Skip to main content

Abstract

Objective:

The objective of this study was to characterize racial-ethnic variation in diagnoses and treatment of mental disorders in large not-for-profit health care systems.

Methods:

Participating systems were 11 private, not-for-profit health care organizations constituting the Mental Health Research Network, with a combined 7,523,956 patients age 18 or older who received care during 2011. Rates of diagnoses, prescription of psychotropic medications, and total formal psychotherapy sessions received were obtained from insurance claims and electronic medical record databases across all health care settings.

Results:

Of the 7.5 million patients in the study, 1.2 million (15.6%) received a psychiatric diagnosis in 2011. This varied significantly by race-ethnicity, with Native American/Alaskan Native patients having the highest rates of any diagnosis (20.6%) and Asians having the lowest rates (7.5%). Among patients with a psychiatric diagnosis, 73% (N=850,585) received a psychotropic medication. Non-Hispanic white patients were significantly more likely (77.8%) than other racial-ethnic groups (odds ratio [OR] range .48–.81) to receive medication. In contrast, only 34% of patients with a psychiatric diagnosis (N=548,837) received formal psychotherapy. Racial-ethnic differences were most pronounced for depression and schizophrenia; compared with whites, non-Hispanic blacks were more likely to receive formal psychotherapy for their depression (OR=1.20) or for their schizophrenia (OR=2.64).

Conclusions:

There were significant racial-ethnic differences in diagnosis and treatment of psychiatric conditions across 11 U.S. health care systems. Further study is needed to understand underlying causes of these observed differences and whether processes and outcomes of care are equitable across these diverse patient populations.
It is estimated that at least 25% of adults 18 and older in the United States suffer from some type of psychiatric condition at any time (1). The most common conditions are depression and anxiety (1). Psychiatric conditions lead to greater disability than other chronic illnesses and cost the United States as much as $300 billion annually (2,3). A number of reports, most of which rely on survey responses from both patients and providers, have detailed racial-ethnic differences in diagnosis of psychiatric conditions (4). In general, survey-reported rates of depression are lower for non-Hispanic black and Hispanic patients than their non-Hispanic white counterparts (5,6). In contrast, across a number of settings, including community and academic medical centers, non-Hispanic black and Hispanic patients are more than three times as likely as non-Hispanic whites to have a diagnosis of schizophrenia (710).
Treatment for psychiatric conditions also varies by race-ethnicity. Individuals with any psychiatric condition and from racial-ethnic minority groups are less likely than non-Hispanic whites to receive a medication for their condition (5,1113). Like the findings for diagnoses, findings of most of the treatment studies are also based on survey reports from patients and providers. The evidence that exists for the accuracy of patient-reported medical treatment is mixed and depends on the treatment being delivered (14,15). Major treatment modalities, such as surgery, are much more accurately reported than is the receipt of a prescription for a condition (16). Physician-reported care practices are much less studied, with the limited evidence suggesting that physician self-reported treatment does not match that recorded in the medical record (17,18).
The few published studies that have examined actual prescription patterns (rather than data gathered from surveys) have found conflicting results. One found lower prescription rates for veterans with serious mental illness who were from racial-ethnic minority groups compared with their non-Hispanic white counterparts (11), whereas a large study of Medicaid patients from 42 states suggested that the off-label use of antipsychotic drugs is greater among racial-ethnic minority groups (19). These disparate findings are likely due to a number of differences among patient populations, treatment practices, and health care system guidelines. Racial-ethnic variation in the use of psychotherapy is even less well understood. As in the pharmacotherapy literature, there are equivocal findings about differences in psychotherapy use by persons in racial-ethnic minorities (2023).
We designed this study to address two major gaps in the literature. First, most available evidence for racial-ethnic differences in mental health care is based on national surveys asking patients and caregivers to self-report their own care and asking providers to self-report their practices (2426). By contrast, our study used medical and pharmacy record data on rates of diagnoses, medications dispensed, and formal psychotherapy sessions attended. Second, the few studies using electronic medical records (EMRs) to examine diagnosis and treatment patterns are from a narrow cross-section of providers and systems, relatively small samples of patients from racial-ethnic minorities, and reflect a large proportion of patients receiving federally subsidized care (Veterans Health Administration [11] and Medicaid [19]). Using data from 2011, we designed our study to expand the evidence for racial-ethnic differences in psychiatric diagnosis and treatment in a large, geographically diverse and racially and ethnically representative sample of over 7.5 million patients enrolled in 11 health care systems across the United States.

Methods

Settings

Data for this study were obtained from the Mental Health Research Network (MHRN), a nationwide consortium of public-domain research centers based in large, not-for-profit health care systems in the United States. At the time that data analyses were conducted, these systems provided both private (primarily commercial) and subsidized public insurance coverage and health care to over ten million people living in 11 states (27). All health care systems have meaningful use–compliant EMRs. Table 1 provides basic descriptors for each of the systems included in this study.
TABLE 1. Descriptive statistics for 11 U.S. health systems in the Mental Health Research Networka
CharacteristicSystem 1System 2System 3System 4System 5System 6System 7System 8System 9System 10System 11All systems
Membership (N patients)426,139337,2982,310,0992,428,482153,871394,894568,768479,045147,648176,734100,9787,523,956
Psychiatric condition19.720.014.014.89.516.917.620.69.313.715.215.5
Women55.553.453.152.951.954.053.752.856.653.655.453.4
Age            
 18–3932.333.134.836.734.132.539.436.824.737.731.935.4
 40–6450.948.046.546.446.948.250.755.951.151.846.148.0
 ≥6516.918.918.716.919.019.39.97.324.210.522.016.6
Race-ethnicity            
 White52.176.050.536.124.858.346.320.555.836.760.644.7
 Asian6.14.616.99.334.92.22.2.93.05.0.59.7
 Black3.22.67.09.3.93.43.71.734.138.96.67.7
 Hispanic3.35.115.932.44.89.9.5.91.33.36.116.6
 Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander.8.6.7.722.9.2.03.02.04.09.011.0
 Native American/Alaskan Native1.2.7.4.3.9.6.4.05.5.3.08.4
 Mixed.01.6.03.7.07.1
 Unknown33.410.59.511.910.725.346.375.94.715.726.119.8
Annual income <$40,00045.451.526.025.921.822.425.217.245.523.558.227.9
Coverage            
 Medicare18.921.220.218.53.620.88.24.022.1018.717.0
 Medicaid.71.31.21.97.5.82.600001.5
 Commercial75.275.178.675.178.573.685.196.074.786.866.378.4
 Other5.22.404.410.44.8003.213.214.93.2
a
With the exception of membership, all values are percentages. Annual income was calculated at the census block level and reflects statistics for the entire membership, including children in each health care system. Coverage reflects the entire membership, including children.
EMRs, insurance claims, and other data systems were organized in a virtual data warehouse (VDW) for all systems to facilitate population-based research (28). Protected health information remains at each health care system, but sites apply common data definitions and formats to ensure equivalent deidentified data for analysis. Only frequencies are shared between institutions for analyses. Institutional review boards at each health care system approved the methods for this study.

Patients

Patients were selected for the study if they had been continuously enrolled members of their health plan for at least ten months in 2011, had medical and prescription drug coverage for at least ten months of that year, and were age 18 years or older (N=7,523,956). Of this population, 15.6% had at least one psychiatric diagnosis in 2011 (N=1,169,993). This group of patients was the basis for analyses of medication and formal psychotherapy utilization.

Measures

Race and ethnicity.

Self-reported race-ethnicity was obtained from the VDW. All health care systems were implementing meaningful use requirements (29) to collect self- reported race-ethnicity from their members in 2011. Typically, new and current members were asked to complete a self-report form that included separate questions for both their race and ethnicity. These forms were included in both membership applications and at clinical outpatient visits. Responses from both sources were entered into the EMR by health care system staff. Choices for race and ethnicity recorded by the VDW are standardized across health care systems and follow national recommendations for mutually exclusive race categories (30,31).
Regardless of the race category they endorsed, patients self-reporting Hispanic ethnicity were considered Hispanic according to recommendations from a national survey of Hispanics living in the United States that found that Hispanic people considered themselves a race of people and not an ethnicity (31). If a patient’s records contained two or more race categories (rather than a single category of “mixed race”), they were assigned the least prevalent race category in the U.S. population. For example, if a patient indicated being both Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander and non-Hispanic black, the person was categorized as Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander in our analyses. The strategy was used to maximize our ability to understand differences in diagnoses and treatment for patients in the least represented racial-ethnic minority groups. This is a convention used for VDW data analyses (28).

Psychiatric diagnoses.

Data for psychiatric diagnoses were obtained from all encounters in both EMRs and insurance claims. Claims data contained information from contracted facilities and physicians who billed the health care systems. We abstracted diagnoses made by any health care provider in primary care, psychiatry, emergency department, and inpatient settings for our analyses. Standard ICD-9 codes were used to define the following psychiatric conditions: depression, bipolar disorder, anxiety, attention-deficit disorders, autism spectrum disorders, schizophrenia, other psychoses, substance use disorders, and dementia. Patients were counted in each category for which they had a diagnosis. This meant that patients could be counted more than once in our analyses if they had multiple psychiatric conditions.

Pharmacy records.

Information on filled pharmacy prescriptions was extracted from EMRs and pharmacy claims. We collected information on drugs in the following classes: antidepressants, stimulants, lithium, anticonvulsants, first- and second-generation antipsychotics, benzodiazepines, other hypnotics, and other anxiolytics. Results for pharmacotherapy were referred to as rates of “receiving” a drug for a psychiatric condition, which meant that the patient or caregiver paid for (filled) the prescription.

Psychotherapy treatment.

Procedure codes were captured by claims or EMRs data. We defined formal psychotherapy treatment with Current Procedural Terminology codes: diagnostic interviews and assessments; individual psychotherapy, insight-oriented, at least 45–80 minutes; and individual psychotherapy, interactive with equipment/devices/nonverbal communication, at least 45–80 minutes. We excluded any treatment that was less than 30 minutes or that was clearly designated as medication management only. In the health care systems included in this study, visits of less than 30 minutes are rarely used for formal psychotherapy. We did not exclude visits where medication management occurred; however, we required that there also be an indication of psychotherapy.

Analyses

Rates of diagnosis, pharmacy fills, and psychotherapy treatment were adjusted for health care site and presented across a number of psychiatric conditions by race-ethnicity. These rates were compared statistically with the use of odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence intervals with non-Hispanic whites as the referent group. Data are presented for all psychiatric conditions combined and individually for anxiety, depression, bipolar disorders, schizophrenia, and other psychoses. Autism spectrum disorders, attention-deficit disorders, substance use disorders, and dementia diagnoses were included only in the analyses of overall rates of psychiatric conditions because of their low prevalence in our population.

Results

Patients

Table 1 presents descriptive statistics for patients included in the study and the systems in which they were treated. Of the 7,523,956 patients in the study, 45% were non-Hispanic white, 17% were Hispanic, 10% were Asian, 8% were non-Hispanic black, 1% were Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander, <1% were Native American/Alaskan Native, <1% were of mixed race-ethnicity, and 20% were of unknown race-ethnicity. Patients were primarily 40–64 years old (48%) and had an estimated annual income above $40,000 (72%), and 19% had Medicare or Medicaid insurance (or the combination) as their primary coverage for health care.

Diagnoses

Table 2 presents descriptive statistics in addition to ORs with confidence intervals adjusted for health care site for comparisons of diagnosis rates by race-ethnicity. The overall diagnosis rate for any psychiatric condition was 15.6% (N=1,169,993). Specifically, 20.6% among Native American/Alaskan Natives (highest), 19.8% among non-Hispanic whites, 14.3% among Hispanics, 13.5% among non-Hispanic blacks, 9.1% among Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islanders, 14.6% among mixed race-ethnicity, 7.5% among Asians (lowest), and 12.0% among those with unknown or missing race-ethnicity. In general, compared with non-Hispanic whites, most persons from racial-ethnic minorities had lower rates of diagnosed psychiatric conditions (ORs ranged from .36 among Asians to .72 among Hispanics). The exception was Native American/Alaskan Native patients, who had slightly higher rates of diagnoses (OR=1.03). Although diagnoses for specific psychiatric conditions, such as depression and schizophrenia, appeared to mirror these findings, there was one clear exception. Non-Hispanic blacks were nearly twice as likely as non-Hispanic whites to receive a schizophrenia diagnosis (OR=1.98).
TABLE 2. Rates of psychiatric diagnoses in 2011 across 11 U.S. health systems in the Mental Health Research Networka
Diagnosis and race-ethnicityNRate (%)OR95% CIp
Any psychiatric diagnosis     
 White665,53819.8
 Asian54,6947.5.36.35–.36<.001
 Black78,36113.5.69.69–.70<.001
 Hispanic179,10914.3.72.71–.72<.001
 Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander6,8019.1.47.46–.48<.001
 Native American/Alaskan Native6,07420.61.031.01–1.06<.001
 Mixed71914.6.64.59–.69<.001
 Unknown or missing data178,69712.0.44.43–.44<.001
Anxiety disorder     
 White302,0809.0
 Asian27,5813.8.43.42–.43<.001
 Black33,2195.7.65.64–.65<.001
 Hispanic92,2657.4.83.82–.83<.001
 Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander2,9013.9.47.46–.49<.001
 Native American/Alaskan Native2,8699.71.091.05–1.14<.001
 Mixed3336.8.68.60–.76<.001
 Unknown or missing data83,3745.6.47.47–.48<.001
Depressive disorder     
 White423,98112.6
 Asian29,7644.1.32.32–.33<.001
 Black47,1618.1.68.67–.69<.001
 Hispanic107,7918.6.70.69–.70<.001
 Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander3,9095.2.46.44–.47<.001
 Native American/Alaskan Native3,75412.8.99.96–1.03ns
 Mixed4769.7.66.60–.73<.001
 Unknown or missing data104,8897.0.42.41–.42<.001
Bipolar disorder     
 White36,7781.1
 Asian1,810.2.24.23–.25<.001
 Black3,982.7.65.63–.67<.001
 Hispanic5,605.5.44.42–.45<.001
 Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander217.3.33.29–.38<.001
 Native American/Alaskan Native4301.51.341.21–1.47<.001
 Mixed23.5.65.43–.98<.001
 Unknown or missing data8,006.5.41.40–.42<.001
Schizophrenia spectrum disorder     
 White7,565.2
 Asian1,322.2.77.72–.81<.001
 Black2,505.41.981.89–2.07<.001
 Hispanic2,177.2.72.68–.75<.001
 Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander99.1.67.54–.75<.001
 Native American/Alaskan Native70.31.18.93–1.50ns
 Mixed7.2.88.42–1.86ns
 Unknown or missing data1,360.2.43.40–.46<.001
Other psychosis     
 White14,158.4
 Asian1,328.2.50.47–.53<.001
 Black2,337.41.131.08–1.19<.001
 Hispanic2,679.2.61.58–.63<.001
 Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander108.1.51.42–.62<.001
 Native American/Alaskan Native97.3.80.66–.98<.001
 Mixed11.2.34.24–.79<.001
 Unknown or missing data2,758.4.33.32–.35<.001
a
The overall diagnosis rate for any psychiatric condition was 15.6% (N=1,169,993). Rates are presented for 7,523,956 adults 18 years and older. Odds ratios and confidence intervals, adjusted for health care site, are presented for the comparison of non-Hispanic whites (reference group) with other racial-ethnic groups of patients.

Pharmacotherapy

Rates of receiving a psychotropic medication when diagnosed as having a psychiatric condition are shown in Table 3. Of all patients with a psychiatric diagnosis in 2011, 73% (N=850,585) received a psychotropic medication in the same year. Across psychiatric conditions, after adjustment for health care site, persons in racial-ethnic minorities were less likely than non-Hispanic whites to receive a psychotropic medication (ORs ranged from .48 among Asians to .81 among Native American/Alaskan Natives). In general, this pattern was the same when individual psychiatric conditions were examined, with the exception of schizophrenia and other psychosis. Only non-Hispanic black patients were less likely than whites to receive medication (OR=.65) for their schizophrenia, and only Asian (OR=.84) and non-Hispanic black (OR=.86) patients were less likely than non-Hispanic whites to receive a medication for other psychosis. Native American/Alaskan Natives had similar rates of receiving a medication compared with non-Hispanic whites for almost all psychiatric conditions except depression.
TABLE 3. Psychotropic medication fill rates for various psychiatric conditions in 2011 for members of 11 U.S. health systems in the Mental Health Research Networka
Diagnosis and race-ethnicityNRate (%)OR95% CIp
Any psychiatric diagnosis     
 White665,53877.8
 Asian54,69463.3.48.47–.49<.001
 Black78,36165.4.53.52–.54<.001
 Hispanic179,10966.8.57.56–.57<.001
 Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander6,80163.8.48.45–.50<.001
 Native American/Alaskan Native6,07474.0.81.76–.86<.001
 Mixed71961.5.63.54–.73<.001
 Unknown or missing data178,69766.2.58.57–.58<.001
Anxiety disorder     
 White302,08082.3
 Asian27,58166.7.41.40–.42<.001
 Black33,21974.0.59.57–.61<.001
 Hispanic92,26573.2.57.56–.58<.001
 Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander2,90172.8.48.44–.53<.001
 Native American/Alaskan Native2,86981.7.94.86–1.04ns
 Mixed33368.6.70.55–.89<.001
 Unknown or missing data83,37472.3.58.57–.60<.001
Depressive disorder     
 White423,98183.0
 Asian29,76469.5.45.44–.46<.001
 Black47,16171.6.50.49–.51<.001
 Hispanic107,79172.8.53.53–.54<.001
 Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander3,90970.8.49.45–.53<.001
 Native American/Alaskan Native3,75480.6.85.78–.92<.001
 Mixed47668.4.66.54–.81<.001
 Unknown or missing data104,88972.0.58.57–.59<.001
Bipolar disorder     
 White36,77892.1
 Asian1,81091.3.79.67–.94<.001
 Black3,98286.2.54.48–.59<.001
 Hispanic5,60588.9.68.62–.74<.001
 Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander21788.5.51.33–.78<.001
 Native American/Alaskan Native43090.0.80.58–1.11ns
 Mixed2382.6.90.31–2.66ns
 Unknown or missing data8,00686.8.50.46–.55<.001
Schizophrenia spectrum disorder     
 White7,56591.0
 Asian1,32292.71.17.93–1.47ns
 Black2,50587.2.65.56–.75<.001
 Hispanic2,17790.1.87.73–1.03ns
 Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander9991.91.13.53–2.44ns
 Native American/Alaskan Native7085.7.64.32–1.26ns
 Mixed785.71.09.13–9.09ns
 Unknown or missing data1,36082.1.45.37–.53<.001
Other psychosis     
 White14,15876.4
 Asian1,32874.1.84.73–.96<.001
 Black2,33774.3.86.77–.95<.001
 Hispanic2,67978.91.10.99–1.22ns
 Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander10877.8.99.62–1.59ns
 Native American/Alaskan Native9771.11.01.63–1.64ns
 Mixed11.0
 Unknown or missing data2,75871.4.69.62–.76<.001
a
The overall psychotropic medication sold rate for any psychiatric condition was 72.7% (N=850,585). Fill rates are presented for 1,169,993 adults 18 years and older. Odds ratios and confidence intervals, adjusted for health care site, are presented for the comparison of non-Hispanic whites (reference group) with other racial-ethnic groups of patients. The denominator for each rate (percentage) reflects the number of patients of a certain race-ethnicity with a psychiatric condition. For example, there were 665,538 non-Hispanic white patients diagnosed as having any psychiatric condition. Of these patients, 77.8% received pharmacotherapy.

Formal Psychotherapy

Rates of receiving formal psychotherapy for any psychiatric condition are shown in Table 4. Thirty-four percent (N=548,837) received formal psychotherapy. This is less than half the rate of receiving a psychotropic medication (73%). Unlike diagnoses and pharmacotherapy, there were no clear differences in receiving formal psychotherapy across racial and ethnic groups. Across combined psychiatric conditions, after adjustment for health care site, only Asians (OR=.93) had lower rates of formal psychotherapy use in comparison with non-Hispanic whites. Compared with non-Hispanic whites, the remaining groups of patients had similar rates (Hispanics, OR=.99) or higher rates of receiving formal psychotherapy (ORs ranged from 1.10 among Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islanders to 1.55 among patients with mixed-race heritage).
TABLE 4. Psychotherapy rates for various psychiatric conditions in 2011 for members of 11 U.S. health systems in the Mental Health Research Networka
Diagnosis and race-ethnicityNRate (%)OR95% CIp
Any psychiatric diagnosis     
 White665,53833.4
 Asian54,69430.2.93.91–.94<.001
 Black78,36135.71.131.12–1.15<.001
 Hispanic179,10930.7.99.98–1.00ns
 Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander6,80135.31.101.05–1.15<.001
 Native American/Alaskan Native6,07439.51.261.21–1.32<.001
 Mixed71953.41.551.37–1.76<.001
 Unknown or missing data178,69741.6.90.89–.91<.001
Anxiety disorder     
 White302,08010.8
 Asian27,58110.2.99.97–1.02ns
 Black33,21910.7.99.97–1.01ns
 Hispanic92,26510.61.051.03–1.06<.001
 Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander2,90110.61.04.97–1.12ns
 Native American/Alaskan Native2,86912.71.181.11–1.26<.001
 Mixed33316.11.381.16–1.64<.001
 Unknown or missing data83,37413.1.93.91–.94<.001
Depressive disorder     
 White423,98114.6
 Asian29,76414.41.041.02–1.06<.001
 Black47,16116.61.201.18–1.22<.001
 Hispanic107,79114.41.081.07–1.10<.001
 Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander3,90916.51.131.06–1.20<.001
 Native American/Alaskan Native3,75416.21.101.04–1.17<.001
 Mixed47625.41.421.23–1.63<.001
 Unknown or missing data104,88919.2.94.93–.95<.001
Bipolar disorder     
 White36,7781.9
 Asian1,8101.2.67.63–.72<.001
 Black3,9821.91.00.96–1.05ns
 Hispanic5,6051.1.67.64–.70<.001
 Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander2171.3.82.33–.78<.001
 Native American/Alaskan Native4302.51.351.18–1.54<.001
 Mixed231.51.00.60–1.68ns
 Unknown or missing data8,0061.9.81.78–.84<.001
Schizophrenia spectrum disorder     
 White7,565.3
 Asian1,322.61.821.63–2.03<.001
 Black2,505.82.642.43–2.85<.001
 Hispanic2,177.31.04.96–1.13ns
 Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander99.41.671.19–2.36<.001
 Native American/Alaskan Native70.12.381.12–5.03<.001
 Mixed7.0
 Unknown or missing data1,360.3.88.79–.98<.001
Other psychosis     
 White14,158.4
 Asian1,328.71.691.53–1.86<.001
 Black2,337.81.971.83–2.13<.001
 Hispanic2,679.41.06.98–1.14ns
 Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islander108.61.751.32–2.33<.001
 Native American/Alaskan Native97.21.02.63–1.65ns
 Mixed11.0
 Unknown or missing data2,758.5.78.72–.84<.001
a
The overall psychotherapy rate for any psychiatric condition was 34.3% (N=548,837). Psychotherapy rates are presented for 1,169,993 adults 18 years and older. Odds ratios and confidence intervals, adjusted for health care site, are also presented for the comparison of non-Hispanic whites (referent group) with other racial-ethnic groups of patients. The denominator for each rate (percentage) reflects the number of patients with a psychiatric condition and of a certain race-ethnicity. For example, there were 665,538 non-Hispanic white patients diagnosed as having any psychiatric condition. Of these patients, 33.4% received psychotherapy.
This overall pattern varied widely by specific psychiatric condition. For example, persons from any racial-ethnic minority group were more likely than non-Hispanic whites to receive formal psychotherapy for their depression (ORs ranged from 1.04 for Asians to 1.42 for patients with mixed race heritage). However, rates of receiving formal psychotherapy for bipolar disorder were generally lower for those in minority groups than for non-Hispanic whites (ORs ranged from .82 for Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islanders to .67 for Asians and Hispanics). Interestingly, non-Hispanic blacks had the same rates of formal psychotherapy compared with whites for their bipolar disorder (in contrast to lower rates of medication use for this disorder). Except for Hispanics, persons of all other minority races-ethnicities were more likely than non-Hispanic whites to receive formal psychotherapy for their schizophrenia (ORs ranged from 1.67 among Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islanders to 2.64 among non-Hispanic blacks).

Discussion

We found that the prevalence rates for depression and anxiety diagnoses among insured patients at 11 large private, not-for-profit health care systems across the United States were lower among racial-ethnic minority patients compared with non-Hispanic whites. This finding is consistent with some previous reports (5). The one exception was Native American/Alaskan Native members whose prevalence rates for these conditions were similar to those of non-Hispanic whites. Some of these differences were pronounced; for example, Asian patients were more than two-thirds less likely than non-Hispanic white patients to receive a diagnosis of depression. As in previous studies, we also found that non-Hispanic blacks were nearly twice as likely as non-Hispanic whites to receive a diagnosis of schizophrenia (7).
In regard to pharmacotherapy for these conditions, we found wide variation in rates of use for depression and anxiety across races-ethnicities, with non-Hispanic whites consistently higher in use than all other races and ethnicities. Asians not only were much less likely than others to receive a diagnosis of depression but also, when diagnosed, were much less likely than non-Hispanic whites to receive a medication to treat this condition. In contrast with findings from a decade ago, we found no significant differences in use of psychotropic drugs across racial-ethnic groups with schizophrenia and other psychosis (11,32,33). One reason for this difference may be that the previous studies focused on patients in the Veterans Health Administration (7,11,34) or Medicaid (19,35,36) systems, which tend to serve the most disadvantaged patients. The one exception to this finding was for non-Hispanic blacks, who were still less likely than whites to receive a medication for their schizophrenia even though they were nearly twice as likely as whites to receive this diagnosis. Finally, with respect to bipolar disorder, there were still large differences between racial-ethnic minorities and non-Hispanic whites in the likelihood of receipt of medication. This difference was most pronounced for Native Hawaiian/other Pacific Islanders (OR=.51) and non-Hispanic blacks (OR=.54).
We also found that the likelihood of receiving formal psychotherapy for any psychiatric condition, regardless of racial-ethnic heritage, was much lower than the likelihood of receiving pharmacotherapy (34% versus 73%). This difference is consistent with the recent trends in treatment of psychiatric conditions reported by Olfson and colleagues (37,38). Across psychiatric conditions, formal psychotherapy rates were similar (Asians and Hispanics) or higher for racial-ethnic minority groups compared with non-Hispanic whites. Most of these differences were primarily due to variation in rates of formal psychotherapy treatment for depression and schizophrenia. This is consistent with reports in the literature that non-Hispanic black patients were more likely than non-Hispanic white patients to prefer psychotherapy over medications for treatment of their depression (22).
Although we found large statistical differences by race-ethnicity in receiving formal psychotherapy for schizophrenia treatment (non-Hispanic blacks were 2.64 times more likely to receive formal psychotherapy than whites), it was difficult to determine whether these differences were clinically meaningful because the overall rate of psychotherapy treatment for serious mental illness was very low (0%−3%). Although pharmacotherapy is the treatment of choice for serious mental illness, there are clinical recommendations that suggest, especially at the first onset of symptoms, that psychotherapy can be very effective (39,40). Our data suggest that this is an opportunity for improving services for these patients.
Our study does not provide answers to why racial-ethnic differences in the diagnosis and treatment of psychiatric conditions persist, especially for non-Hispanic black patients. There are many patient- and provider-level factors that could contribute to these findings. There is some evidence that certain cultures prefer complementary and alternative medicine (such as herbal remedies) to allopathic pharmacotherapy for treatment of depression or anxiety (41,42). In addition, other factors, such as immigration status (43), language preference (23), socioeconomic status (11), and subsidized insurance coverage (23), have all been related to whether a patient is diagnosed as having a psychiatric condition and is subsequently prescribed medication.
Provider-level factors also have been shown to account for differences in diagnosis and treatment of psychiatric conditions. For example, some reports indicate that when providers are presented with the same mental health symptoms (such as irritability, violent outbursts, and anger), they are more likely to diagnose non-Hispanic blacks as having bipolar disorder or schizophrenia, whereas non-Hispanic whites often receive a diagnosis of major depression for these same symptoms (44,45). In addition, limited access to therapists who speak the patient’s preferred language likely determines whether or not these patients receive psychotherapy.
There were a number of limitations with this study that should be considered when interpreting our findings. Because we did not have individual-level data to analyze, we could not account for other factors that have been shown to determine racial-ethnic minority differences in diagnosis and treatment of psychiatric conditions, such as socioeconomic status and acculturation or generational status (7,11,23,46). If we had adjusted for these factors, we may have found different results. To this point, a large study from national data sources found that patient self-reported, unadjusted rates of utilization of psychotherapy services were lower for Hispanics when compared with non-Hispanic whites and blacks (23). However, when these rates were adjusted for other demographic factors, English language preference and not Hispanic ethnicity was the strongest determinant of the use of psychotherapy.
Finally, 20% of our sample were missing data on self-reported race and ethnicity. There are a number of reasons for this, including patient refusal to provide this information, health care system staff failure to enter paper-based responses into the EMR, or patients not having an outpatient visit during the time that the health care systems enacted data collection in response to meaningful use requirements (29). Results for patients with unknown or missing race (Tables 24) were in the middle range of results across different racial-ethnic groups. This suggests that the group of patients with unknown or missing data includes patients of all racial-ethnic groups and that the findings would be unlikely to change if they were added to the known categories of patients. Another limitation related to the race-ethnicity data is that we cannot verify whether the information was self-reported by all patients. It is likely that some of these data are not self-reported because the health care systems in the study were in the process of implementing self-reported member demographic characteristics. There is evidence that EMR race-ethnicity data may not reflect a patient’s self-reported preferences (47).
In spite of these limitations, this study shows compelling evidence of persistent racial-ethnic differences in the diagnosis and treatment of depression, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia in a large sample of insured patients across 11 states. This was especially true for non-Hispanic black patients, who, compared with whites, were more likely to be diagnosed as having schizophrenia and less likely to use medication but more likely to use formal psychotherapy for this mental health condition.

Conclusions

Our findings filled two important gaps in the literature: first, most population-based studies of psychiatric diagnosis rates and treatment in the United States have been based on patient self-report or providers’ reports on their practices and not on objective sources such as EMRs; second, the studies that have examined electronic sources of information have done so in populations using subsidized health care. Our study, in combination with other recently published work (4,5,8,19,26,37,38,46), provides a more complete picture of the differences among racial-ethnic groups in the United States with respect to diagnosis and treatment of major psychiatric conditions. Further research is necessary to understand how patient preferences and provider practices determine the differences we have reported.

Footnote

The authors report no financial relationships with commercial interests.

References

1.
Reeves WC, Strine TW, Pratt LA, et al: Mental illness surveillance among adults in the United States. MMWR Surveillance Summaries 60(suppl 3):1–29, 2011
2.
Insel TR: Assessing the economic costs of serious mental illness. American Journal of Psychiatry 165:663–665, 2008
3.
Mark TL, Levit KR, Buck JA, et al: Mental health treatment expenditure trends, 1986-2003. Psychiatric Services 58:1041–1048, 2007
4.
Racial/ Ethnic Differences in Mental Health Service Use Among Adults. HHS pub no SMA-15-4906. Rockville, Md, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2015
5.
Sclar DA, Robison LM, Schmidt JM, et al: Diagnosis of depression and use of antidepressant pharmacotherapy among adults in the United States: does a disparity persist by ethnicity/race? Clinical Drug Investigation 32:139–144, 2012
6.
Jarvis GE: Changing psychiatric perception of African-Americans with affective disorders. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease 200:1031–1040, 2012
7.
Blow FC, Zeber JE, McCarthy JF, et al: Ethnicity and diagnostic patterns in veterans with psychoses. Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology 39:841–851, 2004
8.
Choi MR, Eun HJ, Yoo TP, et al: The effects of sociodemographic factors on psychiatric diagnosis. Psychiatry Investigation 9:199–208, 2012
9.
Eack SM, Bahorik AL, Newhill CE, et al: Interviewer-perceived honesty as a mediator of racial disparities in the diagnosis of schizophrenia. Psychiatric Services 63:875–880, 2012
10.
Gara MA, Vega WA, Arndt S, et al: Influence of patient race and ethnicity on clinical assessment in patients with affective disorders. Archives of General Psychiatry 69:593–600, 2012
11.
Copeland LA, Zeber JE, Valenstein M, et al: Racial disparity in the use of atypical antipsychotic medications among veterans. American Journal of Psychiatry 160:1817–1822, 2003
12.
Fleming ML, Barner JC, Brown CM, et al: Treatment disparities for major depressive disorder: implications for pharmacists. Journal of the American Pharmacists Association 51:605-612, 2011
13.
Mallinger JB, Lamberti SJ: Racial differences in the use of adjunctive psychotropic medications for patients with schizophrenia. Journal of Mental Health Policy and Economics 10:15–22, 2007
14.
Fowles JB, Rosheim K, Fowler EJ, et al: The validity of self-reported diabetes quality of care measures. International Journal for Quality in Health Care 11:407–412, 1999
15.
Liu Y, Diamant AL, Thind A, et al: Validity of self-reports of breast cancer treatment in low-income, medically underserved women with breast cancer. Breast Cancer Research and Treatment 119:745–751, 2010
16.
Clegg LX, Potosky AL, Harlan LC, et al: Comparison of self-reported initial treatment with medical records: results from the Prostate Cancer Outcomes Study. American Journal of Epidemiology 154:582–587, 2001
17.
Leaf DA, Neighbor WE, Schaad D, et al: A comparison of self-report and chart audit in studying resident physician assessment of cardiac risk factors. Journal of General Internal Medicine 10:194–198, 1995
18.
Montaño DE, Phillips WR: Cancer screening by primary care physicians: a comparison of rates obtained from physician self-report, patient survey, and chart audit. American Journal of Public Health 85:795–800, 1995
19.
Leslie DL, Rosenheck R: Off-label use of antipsychotic medications in Medicaid. American Journal of Managed Care 18:e109–e117, 2012
20.
Cooper LA, Gonzales JJ, Gallo JJ, et al: The acceptability of treatment for depression among African-American, Hispanic, and white primary care patients. Medical Care 41:479–489, 2003
21.
González HM, Vega WA, Williams DR, et al: Depression care in the United States: too little for too few. Archives of General Psychiatry 67:37–46, 2010
22.
Givens JL, Houston TK, Van Voorhees BW, et al: Ethnicity and preferences for depression treatment. General Hospital Psychiatry 29:182–191, 2007
23.
Chen J, Rizzo J: Racial and ethnic disparities in use of psychotherapy: evidence from US national survey data. Psychiatric Services 61:364–372, 2010
24.
Blanco C, Patel SR, Liu L, et al: National trends in ethnic disparities in mental health care. Medical Care 45:1012–1019, 2007
25.
Cook BL, Doksum T, Chen CN, et al: The role of provider supply and organization in reducing racial/ethnic disparities in mental health care in the US. Social Science and Medicine 84:102–109, 2013
26.
Cook BL, Zuvekas SH, Carson N, et al: Assessing racial/ethnic disparities in treatment across episodes of mental health care. Health Services Research 49:206–229, 2014
27.
Introduction to the Mental Health Research Network. Minneapolis, MN, Mental Health Research Network. Available at https://sites.google.com/a/mhresearchnetwork.org/mhrn/home. Accessed July 1, 2014
28.
Ross TR, Ng D, Brown JS, et al: The HMO Research Network Virtual Data Warehouse: A Public Data Model to Support Collaboration. eGEMS 2(1, article 2):1–8, 2014
29.
Blumenthal D, Tavenner M: The “meaningful use” regulation for electronic health records. New England Journal of Medicine 363:501–504, 2010
30.
Institute of Medicine: Ethnicity, and Language Data: Standardization for Health Care Quality Improvement. Washington, DC, National Academies Press, 2009
31.
Taylor P, Lopez MH, Martinez JH, et al: When Labels Don’t Fit: Hispanics and Their Views of Identity. Washington, DC, Pew Research Center, Pew Hispanic Center, April 4, 2012
32.
Busch AB, Lehman AF, Goldman H, et al: Changes over time and disparities in schizophrenia treatment quality. Medical Care 47:199–207, 2009
33.
Ray WA, Hall K, Meador KG: Racial differences in antidepressant treatment preceding suicide in a Medicaid population. Psychiatric Services 58:1317–1323, 2007
34.
Charbonneau A, Rosen AK, Ash AS, et al: Measuring the quality of depression care in a large integrated health system. Medical Care 41:669–680, 2003
35.
Melfi CA, Croghan TW, Hanna MP, et al: Racial variation in antidepressant treatment in a Medicaid population. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry 61:16–21, 2000
36.
Virnig B, Huang Z, Lurie N, et al: Does Medicare managed care provide equal treatment for mental illness across races? Archives of General Psychiatry 61:201–205, 2004
37.
Olfson M, Kroenke K, Wang S, et al: Trends in office-based mental health care provided by psychiatrists and primary care physicians. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry 75:247–253, 2014
38.
Olfson M, Blanco C, Wang S, et al: National trends in the mental health care of children, adolescents, and adults by office-based physicians. JAMA Psychiatry 71:81–90, 2014
39.
Lutgens D, Iyer S, Joober R, et al: A five-year randomized parallel and blinded clinical trial of an extended specialized early intervention vs regular care in the early phase of psychotic disorders: study protocol. BMC Psychiatry 15:22, 2015
40.
Vallarino M, Henry C, Etain B, et al: An evidence map of psychosocial interventions for the earliest stages of bipolar disorder. Lancet Psychiatry 2:548–563, 2015
41.
Nadeem E, Lange JM, Miranda J: Mental health care preferences among low-income and minority women. Archives of Women’s Mental Health 11:93–102, 2008
42.
Hunt J, Sullivan G, Chavira DA, et al: Race and beliefs about mental health treatment among anxious primary care patients. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease 201:188–195, 2013
43.
Dealberto MJ: Ethnic origin and increased risk for schizophrenia in immigrants to countries of recent and longstanding immigration. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica 121:325–339, 2010
44.
Anglin DM, Malaspina D: Racial and ethnic effects on psychotic psychiatric diagnostic changes from admission to discharge: a retrospective chart review. Journal of Clinical Psychiatry 69:464–469, 2008
45.
Jones BE, Gray BA: Problems in diagnosing schizophrenia and affective disorders among blacks. Hospital and Community Psychiatry 37:61–65, 1986
46.
Orozco R, Borges G, Medina-Mora ME, et al: A cross-national study on prevalence of mental disorders, service use, and adequacy of treatment among Mexican and Mexican American populations. American Journal of Public Health 103:1610–1618, 2013
47.
Klinger EV, Carlini SV, Gonzalez I, et al: Accuracy of race, ethnicity, and language preference in an electronic health record. Journal of General Internal Medicine 30:719–723, 2015

Information & Authors

Information

Published In

Go to Psychiatric Services
Go to Psychiatric Services

Cover: Anniversary Tin: Candelabra, anonymous artist, ca. 1880–1900. Tin with sand-weighted base. Collection American Folk Art Museum, New York City. Gift of Mr. and Mrs. James D. Clokey, III, 1984.29.1A. Photo: John Parnell. Photo credit: American Folk Art Museum, Art Resource, New York City.

Psychiatric Services
Pages: 749 - 757
PubMed: 27079987

History

Received: 31 May 2015
Revision received: 1 November 2015
Accepted: 20 November 2015
Published online: 15 April 2016
Published in print: July 01, 2016

Authors

Details

Karen J. Coleman, Ph.D.
Dr. Coleman is with the Department of Research and Evaluation, Kaiser Permanente Southern California, Pasadena (e-mail: [email protected]). Dr. Stewart and Dr. Simon are with the Group Health Research Institute, Group Health Cooperative, Seattle. Dr. Waitzfelder and Dr. Trinacty are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, Honolulu. Dr. Zeber and Dr. Copeland are with Health Services Research and Development, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Temple, Texas, and the Center for Applied Health Research, Baylor Scott and White Health, Temple, Texas. Dr. Morales is with the Center for Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, University of Washington, Seattle. Dr. Ahmed is with Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Permanente Medical Group, San Francisco. Dr. Ahmedani is with the Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit. Dr. Beck is with the Institute for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Colorado, Denver. Dr. Cummings is with the Department of Health Policy and Management, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta. Ms. Hunkeler is with the Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland. Dr. Lindberg and Dr. Lynch are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Northwest, Portland, Oregon. Dr. Lu is with Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston. Dr. Owen-Smith is with the School of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta. Dr. Whitebird is with the School of Social Work, University of St. Thomas/St. Catherine University, St. Paul, Minnesota.
Christine Stewart, Ph.D.
Dr. Coleman is with the Department of Research and Evaluation, Kaiser Permanente Southern California, Pasadena (e-mail: [email protected]). Dr. Stewart and Dr. Simon are with the Group Health Research Institute, Group Health Cooperative, Seattle. Dr. Waitzfelder and Dr. Trinacty are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, Honolulu. Dr. Zeber and Dr. Copeland are with Health Services Research and Development, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Temple, Texas, and the Center for Applied Health Research, Baylor Scott and White Health, Temple, Texas. Dr. Morales is with the Center for Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, University of Washington, Seattle. Dr. Ahmed is with Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Permanente Medical Group, San Francisco. Dr. Ahmedani is with the Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit. Dr. Beck is with the Institute for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Colorado, Denver. Dr. Cummings is with the Department of Health Policy and Management, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta. Ms. Hunkeler is with the Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland. Dr. Lindberg and Dr. Lynch are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Northwest, Portland, Oregon. Dr. Lu is with Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston. Dr. Owen-Smith is with the School of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta. Dr. Whitebird is with the School of Social Work, University of St. Thomas/St. Catherine University, St. Paul, Minnesota.
Beth E. Waitzfelder, Ph.D.
Dr. Coleman is with the Department of Research and Evaluation, Kaiser Permanente Southern California, Pasadena (e-mail: [email protected]). Dr. Stewart and Dr. Simon are with the Group Health Research Institute, Group Health Cooperative, Seattle. Dr. Waitzfelder and Dr. Trinacty are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, Honolulu. Dr. Zeber and Dr. Copeland are with Health Services Research and Development, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Temple, Texas, and the Center for Applied Health Research, Baylor Scott and White Health, Temple, Texas. Dr. Morales is with the Center for Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, University of Washington, Seattle. Dr. Ahmed is with Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Permanente Medical Group, San Francisco. Dr. Ahmedani is with the Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit. Dr. Beck is with the Institute for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Colorado, Denver. Dr. Cummings is with the Department of Health Policy and Management, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta. Ms. Hunkeler is with the Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland. Dr. Lindberg and Dr. Lynch are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Northwest, Portland, Oregon. Dr. Lu is with Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston. Dr. Owen-Smith is with the School of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta. Dr. Whitebird is with the School of Social Work, University of St. Thomas/St. Catherine University, St. Paul, Minnesota.
John E. Zeber, Ph.D.
Dr. Coleman is with the Department of Research and Evaluation, Kaiser Permanente Southern California, Pasadena (e-mail: [email protected]). Dr. Stewart and Dr. Simon are with the Group Health Research Institute, Group Health Cooperative, Seattle. Dr. Waitzfelder and Dr. Trinacty are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, Honolulu. Dr. Zeber and Dr. Copeland are with Health Services Research and Development, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Temple, Texas, and the Center for Applied Health Research, Baylor Scott and White Health, Temple, Texas. Dr. Morales is with the Center for Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, University of Washington, Seattle. Dr. Ahmed is with Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Permanente Medical Group, San Francisco. Dr. Ahmedani is with the Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit. Dr. Beck is with the Institute for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Colorado, Denver. Dr. Cummings is with the Department of Health Policy and Management, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta. Ms. Hunkeler is with the Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland. Dr. Lindberg and Dr. Lynch are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Northwest, Portland, Oregon. Dr. Lu is with Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston. Dr. Owen-Smith is with the School of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta. Dr. Whitebird is with the School of Social Work, University of St. Thomas/St. Catherine University, St. Paul, Minnesota.
Leo S. Morales, M.D., Ph.D.
Dr. Coleman is with the Department of Research and Evaluation, Kaiser Permanente Southern California, Pasadena (e-mail: [email protected]). Dr. Stewart and Dr. Simon are with the Group Health Research Institute, Group Health Cooperative, Seattle. Dr. Waitzfelder and Dr. Trinacty are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, Honolulu. Dr. Zeber and Dr. Copeland are with Health Services Research and Development, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Temple, Texas, and the Center for Applied Health Research, Baylor Scott and White Health, Temple, Texas. Dr. Morales is with the Center for Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, University of Washington, Seattle. Dr. Ahmed is with Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Permanente Medical Group, San Francisco. Dr. Ahmedani is with the Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit. Dr. Beck is with the Institute for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Colorado, Denver. Dr. Cummings is with the Department of Health Policy and Management, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta. Ms. Hunkeler is with the Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland. Dr. Lindberg and Dr. Lynch are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Northwest, Portland, Oregon. Dr. Lu is with Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston. Dr. Owen-Smith is with the School of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta. Dr. Whitebird is with the School of Social Work, University of St. Thomas/St. Catherine University, St. Paul, Minnesota.
Ameena T. Ahmed, M.D., M.P.H.
Dr. Coleman is with the Department of Research and Evaluation, Kaiser Permanente Southern California, Pasadena (e-mail: [email protected]). Dr. Stewart and Dr. Simon are with the Group Health Research Institute, Group Health Cooperative, Seattle. Dr. Waitzfelder and Dr. Trinacty are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, Honolulu. Dr. Zeber and Dr. Copeland are with Health Services Research and Development, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Temple, Texas, and the Center for Applied Health Research, Baylor Scott and White Health, Temple, Texas. Dr. Morales is with the Center for Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, University of Washington, Seattle. Dr. Ahmed is with Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Permanente Medical Group, San Francisco. Dr. Ahmedani is with the Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit. Dr. Beck is with the Institute for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Colorado, Denver. Dr. Cummings is with the Department of Health Policy and Management, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta. Ms. Hunkeler is with the Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland. Dr. Lindberg and Dr. Lynch are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Northwest, Portland, Oregon. Dr. Lu is with Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston. Dr. Owen-Smith is with the School of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta. Dr. Whitebird is with the School of Social Work, University of St. Thomas/St. Catherine University, St. Paul, Minnesota.
Brian K. Ahmedani, Ph.D.
Dr. Coleman is with the Department of Research and Evaluation, Kaiser Permanente Southern California, Pasadena (e-mail: [email protected]). Dr. Stewart and Dr. Simon are with the Group Health Research Institute, Group Health Cooperative, Seattle. Dr. Waitzfelder and Dr. Trinacty are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, Honolulu. Dr. Zeber and Dr. Copeland are with Health Services Research and Development, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Temple, Texas, and the Center for Applied Health Research, Baylor Scott and White Health, Temple, Texas. Dr. Morales is with the Center for Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, University of Washington, Seattle. Dr. Ahmed is with Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Permanente Medical Group, San Francisco. Dr. Ahmedani is with the Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit. Dr. Beck is with the Institute for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Colorado, Denver. Dr. Cummings is with the Department of Health Policy and Management, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta. Ms. Hunkeler is with the Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland. Dr. Lindberg and Dr. Lynch are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Northwest, Portland, Oregon. Dr. Lu is with Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston. Dr. Owen-Smith is with the School of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta. Dr. Whitebird is with the School of Social Work, University of St. Thomas/St. Catherine University, St. Paul, Minnesota.
Arne Beck, Ph.D.
Dr. Coleman is with the Department of Research and Evaluation, Kaiser Permanente Southern California, Pasadena (e-mail: [email protected]). Dr. Stewart and Dr. Simon are with the Group Health Research Institute, Group Health Cooperative, Seattle. Dr. Waitzfelder and Dr. Trinacty are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, Honolulu. Dr. Zeber and Dr. Copeland are with Health Services Research and Development, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Temple, Texas, and the Center for Applied Health Research, Baylor Scott and White Health, Temple, Texas. Dr. Morales is with the Center for Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, University of Washington, Seattle. Dr. Ahmed is with Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Permanente Medical Group, San Francisco. Dr. Ahmedani is with the Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit. Dr. Beck is with the Institute for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Colorado, Denver. Dr. Cummings is with the Department of Health Policy and Management, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta. Ms. Hunkeler is with the Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland. Dr. Lindberg and Dr. Lynch are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Northwest, Portland, Oregon. Dr. Lu is with Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston. Dr. Owen-Smith is with the School of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta. Dr. Whitebird is with the School of Social Work, University of St. Thomas/St. Catherine University, St. Paul, Minnesota.
Laurel A. Copeland, Ph.D.
Dr. Coleman is with the Department of Research and Evaluation, Kaiser Permanente Southern California, Pasadena (e-mail: [email protected]). Dr. Stewart and Dr. Simon are with the Group Health Research Institute, Group Health Cooperative, Seattle. Dr. Waitzfelder and Dr. Trinacty are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, Honolulu. Dr. Zeber and Dr. Copeland are with Health Services Research and Development, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Temple, Texas, and the Center for Applied Health Research, Baylor Scott and White Health, Temple, Texas. Dr. Morales is with the Center for Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, University of Washington, Seattle. Dr. Ahmed is with Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Permanente Medical Group, San Francisco. Dr. Ahmedani is with the Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit. Dr. Beck is with the Institute for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Colorado, Denver. Dr. Cummings is with the Department of Health Policy and Management, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta. Ms. Hunkeler is with the Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland. Dr. Lindberg and Dr. Lynch are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Northwest, Portland, Oregon. Dr. Lu is with Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston. Dr. Owen-Smith is with the School of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta. Dr. Whitebird is with the School of Social Work, University of St. Thomas/St. Catherine University, St. Paul, Minnesota.
Janet R. Cummings, Ph.D.
Dr. Coleman is with the Department of Research and Evaluation, Kaiser Permanente Southern California, Pasadena (e-mail: [email protected]). Dr. Stewart and Dr. Simon are with the Group Health Research Institute, Group Health Cooperative, Seattle. Dr. Waitzfelder and Dr. Trinacty are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, Honolulu. Dr. Zeber and Dr. Copeland are with Health Services Research and Development, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Temple, Texas, and the Center for Applied Health Research, Baylor Scott and White Health, Temple, Texas. Dr. Morales is with the Center for Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, University of Washington, Seattle. Dr. Ahmed is with Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Permanente Medical Group, San Francisco. Dr. Ahmedani is with the Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit. Dr. Beck is with the Institute for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Colorado, Denver. Dr. Cummings is with the Department of Health Policy and Management, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta. Ms. Hunkeler is with the Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland. Dr. Lindberg and Dr. Lynch are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Northwest, Portland, Oregon. Dr. Lu is with Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston. Dr. Owen-Smith is with the School of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta. Dr. Whitebird is with the School of Social Work, University of St. Thomas/St. Catherine University, St. Paul, Minnesota.
Enid M. Hunkeler, M.A.
Dr. Coleman is with the Department of Research and Evaluation, Kaiser Permanente Southern California, Pasadena (e-mail: [email protected]). Dr. Stewart and Dr. Simon are with the Group Health Research Institute, Group Health Cooperative, Seattle. Dr. Waitzfelder and Dr. Trinacty are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, Honolulu. Dr. Zeber and Dr. Copeland are with Health Services Research and Development, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Temple, Texas, and the Center for Applied Health Research, Baylor Scott and White Health, Temple, Texas. Dr. Morales is with the Center for Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, University of Washington, Seattle. Dr. Ahmed is with Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Permanente Medical Group, San Francisco. Dr. Ahmedani is with the Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit. Dr. Beck is with the Institute for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Colorado, Denver. Dr. Cummings is with the Department of Health Policy and Management, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta. Ms. Hunkeler is with the Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland. Dr. Lindberg and Dr. Lynch are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Northwest, Portland, Oregon. Dr. Lu is with Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston. Dr. Owen-Smith is with the School of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta. Dr. Whitebird is with the School of Social Work, University of St. Thomas/St. Catherine University, St. Paul, Minnesota.
Nangel M. Lindberg, Ph.D.
Dr. Coleman is with the Department of Research and Evaluation, Kaiser Permanente Southern California, Pasadena (e-mail: [email protected]). Dr. Stewart and Dr. Simon are with the Group Health Research Institute, Group Health Cooperative, Seattle. Dr. Waitzfelder and Dr. Trinacty are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, Honolulu. Dr. Zeber and Dr. Copeland are with Health Services Research and Development, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Temple, Texas, and the Center for Applied Health Research, Baylor Scott and White Health, Temple, Texas. Dr. Morales is with the Center for Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, University of Washington, Seattle. Dr. Ahmed is with Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Permanente Medical Group, San Francisco. Dr. Ahmedani is with the Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit. Dr. Beck is with the Institute for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Colorado, Denver. Dr. Cummings is with the Department of Health Policy and Management, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta. Ms. Hunkeler is with the Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland. Dr. Lindberg and Dr. Lynch are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Northwest, Portland, Oregon. Dr. Lu is with Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston. Dr. Owen-Smith is with the School of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta. Dr. Whitebird is with the School of Social Work, University of St. Thomas/St. Catherine University, St. Paul, Minnesota.
Frances Lynch, Ph.D.
Dr. Coleman is with the Department of Research and Evaluation, Kaiser Permanente Southern California, Pasadena (e-mail: [email protected]). Dr. Stewart and Dr. Simon are with the Group Health Research Institute, Group Health Cooperative, Seattle. Dr. Waitzfelder and Dr. Trinacty are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, Honolulu. Dr. Zeber and Dr. Copeland are with Health Services Research and Development, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Temple, Texas, and the Center for Applied Health Research, Baylor Scott and White Health, Temple, Texas. Dr. Morales is with the Center for Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, University of Washington, Seattle. Dr. Ahmed is with Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Permanente Medical Group, San Francisco. Dr. Ahmedani is with the Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit. Dr. Beck is with the Institute for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Colorado, Denver. Dr. Cummings is with the Department of Health Policy and Management, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta. Ms. Hunkeler is with the Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland. Dr. Lindberg and Dr. Lynch are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Northwest, Portland, Oregon. Dr. Lu is with Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston. Dr. Owen-Smith is with the School of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta. Dr. Whitebird is with the School of Social Work, University of St. Thomas/St. Catherine University, St. Paul, Minnesota.
Christine Y. Lu, Ph.D.
Dr. Coleman is with the Department of Research and Evaluation, Kaiser Permanente Southern California, Pasadena (e-mail: [email protected]). Dr. Stewart and Dr. Simon are with the Group Health Research Institute, Group Health Cooperative, Seattle. Dr. Waitzfelder and Dr. Trinacty are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, Honolulu. Dr. Zeber and Dr. Copeland are with Health Services Research and Development, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Temple, Texas, and the Center for Applied Health Research, Baylor Scott and White Health, Temple, Texas. Dr. Morales is with the Center for Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, University of Washington, Seattle. Dr. Ahmed is with Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Permanente Medical Group, San Francisco. Dr. Ahmedani is with the Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit. Dr. Beck is with the Institute for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Colorado, Denver. Dr. Cummings is with the Department of Health Policy and Management, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta. Ms. Hunkeler is with the Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland. Dr. Lindberg and Dr. Lynch are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Northwest, Portland, Oregon. Dr. Lu is with Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston. Dr. Owen-Smith is with the School of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta. Dr. Whitebird is with the School of Social Work, University of St. Thomas/St. Catherine University, St. Paul, Minnesota.
Ashli A. Owen-Smith, Ph.D.
Dr. Coleman is with the Department of Research and Evaluation, Kaiser Permanente Southern California, Pasadena (e-mail: [email protected]). Dr. Stewart and Dr. Simon are with the Group Health Research Institute, Group Health Cooperative, Seattle. Dr. Waitzfelder and Dr. Trinacty are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, Honolulu. Dr. Zeber and Dr. Copeland are with Health Services Research and Development, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Temple, Texas, and the Center for Applied Health Research, Baylor Scott and White Health, Temple, Texas. Dr. Morales is with the Center for Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, University of Washington, Seattle. Dr. Ahmed is with Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Permanente Medical Group, San Francisco. Dr. Ahmedani is with the Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit. Dr. Beck is with the Institute for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Colorado, Denver. Dr. Cummings is with the Department of Health Policy and Management, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta. Ms. Hunkeler is with the Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland. Dr. Lindberg and Dr. Lynch are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Northwest, Portland, Oregon. Dr. Lu is with Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston. Dr. Owen-Smith is with the School of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta. Dr. Whitebird is with the School of Social Work, University of St. Thomas/St. Catherine University, St. Paul, Minnesota.
Connie Mah Trinacty, Ph.D.
Dr. Coleman is with the Department of Research and Evaluation, Kaiser Permanente Southern California, Pasadena (e-mail: [email protected]). Dr. Stewart and Dr. Simon are with the Group Health Research Institute, Group Health Cooperative, Seattle. Dr. Waitzfelder and Dr. Trinacty are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, Honolulu. Dr. Zeber and Dr. Copeland are with Health Services Research and Development, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Temple, Texas, and the Center for Applied Health Research, Baylor Scott and White Health, Temple, Texas. Dr. Morales is with the Center for Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, University of Washington, Seattle. Dr. Ahmed is with Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Permanente Medical Group, San Francisco. Dr. Ahmedani is with the Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit. Dr. Beck is with the Institute for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Colorado, Denver. Dr. Cummings is with the Department of Health Policy and Management, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta. Ms. Hunkeler is with the Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland. Dr. Lindberg and Dr. Lynch are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Northwest, Portland, Oregon. Dr. Lu is with Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston. Dr. Owen-Smith is with the School of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta. Dr. Whitebird is with the School of Social Work, University of St. Thomas/St. Catherine University, St. Paul, Minnesota.
Robin R. Whitebird, Ph.D., M.S.W.
Dr. Coleman is with the Department of Research and Evaluation, Kaiser Permanente Southern California, Pasadena (e-mail: [email protected]). Dr. Stewart and Dr. Simon are with the Group Health Research Institute, Group Health Cooperative, Seattle. Dr. Waitzfelder and Dr. Trinacty are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, Honolulu. Dr. Zeber and Dr. Copeland are with Health Services Research and Development, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Temple, Texas, and the Center for Applied Health Research, Baylor Scott and White Health, Temple, Texas. Dr. Morales is with the Center for Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, University of Washington, Seattle. Dr. Ahmed is with Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Permanente Medical Group, San Francisco. Dr. Ahmedani is with the Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit. Dr. Beck is with the Institute for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Colorado, Denver. Dr. Cummings is with the Department of Health Policy and Management, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta. Ms. Hunkeler is with the Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland. Dr. Lindberg and Dr. Lynch are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Northwest, Portland, Oregon. Dr. Lu is with Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston. Dr. Owen-Smith is with the School of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta. Dr. Whitebird is with the School of Social Work, University of St. Thomas/St. Catherine University, St. Paul, Minnesota.
Gregory E. Simon, M.D., M.P.H.
Dr. Coleman is with the Department of Research and Evaluation, Kaiser Permanente Southern California, Pasadena (e-mail: [email protected]). Dr. Stewart and Dr. Simon are with the Group Health Research Institute, Group Health Cooperative, Seattle. Dr. Waitzfelder and Dr. Trinacty are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Hawaii, Honolulu. Dr. Zeber and Dr. Copeland are with Health Services Research and Development, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Temple, Texas, and the Center for Applied Health Research, Baylor Scott and White Health, Temple, Texas. Dr. Morales is with the Center for Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, University of Washington, Seattle. Dr. Ahmed is with Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Permanente Medical Group, San Francisco. Dr. Ahmedani is with the Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research, Henry Ford Health System, Detroit. Dr. Beck is with the Institute for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Colorado, Denver. Dr. Cummings is with the Department of Health Policy and Management, Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta. Ms. Hunkeler is with the Division of Research, Kaiser Permanente Northern California, Oakland. Dr. Lindberg and Dr. Lynch are with the Center for Health Research, Kaiser Permanente Northwest, Portland, Oregon. Dr. Lu is with Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston. Dr. Owen-Smith is with the School of Public Health, Georgia State University, Atlanta. Dr. Whitebird is with the School of Social Work, University of St. Thomas/St. Catherine University, St. Paul, Minnesota.

Competing Interests

Funding was provided by National Institute of Mental Health award U19MH092201 in support of the Mental Health Research Network.

Funding Information

National Institutes of Mental Health: U19MH092201

Metrics & Citations

Metrics

Citations

Export Citations

If you have the appropriate software installed, you can download article citation data to the citation manager of your choice. Simply select your manager software from the list below and click Download.

For more information or tips please see 'Downloading to a citation manager' in the Help menu.

Format
Citation style
Style
Copy to clipboard

View Options

View options

PDF/EPUB

View PDF/EPUB

Login options

Already a subscriber? Access your subscription through your login credentials or your institution for full access to this article.

Personal login Institutional Login Open Athens login
Purchase Options

Purchase this article to access the full text.

PPV Articles - Psychiatric Services

PPV Articles - Psychiatric Services

Not a subscriber?

Subscribe Now / Learn More

PsychiatryOnline subscription options offer access to the DSM-5-TR® library, books, journals, CME, and patient resources. This all-in-one virtual library provides psychiatrists and mental health professionals with key resources for diagnosis, treatment, research, and professional development.

Need more help? PsychiatryOnline Customer Service may be reached by emailing [email protected] or by calling 800-368-5777 (in the U.S.) or 703-907-7322 (outside the U.S.).

Media

Figures

Other

Tables

Share

Share

Share article link

Share