Adolescents Identify Modifiable Community-Level Barriers to Accessing Mental Health and Addiction Services in a Rural Canadian Town: A Survey Study
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
3. Results
3.1. Participants
3.2. Perceived Barriers to Accessing Mental Health Services
4. Discussion
5. Conclusions
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
Appendix A. Questionnaire Investigating Barriers to Accessing Mental Health and Addictions Services
References
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Individual-Level Barriers | Community-Level Barriers |
---|---|
|
|
Characteristic | N (%) |
---|---|
Age | |
15–16 | 159 (65.2) |
17–18 | 66 (27) |
19–20 | 2 (2.5) |
Missing | 13 (5.3) |
Gender | |
Male | 93 (38.1) |
Female | 129 (52.9) |
Other | 7 (2.9) |
Prefer Not to Say | 4 (1.6) |
Missing | 11 (4.5) |
Living Situation | |
With Mom and/or Dad | 225 (92.2) |
With Other Family Member | 5 (2.0) |
Foster Home | 1 (0.4) |
With Friends | 4 (1.6) |
No Fixed Address | 1 (0.4) |
Missing | 8 (3.3) |
Tried to Access Mental Health Services in the Past | |
Yes | 79 (32.4) |
Satisfied | 38 (49.4) |
Not Satisfied | 32 (41.6) |
Prefer Not to Say | 7 (9.1) |
No | 154 (63.1) |
Prefer Not to Say | 5 (2.0) |
Missing | 6 (2.5) |
Awareness of Existing Community Services | |
School Plus | 173 (73.0) |
St. Martha’s Mental Health and Addiction Services | 173 (70.9) |
Family Services of Eastern Nova Scotia | 77 (31.6) |
Awareness of Existing Online Resources | |
KidsHelpPhone.ca | 203 (83.2) |
Teenmentalhealth.org | 104 (42.6) |
Have Accessed Services in the Past | Have Not Accessed Services in the Past/ Prefer Not to Say | |
---|---|---|
INDIVIDUAL-LEVEL BARRIERS | ||
1 | Unsure of what treatment would entail (3.10) | Unsure of what treatment would entail (3.33) |
2 | Too tired after school (3.10) | Will not have time/other activities (2.83) |
3 | Scheduling appointment times (2.91) | Scheduling appointment times (2.78) |
4 | School schedule too hectic (2.89) | Too tired after school (2.89) |
5 | Negative past experience(s) with mental health services (2.81) | School schedule too hectic (2.63) |
COMMUNITY-LEVEL BARRIERS | ||
1 | Lack of education regarding mental health (3.65) | Lack of awareness of available resources (3.42) |
2 | Lack of awareness of available resources (3.40) | Fear of gossip (3.31) |
3 | Lack of qualified mental health professionals (3.23) | Lack of education regarding mental health (3.23) |
4 | Mental health providers keep changing (3.21) | Fear of exclusion (3.13) |
5 | Lack of collaboration/communication among service providers (3.14) | Fear of being judged by friends (3.13) |
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Marmura, H.; Cozzi, R.R.F.; Blackburn, H.; Ortiz-Alvarez, O. Adolescents Identify Modifiable Community-Level Barriers to Accessing Mental Health and Addiction Services in a Rural Canadian Town: A Survey Study. Pediatr. Rep. 2024, 16, 353-367. https://doi.org/10.3390/pediatric16020031
Marmura H, Cozzi RRF, Blackburn H, Ortiz-Alvarez O. Adolescents Identify Modifiable Community-Level Barriers to Accessing Mental Health and Addiction Services in a Rural Canadian Town: A Survey Study. Pediatric Reports. 2024; 16(2):353-367. https://doi.org/10.3390/pediatric16020031
Chicago/Turabian StyleMarmura, Hana, Regina R. F. Cozzi, Heather Blackburn, and Oliva Ortiz-Alvarez. 2024. "Adolescents Identify Modifiable Community-Level Barriers to Accessing Mental Health and Addiction Services in a Rural Canadian Town: A Survey Study" Pediatric Reports 16, no. 2: 353-367. https://doi.org/10.3390/pediatric16020031