Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA.
Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, USA.
Community Ment Health J. 2021 Jan;57(1):196-202. doi: 10.1007/s10597-020-00634-3. Epub 2020 May 21.
Student-run free clinics are uniquely positioned to understand the barriers to accessing mental health resources. We abstracted patient demographics and clinical characteristics from 355 patient charts and examined referral patterns for a subset of patients. Seventy-three (21%) of patients were found to have a psychiatric diagnosis and were more likely to have more medical comorbidities (10 versus 6, p < 0.001), total medications (8 versus 6, p < 0.001, and to be English-speaking (odds ratio: 1.97, p < 0.05). Of patients who received a referral, 37 (60%) were referred to specialty treatment, the majority to a single outside agency provider. 15 (25%) of patients were interviewed. Barriers to successful referral included transportation and medical symptoms. A facilitator of successful referral was concern for individual's health. Language, social stigma, and cost were not cited as barriers. This study describes mental health needs at a SRFC and suggests opportunities for improvement.
学生经营的免费诊所具有独特的优势，可以了解获得心理健康资源的障碍。我们从 355 份患者病历中提取了患者人口统计学和临床特征，并检查了一部分患者的转诊模式。73 名（21%）患者被诊断患有精神疾病，他们更有可能患有更多的合并症（10 比 6，p<0.001），服用的药物种类更多（8 比 6，p<0.001），并且更有可能说英语（优势比：1.97，p<0.05）。在接受转诊的患者中，37 名（60%）被转诊到专业治疗机构，大多数是转往单一的外部机构。15 名（25%）患者接受了访谈。成功转诊的障碍包括交通和医疗症状。对个人健康的关注是成功转诊的一个促进因素。语言、社会耻辱和费用并未被认为是障碍。本研究描述了 SRFC 的心理健康需求，并提出了改进的机会。
