Previous research shows that different factors can influence the use of mental health services. Income inequality, unemployment, and immigration concentration all have an impact at the neighbourhood level.
Researchers at McMaster University, however, have considered how the use of mental health services differs by region. They also looked at the types of people who are using these services. Their findings may inform efforts to overcome the barriers to mental health care that high-risk groups face. The evidence can also be used to better distribute resources to ensure that regions are not being over- or underserved.
EENet has developed a Research Snapshot of the article, “Regional and individual influences on use of mental health services in Canada,” by Natalia Diaz-Granados and others. It was originally published in theCanadian Journal of Psychiatry vol. 55, no. 1 (2010): 9-20.
The Snapshot is available at www.ehealthontario.ca.
Research Snapshots are brief, clear language summaries of research articles, presented in a user-friendly format. To read EENet’s clear language summary of this and other articles, visit the EENet website at www.ehealthontario.ca.