Perceived barriers to accessing mental health services among black and minority ethnic communities: a qualitative study in southeast England (original) (raw)
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BMJ open, 2016
In most developed countries, substantial disparities exist in access to mental health services for black and minority ethnic (BME) populations. We sought to determine perceived barriers to accessing mental health services among people from these backgrounds to inform the development of effective and culturally acceptable services to improve equity in healthcare. Qualitative study in Southeast England. 26 adults from BME backgrounds (13 men, 13 women; aged >18 years) were recruited to 2 focus groups. Participants were identified through the registers of the Black and Minority Ethnic Community Partnership centre and by visits to local community gatherings and were invited to take part by community development workers. Thematic analysis was conducted to identify key themes about perceived barriers to accessing mental health services. Participants identified 2 broad themes that influenced access to mental health services. First, personal and environmental factors included inability t...
Barriers to effective mental health services for African Americans
Mental health services research, 2001
Many African Americans--especially the most marginal--suffer from mental health problems and would benefit from timely access to appropriate forms of care. However, few seek treatment from outpatient providers in the specialty mental health sector and those who do are at risk of dropping out. African Americans visit providers in the general medical sector, although they use another hypothesized alternative to specialty care, voluntary support networks, less than other groups. These help-seeking tendencies may reflect characteristic coping styles and stigma, as well as a lack of resources and opportunities for treatment. More should be learned about differences in need according to location, social standing, and cultural orientation so as to identify treatments and programs that are especially beneficial to African Americans.
Recent research has suggested that there is limited information about mental health help-seeking among young African–Caribbean and South Asian communities. This study explores the mental health support needs and perceptions of the Samaritans among young African–Caribbean and South Asian people living in Luton. Five single-sex focus groups were conducted among the three main South Asian groups and African–Caribbeans in Luton. This paper describes the challenges faced by service providers and potential users from minority ethnic groups in respectively providing and accessing mental health services. Finally, the paper makes some recommendations for developing culturally competent and more visible service provision.
Disadvantages in Mental Health Care among African Americans
Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved, 2009
African Americans experience mental health disadvantages relative to European Americans with respect to financial barriers, barriers to help seeking, and poorer quality services. This paper provides an overview of these mental health inequalities, and offers recommendations for addressing them.
Perception of Mental Health Services among Black Americans
As the Black Americans’ population becomes more diverse, it is important to extrapolate differences amongst individuals who have historically been grouped as Black or African American in the literature. This review systematically explores differences in the perceptions of mental health services among Black Americans of African American, African, and Caribbean Black descent. Thirty studies were included in the analysis. The paucity of literature limited the author’s ability to identify themes substantial themes for Africans and Caribbean Blacks, stigma, discrimination, and racism mired the perceptions of mental health services for African Americans. The findings underscored the need for more research to be able to adequately identify and better understand important and nuanced differences in perceptions of mental health within the Black American population. Implications for how to better serve Black Americans through social work practice, intervention and prevention are discussed.
Journal of National Black Nurses' Association : JNBNA, 2004
The purpose of this study was to examine the attitudes toward mental health service (MHS) use within a sample of African-American and White adults (N = 739) and to identify correlates associated with those expressed attitudes. African-Americans (n = 132) and Whites (n = 607) were interviewed using the Louisville Metropolitan Survey that included the Attitudes Toward Seeking Professional Psychological Help Scale. Findings from this study indicated that responses regarding seeking mental health services were positively correlated with educational attainment and gender In addition, further findings also suggested that while race was significantly associated with attitudes toward seeking mental health services, it was also associated with prior familiarity with mental health services African-Americans reported both less willingness to seek mental health services and less familiarity with mental health services. The unexpected finding of the association between familiarity and attitudes ...