bivariate and multivariate linear regression analyses were performed to assess the associated factors with the mental health outcomes. Results: Of the 240 women, majority (77.50%) of the women experienced mild to severe depressive symptoms and more than half (58.75%) of the respondants experienced mild to severe anxiety, within one and half years of experiencing spontaneous abortion. A higher level of education and being employed were protective factors for anxiety and depressive symptoms, respectively. However, women with higher sexual and reproductive health rights (SRHR) knowledge had significantly increased anxiety and depressive symptoms. In contrast, receiving post-abortion care (PAC) was associated with decreased anxiety and depressive symptoms. Conclusion: The findings indicate that ensuring access to affordable PAC services and integrating mental health services into the standard PAC service package is crucial. This study also emphasizes the importance of providing education for women living in urban slums and encouraging them to participate in economic activities.

Background: The study aimed to assess the health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and its associated factors among urban slum dwellers who migrated from different rural parts of Bangladesh. Methods: The present study analyzed data from a Migration and Mobility Determinants on Health survey and was conducted in 2017 among 935 migrant slum dwellers of Dhaka city (North & South) and Gazipur City Corporations, as a part of the icddr,b’s Urban Health and Demographic Surveillance System (UHDSS). The face-to-face interviews were conducted with the adult population by using a semi-structured questionnaire that included variables related to socio-demographics, migration, occupation, and HRQoL (SF-12). Bivariate and multiple linear regression analyses were performed to determine the factors associated with HRQoL. Results: The mean (±SD) scores of physical component summary (PCS), and mental component summary (MCS) were 57.40 ± 22.73 and 60.77 ± 22.51, respectively. As per multiple regression analysis, lower PCS scores were associated with having older age, being female, and not having any job. Mean MCS scores were significantly lower among participants who reported having older age, not having any job, not working/ less working hours (≤8 h/day), as well as increased work-related stress in the current urban slum. Conclusions: The findings suggest that available urban social protection programs should include a comprehensive social safety net for the improvement of the slum infrastructure as well as proper health care and risk mitigation plans at workplaces.

In Bangladesh, people living with disabilities are one of the most vulnerable groups, as they receive little or no assistance. They face numerous challenges regarding financial, social, and access to basic education and healthcare, which contribute to experiences of distress and mental health issues. However, there is limited research on the mental health needs of people with disabilities and the accessibility of mental health services in Bangladesh. This qualitative study addresses this gap by examining the mental healthcare-seeking behaviours of people with disabilities and challenges in care-seeking pathways and recommendations for devising an inclusive system in existing mental health services through key informant interviews and focus group discussions with 55 participants from four stakeholder groups. Findings highlight that limited mental health, literacy, stigma, and financial and logistical challenges, such as inaccessible transportation and distant facilities, hinder access to care. System-level barriers, including a lack of specialists and inadequate community-based services, further exacerbate the issue. Stakeholders recommended strengthening social support systems by providing disability identity cards, allowances, and access to inclusive education and employment opportunities. They also emphasized the need for awareness campaigns, better transportation options, and training for healthcare workers. Policymakers are urged to design culturally relevant needs-based interventions to improve mental healthcare pathways for people with disabilities while promoting multisectoral collaboration.

Background: Microbial survival capabilities on smartphone surfaces works as a major source of harmful microbial transmission among users. Objectives: This study sought to determine the microbial growth on the surface of smartphones, used by students of Jahangirnagar University in Bangladesh. Methodology: This cross-sectional study, from May to August 2021, involved 20 students, where 8 (40%) were females and 12 (60%) were males. The socio-demographic data and information about their phone usage were collected utilizing a self-administered questionnaire. A sterile swab was rotated over the surface of both sides of each smartphone, and moistened with sterile saline. All swabs were cultured on MacConkey Agar and Nutrient Agar and examined for growth. Plates were incubated aerobically at 370C for 48h and identification was done as per standard laboratory procedures. Results: Out of the total 20 swab samples collected, 16 (80%) of them presented with bacterial growth, and 10 (50%) of them presented with fungal growth. Gram-positive bacteria occurred on smartphones at 89.7%, whereas Gram-negative bacteria were contaminated at 10.03%. The total frequency of one or several micro-organisms on smartphones was 100%. The predominant isolates were Staphylococcus epidermidis (37.1%) and Staphylococcus aureus (37.1%). Other isolates were Klebsiella sp. (5.7%) and Escherichia coli (2.9%). No significant association was found between smartphone contamination and gender, age group, educational level, phone sharing, presence of scratches, use of front cover, and regular cleaning of smartphones. Conclusion: The study indicated that smartphones used by students are a vehicle for several microorganisms. According to the findings of this study, smartphones have the potential to act as a mode of transportation for various micro-organisms. Bangladesh Journal of Infectious Diseases, December 2024;11(2):108-114