Willingness to Use Mental Health Services for Depression Among African Immigrants and White Canadian-Born People in the Province of Quebec, Canada

This study examined the willingness of African immigrants and White Canadian-born to seek care for depression from conventional mental health services.  African immigrants (N = 262) and White Canadian-born people (N = 250) living in Montreal, Canada, indicated their willingness to use mental health services under different conditions varying as a function of four factors: the severity of symptoms, the waiting time for first consultation, t he type of care offered in the mental health service, and whether informal sources of help were available.  Seven qualitatively different positions were identified:Never Consult (18% of the African immigrants and 1% of the White Canadian-born people);Hesitant (18% of the African immigrants and 7% of the White Canadian-born people);Depends on Waiting Time (16% of the African immigrants);Depends on Waiting Time and Symptoms (22% of the African immigrants);Depends on Symptoms (36% of the White Canadian-born people and 6% of the African immigrants);Willing to consult (33% of the White Canadian-born people and 2% of the African immigrants);Certain to Consult (9% of the White Canadian-born people and 4% of the African immigrants), while 14% of participants in each group did not express any position. African immigrants were more likely to underuse mental health services, compared with White Canadian-born people. The above diversity of positions strongly suggests that the design and implementation of interventions to reduce disparities in...
Source: Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health - Category: International Medicine & Public Health Source Type: research