Research Publications

The African youth in mind (Y-MIND) brief psychological intervention for depression among school-going adolescents in Ghana: a development case series.

Depression is common among adolescents, particularly in low- and middle-income countries, such as Ghana. Yet, access to mental health care in these settings remains limited. There is a need for …

Providers' Experiences in Implementation of Friendship Bench: A Problem-Solving Therapy-Based Mental Health Intervention Adapted for People on Methadone Maintenance Treatment Who Live with HIV in Vietnam.

People who inject drugs (PWID) living with HIV in Vietnam experience a high prevalence of common mental disorders (CMDs), which negatively impact their health, treatment adherence and overall quality of …

An Interview with Dr Dixon Chibanda: Zimbabwean Psychiatrist & Founder of Friendship Bench

Validation of Shona Symptom Questionnaire (SSQ-14), Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) and Generalised Anxiety Disorder scale (GAD-7) in Unguja Island, Zanzibar.

Due to the dearth of resources in low- and middle-income countries, the use of culturally appropriate and psychometrically robust screening tools for common mental disorders (CMDs) administrable by lay health …

Opening our minds: An alternative way of responding to personal and collective despair, a review of The Friendship Bench: How fourteen grandmothers inspired a mental health revolution by Dixon Chibanda

David Denborough reviews Dixon Chibanda’s (2025) book, The Friendship Bench: How fourteen grandmothers inspired a mental health revolution. New World Library. 240 pp. ISBN 978-1-95583-102-4 (print); 978-1-95583-103-1 (ebook); 978-1-95583-117-8 (audio).

Barriers and facilitators to integrating the friendship bench into non-communicable disease care in Malawi: A qualitative study

Comorbid depression is common among people living with non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in Malawi and is associated with reduced treatment adherence and increased NCD and depression symptom severity. This bidirectional negative …

A cluster-randomized trial of interventions for adolescent mental disorders in Zimbabwe

Young people have low uptake of mental health. We compared two task-shifted mental health care models, i.e., adult Friendship Bench (FB) delivered by community health workers and Youth Friendship Bench …

A cluster-randomized trial of interventions for adolescent mental disorders in Zimbabwe.

Young people have low uptake of mental health. We compared two task-shifted mental health care models, i.e., adult Friendship Bench (FB) delivered by community health workers and Youth Friendship Bench …

Evaluating implementation research outcomes for a task-sharing mental health intervention: A systematic review of the Friendship Bench

Abstract Common mental disorders (CMDs) are a leading cause of burden and disability globally. Approximately 75% of those living with CMDs reside in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), and up …

An Adapted Friendship Bench Counseling Intervention (FB) to Improve Mental Health and HIV Care Engagement Outcomes Among People Living with HIV (PWH) Who Inject Drugs in Hanoi, Vietnam: Results from the VITAL Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial.

Common mental disorders (CMDs) are prevalent among people living with HIV (PWH) and cause morbidity, jeopardize HIV care engagement, and worsen HIV outcomes. In Vietnam, PWH who inject drugs are …

Depression and Anxiety in Palestine: Piloting a Digital Application Based on the Friendship Bench (Preprint)

From Zimbabwe to the World: the next generation of African mental health research leaders - King's College London

King’s College London hosted a panel of global mental health experts to explore some of the innovative approaches to mental health challenges across Sub-Saharan Africa. Reflecting on the event,…

Friendship Bench intervention to address depression and improve HIV care engagement among adolescents living with HIV in Malawi: Study protocol for a pilot randomized controlled trial

Background Adolescents in Sub-Saharan Africa are disproportionately affected by the HIV epidemic. Comorbid depression is prevalent among adolescents living with HIV (ALWH) and poses numerous challenges to HIV care engagement …

From Zimbabwe to the World: Friendship Bench and the next generation of African mental health research leaders - King's College London

Join leading experts for an inspiring talk and panel discussion on the Friendship Bench and African Mental Health Research Initiative.

An Adapted Friendship Bench Counseling Intervention (FB) to Improve Mental Health and HIV Care Engagement Outcomes Among People Living with HIV (PWH) Who Inject Drugs in Hanoi, Vietnam: Results from the VITAL Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial

Friendship Bench intervention to address depression and improve HIV care engagement among adolescents living with HIV in Malawi: Study protocol for a pilot randomized controlled trial.

Adolescents in Sub-Saharan Africa are disproportionately affected by the HIV epidemic. Comorbid depression is prevalent among adolescents living with HIV (ALWH) and poses numerous challenges to HIV care engagement and …

Barriers and enablers to help-seeking for common mental disorders among young people in low-income settings: Perspectives from Zimbabwe.

We utilised a qualitative research design and conducted 32 semi-structured interviews with young people (15-24 years) across high schools and the Friendship Bench (FB) in Harare between 20 December 2022 …

Barriers and facilitators to integrating the friendship bench into non-communicable disease care in Malawi: A qualitative study.

Comorbid depression is common among people living with non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in Malawi and is associated with reduced treatment adherence and increased NCD and depression symptom severity. This bidirectional negative …

Evaluation of the Friendship Bench’ Circle Kubatana Tose (CKT): an add-on support group intervention – a mixed-methods pilot interventional cohort study protocol

Introduction Mental disorders are endemic. However, the mental health treatment gap remains high, especially in low-resource settings. Task-shifting is a universally recommended strategy to mitigate the care gap. The Friendship …

Evaluation of the Friendship Bench' Circle Kubatana Tose (CKT): an add-on support group intervention - a mixed-methods pilot interventional cohort study protocol.

Mental disorders are endemic. However, the mental health treatment gap remains high, especially in low-resource settings. Task-shifting is a universally recommended strategy to mitigate the care gap. The Friendship Bench …

Rural Friendship Bench: A qualitative study in Zaka district, Zimbabwe.

We piloted the Friendship Bench-an evidence-based, urban-area task sharing intervention for common mental disorders-in rural Zimbabwe. The intervention combines problem solving therapy with income generating activities. This study sought to …

Implementation strategies to build mental health-care capacity in Malawi: a health-economic evaluation.

Depression is a major contributor to morbidity and mortality in sub-Saharan Africa. Due to low system capacity, three in four patients with depression in sub-Saharan Africa go untreated. Despite this, …

Effect of a brief psychological intervention for common mental disorders on HIV viral suppression: A non-randomised controlled study of the Friendship Bench in Zimbabwe.

For people living with co-morbid HIV and common mental disorders (CMD), it is not known whether a brief psychological intervention for CMD can improve HIV viral suppression. We conducted a …

A community health volunteer delivered problem-solving therapy mobile application based on the Friendship Bench ‘Inuka Coaching’ in Kenya: A pilot cohort study – CORRIGENDUM

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