Moodley, Saiendhra VasudevanWolvaardt, Jacqueline Elizabeth (Liz)Grobler, Christoffel2024-02-152024-02-152023-10-26Moodley, S.V., Wolvaardt, J. & Grobler, C. Knowledge, confidence, and practices of clinical associates in the management of mental illness. South African Journal of Psychiatry 2023;29(0), a2074. https://DOI.org/10.4102/sajpsychiatry.v29i0.2074.1608-9685 (print)2078-6786 (online)10.4102/sajpsychiatry.v29i0.2074http://hdl.handle.net/2263/94643DATA AVAILABILITY : The data are available on reasonable request from the corresponding author S.V.M.BACKGROUND : Additional human resources are needed to provide mental health services in underserved areas in South Africa (SA). Clinical associates, the mid-level medical worker cadre in SA, could potentially be used to deliver these services. AIM : The study explored the self-reported knowledge, confidence, and current practices of clinical associates related to mental health assessment and management. SETTING : South Africa. METHODS : A cross-sectional study was conducted. The link to the electronic questionnaire was distributed to clinical associates via databases and social media. Data were analysed with Stata v17. RESULTS : Of the 209 participants, 205 (98.1%) indicated they had training on management of patients with mental illness during their undergraduate degree and 192 (91.9%) had a mental health rotation. Few (10.7%) had any additional mental health training. Most participants rated their knowledge of priority mental disorders as ‘good’ or ‘excellent’. Only 43.2% of the participants felt quite or very confident to perform a mental health examination. Participants who felt quite or very confident to manage patients presenting with suicide risk, aggression, and confusion were 44.9%, 46.9% and 53.1%, respectively. Factors associated with a confidence score of 75% and higher were male gendered, working in Gauteng or Northern Cape provinces, and in a rural area. The majority of participants were already involved in mental health assessment and management in their current work. CONCLUSION : Clinical associates have a contribution to make in mental health service provision, but this may need to be supplemented by additional practical training. CONTRIBUTION : Potential gaps in training have been identified.en© 2023. The Authors. Licensee: AOSIS. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution License.Clinical associatesKnowledgeConfidencePracticesSouth Africa (SA)Mental healthMental illnessMental health assessmentMental health managementSDG-03: Good health and well-beingArticle