Amaddeo Francesco, Jones Julia
Section of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology, Department of Medicine and Public Health, University of Verona, Policlinico G.B. Rossi, P.le L. Scuro 10, 37134 Verona, Italy.
Epidemiol Psichiatr Soc. 2007 Jan-Mar;16(1):16-9.
Amartya Sen, who received the Nobel Prize for Economics, has demonstrated that the incidence of deprivation, in terms of capability, can be surprisingly high even in the most developed countries of the world. The study of socio-economic inequalities, in relation to the utilisation of health services, is a priority for epidemiological research. Socio-economic status (SES) has no universal definition. Within the international research literature, SES has been related to social class, social position, occupational status, educational attainment, income, wealth and standard of living. Existing research studies have shown that people from a more deprived social background, with a lower SES, are more likely to have a higher psychiatric morbidity. Many studies show that SES influences psychiatric services utilization, however the real factors linking SES and mental health services utilisation remain unclear. In this editorial we discuss what is currently known about the relationship between SES and the use of mental health services. We also make an argument for why we believe there is still much to uncover in this field, to understand fully how individuals are influenced by their personal socio-economic status, or the neighbourhood in which they live, in terms of their use of mental health services. Further research in this area will help clarify what interventions are required to provide greater equality in access to mental health services.
获得诺贝尔经济学奖的阿玛蒂亚·森表明，即使在世界上最发达的国家，从能力角度来看，贫困发生率也可能高得出奇。与卫生服务利用相关的社会经济不平等研究是流行病学研究的重点。社会经济地位（SES）没有通用的定义。在国际研究文献中，SES与社会阶层、社会地位、职业地位、教育程度、收入、财富和生活水平相关。现有研究表明，社会背景更贫困、SES较低的人群患精神疾病的几率更高。许多研究表明，SES会影响精神科服务的利用，但SES与心理健康服务利用之间的真正关联因素仍不明确。在这篇社论中，我们讨论了目前已知的SES与心理健康服务使用之间的关系。我们还论证了为什么我们认为在这个领域仍有许多有待揭示的内容，以便全面了解个人在使用心理健康服务方面是如何受到其个人社会经济地位或居住社区的影响。该领域的进一步研究将有助于明确需要采取哪些干预措施，以在获得心理健康服务方面实现更大的平等。
