Frequency of and barriers to utilization of mental health services in an Iranian population.
This study in 2005 compared the need for mental health services, actual use of services and barriers to use by 3 groups in Shiraz city in the Islamic Republic of Iran: a sample of the general population, parents of children with mental illness and primary-school teachers. Among the general population, 76.0% reported that they had wanted help in the previous 6 months and, of these, 50.0% actually sought it. The rates for parents of children with mental problems were 81.3% and 55.4% and for teachers were 60.0% and 35.0% respectively. The most common barriers to service use were logistic, especially the cost of and inconvenient access to services. Barriers related to perceptions of mental health services were also important, such as lack of trust and perceptions of friends/family.
Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Islamic Republic of Iran. ghanizad@sina.tums.ac.ir
A
A
Ghanizadeh
N
N
Arkan
M R
MR
Mohammadi
M A
MA
Ghanizadeh-Zarchi
J
J
Ahmadi
D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D002648:Child; D005178:Faculty; D005190:Family / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D033062:Friends / Q000523:psychology; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006801:Humans; D007492:Iran / Q000453:epidemiology; D016014:Linear Models; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy; D008605:Mental Health Services / Q000458:organization & administration*; D020380:Needs Assessment / Q000458:organization & administration*; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011159:Population Surveillance; D012017:Referral and Consultation / Q000458:organization & administration; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D035502:Trust; D014504:Urban Health / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D019037:Urban Health Services / Q000458:organization & administration