title: Primary care physicians' and psychiatrists' willingness to refer to religious mental health providers.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Recent decades have witnessed some integration of mental health care and religious resources.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  We measured primary care physicians' (PCPs) and psychiatrists' knowledge of religious mental health-care providers, and their willingness to refer there.
  
  
  METHODS
  A national survey of PCPs and psychiatrists was conducted, using vignettes of depressed and anxious patients. Vignettes included Christian or Jewish patients, who regularly or rarely attended services. We asked whether physicians knew of local religious mental health providers, and whether they would refer patients there.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In all, 896/1427 PCPs and 312/487 psychiatrists responded. Half of PCPs (34.1%-44.1%) and psychiatrists (51.4%-56.3%) knew Christian providers; fewer PCPs (8.5%-9.9%) and psychiatrists (15.8%-19.6%) knew Jewish providers. Predictors included the following: patients were Christian (odds ratio (OR) = 2.2-2.9 for PCPs, 2.3-2.4 for psychiatrists), respondents were Christian (OR = 2.1-9.3 for PCPs) and respondents frequently attend services (OR = 3.5-7.0 for PCPs). Two-thirds of PCPs (63.3%-64%) and psychiatrists (48.8%-52.6%) would refer to religious providers. Predictors included the following: patients regularly attend services OR = 1.2 for PCPs, 1.6 for Psychiatrists, depression vignette only), respondents were Christian (OR = 2.8-18.1 for PCPs, 2.3-9.2 for psychiatrists) and respondents frequently attend services (OR = 5.1-6.3 for PCPs).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Many physicians would refer patients to religious mental health providers. However, less religious PCPs are less knowledgeable about local religious providers.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Medical Center and the New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, USA rlawrence@uchicago.edu.
authors.forename: Ryan E
authors.initials: RE
authors.lastname: Lawrence
authors.affiliation: Program on Medicine and Religion, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
authors.forename: Kenneth A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Rasinski
authors.affiliation: Program on Medicine and Religion, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA Department of Medicine and the MacLean Center for Clinical Medical Ethics, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
authors.forename: John D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Yoon
authors.affiliation: Program on Medicine and Religion, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA Department of Medicine and the MacLean Center for Clinical Medical Ethics, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
authors.forename: Farr A
authors.initials: FA
authors.lastname: Curlin
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000628:therapy; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D002835:Christianity / Q000523:psychology; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000628:therapy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007585:Jews / Q000523:psychology; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000628:therapy*; D008875:Middle Aged; D016017:Odds Ratio; D058007:Physicians, Primary Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians' / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011570:Psychiatry / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012017:Referral and Consultation / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012069:Religion and Psychology; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States
keywords: Religion; anxiety; depression; primary care; referrals; spirituality; therapy