Abstract

Mental Health Tracking System for the State of California
Track: Health and Human Services
Authors: Estella Geraghty

Mental health is an important public health issue. The prevalence of major depressive episodes among persons 18+ years is nearly 7% in California. Among youth aged 12 to 17 it is nearly 9%. That's a burden of depression affecting more than 2.5 million individuals in the state. And that does not include other major mental illnesses like anxiety and/or substance abuse. A recently published report showed that in 2005 nearly 4.9 million persons said they needed help for a mental or emotional health problem, but only one in three sought professional treatment.

Significant disparities exist in the provision of mental health care services, particularly by racial and ethnic group. These arise from multiple factors: limited English proficiency, geographic settings, fragmented services, cost and other social determinants of health. This work aimed to propose methodologies for a mental health tracking through a GIS analysis of service access, provision and disparities.