Skip to main content
Full access
Association News
Published Online: 5 September 2003

Breaking Down Barriers to Care

In September 2001 then U.S. Surgeon General David Satcher, M.D., issued the report “Mental Health: Culture, Race, and Ethnicity,” which identifies barriers to effective mental health care faced by racial and ethnic minority populations (Psychiatric News, October 5, 2001). Here are key recommendations from that report:
Continue to expand the science base of mental illness. Work to resolve uncertainties about the extent of mental illness among different racial and ethnic groups. Examine how factors such as acculturation, stigma, racism, and spirituality provide protection from, or risk for, mental illness.
Improve access to treatment. Bring mental health services to where people are. Integrate mental health care and primary care. Improve language access. Coordinate care to vulnerable, high-need groups.
Reduce barriers to mental health care. Work to make services appropriate for minorities and promote mental health coverage for uninsured Americans. Establish parity between mental health insurance coverage and other health care coverage.
Improve the quality of mental health care. Individualize treatment in the clinical setting to each patient’s age, gender, race, ethnicity, and culture. Continue research on “culturally competent” service models.
Support capacity development. Develop training programs and funding sources that expand the number of minorities among mental health professionals, researchers, administrators, and policymakers.
Promote mental health. Work to reduce adverse conditions such as poverty and racism. Build on community strengths such as spirituality, ethnic identity, traditional values, and local leadership.

Information & Authors

Information

Published In

History

Published online: 5 September 2003
Published in print: September 5, 2003

Authors

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

There are no citations for this item

View Options

View options

Get Access

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

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