CASE STUDY

You are dispatched at 1.41 p.m. after a call from the housemate of a 19-year-old man who has been behaving bizarrely for the past 24 hours, characterised by hanging towels in the window, recording car licence plates, refusing to go outside, and crying. On arrival, you can see that the front windows have been covered by towels, and there is a computer on the front lawn. You can hear a dog barking in the back yard. The housemate confirms the dog is secured in the yard and cannot come inside, and that no one else is home. The housemate lets you inside, and you see a man standing in the corner of the living room, looking anxious, with red eyes as though he has recently been crying. You are introduced to Ahsan. He appears tense and initially declines to sit down. He acknowledges your presence and gives his name and date of birth, but refuses to answer other questions. His clothing is slightly dirty, and he appears not to have showered recently. Ahsan picks up a notepad, animatedly explaining that this is his record of proof that 'they sent the cars to check on me'. You notice a baseball bat behind the front door. His housemate reports that Ahsan fled from Syria when he was 14. His father, younger brother and grandparents were killed in the conflict. His family were granted refugee status in Australia and he and his older brothers began attending school. Ahsan experienced significant bullying from peers at school about his appearance, accent and fashion style. As yet, Ahsan does not have any friends at university. The housemate states that yesterday Ahsan returned from a weekend away. Since his return Ahsan has not slept or eaten, and has become increasingly concerned with monitoring passing cars, taking notes. He has been intermittently crying, and put his computer on the lawn, claiming it could be hacked to spy on him. He began keeping the baseball bat by the door 'for protection', but has not threatened or harmed anyone. Ahsan agrees that the housemate can move the bat to another room, but he doesn't want to be taken anywhere else

Question 1: Illustrate how biological, psychological and social factors may have impacted Ahsan's mental health.

Question 2: Explain how Ahsan could be positively or negative affected by paramedic care