Dataset Information

Geographical variation in perceptions, attitudes and barriers to mental health care-seeking across the UK: a cross-sectional study.

ABSTRACT:

Objectives

To examine the relative importance of the drivers of mental health care-seeking intention and how these, along with intention itself, are geographically distributed across integrated care systems (ICS) and health boards (HBs) in the UK. Also, to examine the degree of acceptance of virtual modes of care.

Design

Community-based cross-sectional survey.

Participants and setting

A national online survey of 17 309 adults between August and September 2021 recruited via a research technology company, Lucid. Sample size quotas were set to ensure coverage across the UK and match population distributions for gender, age and ethnicity. After exclusions, 16 835 participants remained (54% female, 89% white).

Main outcome measures

Care-seeking intention, using a continuous measure of likelihood and a categorical measure of estimated time to seek professional help for a future mental health difficulty.

Results

20.5% (95% CI 19.8% to 21.2%) reported that they would significantly delay or never seek mental healthcare, ranging from 8.3% to 25.7% across ICS/HBs. Multilevel regression analysis showed mental health knowledge was the most predictive of care-seeking intention, followed by attitudes towards others with mental illness and a combination of stigma, negative attitudes to treatment and instrumental barriers to accessing care. The model explained 17% of the variance. There was substantial geographical variation in prevalence of preclinical symptoms of depression and anxiety, attitudes to mental health, and barriers to care, leading to complex ICS/HB profiles. Remote and self-guided therapies did not pose as a major barrier to care with more than half of respondents likely or very likely to use them.

Conclusions

Our locally relevant and actionable findings suggest possible interventions that may improve care-seeking intention and indicate which of these interventions need to be geographically tailored to have maximal effect.

SUBMITTER: Wang RAH

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10952949 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Geographical variation in perceptions, attitudes and barriers to mental health care-seeking across the UK: a cross-sectional study.

Wang Rui Adele H RAH Smittenaar Peter P Thomas Tony T Kamal Zeast Z Kemp Hannah H Sgaier Sema K SK

BMJ open 20240318 3

<h4>Objectives</h4>To examine the relative importance of the drivers of mental health care-seeking intention and how these, along with intention itself, are geographically distributed across integrated care systems (ICS) and health boards (HBs) in the UK. Also, to examine the degree of acceptance of virtual modes of care.<h4>Design</h4>Community-based cross-sectional survey.<h4>Participants and setting</h4>A national online survey of 17 309 adults between August and September 2021 recruited via ...[more]

PMID: 38503409

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Dataset Information

Geographical variation in perceptions, attitudes and barriers to mental health care-seeking across the UK: a cross-sectional study.

Objectives

Design

Participants and setting

Main outcome measures

Results

Conclusions

Publications

Geographical variation in perceptions, attitudes and barriers to mental health care-seeking across the UK: a cross-sectional study.

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