Racial/Ethnic Differences in Contemporaneous Use of Mental Health and Substance Use Treatment Among Individuals Experiencing Both Mental Illness and Substance Use Disorders.
This study examined whether the well-established racial/ethnic differences in mental health service utilization among individuals with mental illness are reflected in the treatment utilization patterns of individuals experiencing both mental illness and substance use disorders, particularly in regards to the use of contemporaneous mental health and substance abuse treatment. Using pooled data from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health (2009-2013), the patterns of mental health and substance use treatment utilization of 8748 White, Black, or Latino individuals experiencing both mental illness and substance use disorders were analyzed. Multinomial logistic regression was conducted to test the relationships among racial/ethnic groups and the receipt of contemporaneous treatment, mental health treatment alone, and substance use treatment alone as compared with no treatment utilization. Results indicated that Black and Latino respondents were less likely to receive contemporaneous treatment than Whites respondents. Also, significantly associated with outcomes were several interactions between race/ethnicity and predisposing, need and enabling factors known to be associated with service utilization. The findings suggest that an underlying mechanism of racial/ethnic differences among individuals with co-occurring mental illness and substance use disorders in the treatment utilization may differ by the specific types of treatment and between Blacks and Latinos. Therefore, efforts to reduce these disparities should consider specialty in each treatment settings and heterogeneity within diverse racial/ethnic groups.
School of Social Welfare, University of Kansas, Twente Hall, 1545 Lilac Lane, Lawrence, KS, 66045, USA. eunjinam@ku.edu.
Eunji
E
Nam
School of Social Welfare, University of Kansas, Twente Hall, 1545 Lilac Lane, Lawrence, KS, 66045, USA.
Jason
J
Matejkowski
School of Social Welfare, Soongsil University, 369 Sangdo-ro, Dongjak-gu, Seoul, South Korea.
Sungkyu
S
Lee
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American; D000368:Aged; D005006:Ethnicity / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D006297:Health Services Accessibility; D054625:Healthcare Disparities / Q000208:ethnology*; D006630:Hispanic or Latino; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D008605:Mental Health Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008875:Middle Aged; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care / Q000208:ethnology; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D044465:White People; D055815:Young Adult
Comorbidity; Mental health treatment; Race/ethnicity; Service utilization; Substance abuse treatment