Summary Of The Issue And Rationale
Lack of mental health services in rural settings is a significant setback to the economy because,
untreated mental health issues lead to high health costs, low productivity, and increased
employment and disability insurance claims (Sporinova et al., 2019). Untreated mental health
care during my work as a nurse in a rural facility made me realize that patients had to visit the
emergency department to seek the help they needed since there was a lack of mental health
services. This lack of access aggravated issues like substance use and suicide, which started
eroding the foundation of the community. Eradicating this problem through enhancing mental
health services will reduce the cost of healthcare, enhance productivity, and consequently
improve the quality of life which is an economic issue.
Socioeconomic and Diversity Disparities
The issue of lack of psychiatric centers in the rural settings can be associated with issues to do
with income, ethnicity, and gender among other factors. The low-income earners are likely to
face costs such as transport costs or any other personal costs to access mental health services
despite insurance cover. This means that the future generations will continue to live in poor
health and poor economic status. Similarly, the uninsured and underinsured patient groups cannot
afford adequate care, which leads to the worsening of mental health conditions and poor
economic outcomes (Morales et al., 2020). Minorities and other disadvantaged groups of a
population are less likely to receive adequate medical care due to cultural biases, language, or
racism. Therefore, despite facing prejudice and exclusion, the community rarely gets culturally
appropriate mental health care in rural areas, and the prevalence of mental disorders remains
high. Other vulnerable population groups who do not get the right mental health care include
senior citizens, youths, and adolescents who do not seek care due to the stigma (Morales et al.,
2020). To this effect, special measures and techniques must be employed.
According to Richman et al. (2019), telehealth can neutralise geographical matters while policies
that boost insurance reimbursement for mental health services can offset cost aspects. Minority
people require culturally sensitive care and community centered care as they have unique needs
and issues. Promoting the use of mental health services and education to rural practitioners
should improve their availability to disadvantaged groups. Thus, an attempt to address these
disparities will assist in improving mental health services for everyone who lives in rural regions.
From the study by Hailemicheal et al (2019), the investigation revealed that households of a
person with severe mental disorders (SMD) who had higher level of disability were more likely
to have a poorer quality of life. Self-employed “or having a reliable source of regular income
was significantly lower in households of a person with SMD or depression with higher disability
than the comparison group. Households of persons with SMD with higher disability earned
lesser” and possessed significantly lower total assets than the those without SMD. Households
with at least one person suffering from depression and higher disability level had lesser income
and less consumption.
The Need To Address Mental Health
Lack of mental health services in rural settings is a significant setback to the economy because,
untreated mental health issues lead to high health costs, low productivity, and increased
employment and disability insurance claims (Sporinova et al., 2019). Untreated mental health
care during my work as a nurse in a rural facility made me realize that patients had to visit the
emergency department to seek the help they needed since there was a lack of mental health
services. This lack of access aggravated issues like substance use and suicide, which started
eroding the foundation of the community. Eradicating this problem through enhancing mental
health services will reduce the cost of healthcare, enhance productivity, and consequently
improve the quality of life which is an economic issue.
Socioeconomic and Diversity Disparities
The issue of lack of psychiatric centers in the rural settings can be associated with issues to do
with income, ethnicity, and gender among other factors. The low-income earners are likely to
face costs such as transport costs or any other personal costs to access mental health services
despite insurance cover. This means that the future generations will continue to live in poor
health and poor economic status. Similarly, the uninsured and underinsured patient groups cannot
afford adequate care, which leads to the worsening of mental health conditions and poor
economic outcomes (Morales et al., 2020). Minorities and other disadvantaged groups of a
population are less likely to receive adequate medical care due to cultural biases, language, or
racism. Therefore, despite facing prejudice and exclusion, the community rarely gets culturally
appropriate mental health care in rural areas, and the prevalence of mental disorders remains
high. Other vulnerable population groups who do not get the right mental health care include
senior citizens, youths, and adolescents who do not seek care due to the stigma (Morales et al.,
2020). To this effect, special measures and techniques must be employed.
According to Richman et al. (2019), telehealth can neutralise geographical matters while policies
that boost insurance reimbursement for mental health services can offset cost aspects. Minority
people require culturally sensitive care and community centered care as they have unique needs
and issues. Promoting the use of mental health services and education to rural practitioners
should improve their availability to disadvantaged groups. Thus, an attempt to address these
disparities will assist in improving mental health services for everyone who lives in rural regions.
From the study by Hailemicheal et al (2019), the investigation revealed that households of a
person with severe mental disorders (SMD) who had higher level of disability were more likely
to have a poorer quality of life. Self-employed “or having a reliable source of regular income
was significantly lower in households of a person with SMD or depression with higher disability
than the comparison group. Households of persons with SMD with higher disability earned
lesser” and possessed significantly lower total assets than the those without SMD. Households
with at least one person suffering from depression and higher disability level had lesser income
and less consumption.
The Need To Address Mental Health
