Minorities are Less Likely to Get Help When Exposed to Mental Problems

Minorities are less likely to get help when dealing with mental problems

A new study has proved that minorities are less likely to get help when dealing with mental problems. The study investigated how often adults or children benefit from mental health services based on whether they are Hispanic, black or white.

Using the data picked from the Medical Expenditure Panel Survey between 2006-2012, researchers decided how often people went to see a specialist concerning this matter. For this study, researchers analyzed data on adults aged 18-34 and children under 18.

A professor at the City University of New York and lecturer at Harvard Medical School revealed that minority kids do not get the help needed when confronted with mental issues. Instead, they get expelled or jailed. He finds that the real crime here is the lack of interest for minorities and believed that punishing people for their mental illness is ineffective and inhumane.

Researchers found that white children make 37 percent more visits to psychiatrists than black children and 49 percent more visits than Hispanic children. However, black children’s moderate use of the services was not due to lesser need.

The mental health problems of black and white children are similar. Moreover, the rates of brutal episodes that lead to psychiatric hospitalization or emergency visits were also similar for white and black children.

It has been proved that whites receive about three times more mental health services than Hispanics or blacks in the same age group.

While poor children had lower rates of medical care, the differences in income did not account for the racial/ethnic disparities in care.

Among children, boys got more mental health services than girls. Among young adults, women reported more visits.

Hispanic parents reported less mental health issues among their children but the finding reported underuse compared to non-Hispanic whites.

The findings also proved that the minorities with the highest rates of incarceration –Hispanics and blacks- make fewer visits to a mental health specialist than whites. However, other studies showed that half of the minority inmates had untreated mental illnesses when they were first convicted.

The author of the study also revealed that minorities’ very low substance abuse treatment rates contrast with their high rates of arrests due to substance abuse.

Image source:Flickr

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Roxanne Briean

I am a geek, a gamer and a writer. I have always been fascinated with the online community. At the moment I work as a full-time writer and study interior design. When I'm not scouring the net in search of interesting new gadgets and software I spend my time in MOBAs or drawing.