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Research

The researchers using escape rooms to crush mental health stigma

CRUSH Escape Room challenge

Key Features

There’s a big barrier setting people back every day from seeking the healthcare they need — stigma.

It can be hard to spot, and even harder to speak up about but stigma in healthcare can lead to very real feelings of shame, blame, and isolation. 

Fortunately, there’s a lot of work being done at Bond University to crush this stigma thanks to a group of researchers from the Collaboration for Research in Understanding Stigma in Healthcare (CRUSH). 

CRUSH researchers have spent almost a year conceptualising and designing one of their latest immersive projects — four escape rooms which have opened within the Faculty of Health Sciences & Medicine

Participants took their first crack at decoding the clues within the escape rooms in October 2023, learning concepts of internalised stigma related to mental health along the way. 

“We set up these escape rooms as a fun, interactive way to educate people about stigma,” researcher Carly Hudson said. 

“The rooms are set up as if they’re the bedroom of a person who no longer wants to go meet their friend for a coffee, due to ongoing mental health problems which, due to stigma, they are afraid to speak up about.

“We have a few different puzzles which people need to solve, and within them there’s educational materials around stigma and mental health problems.” 

A group of people are gathered around a table with an instructor and projector at the front of a classroom.
Participants listen to how a CRUSH escape room study will work.

The participants come away with an understanding of what stigma is and how it affects people, and they also play an important role in informing research. 

CRUSH is taking measures around the participants’ perception of stigma, before and after the escape room experience.

The outcomes will inform researchers on the feasibility of using such intervention in addressing internalised or self-stigma among health educators and students.

“Stigma can be defined as a mark of shame, disgrace or disapproval which results in an individual being rejected, discriminated against, and excluded from participating in a number of different areas of society.” 

 â€” World Health Organization, 2001

Image Grid

Two women hold a box with a small lock around it.
A woman in a green dress is pointing to clues on a white board and smiling.

Chart

The researchers thinking outside the box

CRUSH is a collaboration of professors, researchers and students who are passionate about reducing the discrimination and social inequalities that stigma can create in the community. 

The escape room challenge is just one of many strategies that CRUSH is exploring to help people in healthcare break free from stigma. 

The researchers are focused on increasing understanding of stigma to improve care and outcomes for those experiencing stigma. 

They aim to support stigma reduction efforts through evidence-based research, exploring education, prevention, care, and treatment.

Researcher Dayna Bushell said the efforts of CRUSH span several years with many projects. 

"We all have our own projects looking at mental health and stigma," she said. 

"There are people looking at anxiety, depression, eating disorders, dementia, and all sorts of issues.

"We have researchers who have been doing this for their entire career as well as others who are relatively new to the field."

Researcher Carly Hudson explained that while stigma is most commonly associated with patients and their experiences, stigma can also impact a patient's family, the wider community, and healthcare practitioners. 

"If we understand what stigma is, it makes it easier to identify when we might be stigmatising someone, and the impacts it can have on people experiencing mental health problems," Ms Hudson said. 

"When we are aware of stigma, it can help ourselves and others be more willing to speak up and seek help.

"It's okay to need help, and there shouldn't be shame in experiencing a mental health problem." 

 

Info Tiles

Australians who experience a mental disorder at some point during their lives
44% Australian Institute of Health and Welfare
Australians who report healthcare as the life domain where they're most affected by stigma
1 in 4 National Stigma Report Card
Australia's non-fatal burden of disease caused by mental health or substance use disorders
24% Australian Institute of Health and Welfare

Explainer

Research Week 2023

Research Week, held between 9 and 13 October 2023, showcases the innovative research underway in a series of presentations and events.

Read more

Meet our CRUSH leaders

Dr Cindy Jones

Lead

  • Level 2, Building 5, Faculty of Health Sciences & Medicine, Bond University
  • [email protected]

Miss Amy Bannatyne

Co-Lead

  • Level 2, Building 5, Faculty of Health Sciences & Medicine, Bond University
  • [email protected]

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References