Abstract
Most individuals with mental health needs do not receive professional care. One strategy to narrow this service provision gap is task-shifting, a process where certain responsibilities are shifted to less specialized workers. Approximately 25% of those who seek mental health care turn to clergy. This study investigated the suitability of using clergy to scale-up mental health service provision by assessing perceptions of satisfaction and helpfulness with clergy-delivered services. Using data from the National Comorbidity Survey Replication (2003), we found most respondents (n=204) who went to clergy reported satisfaction with their care (92%) and that the services were helpful (94%). Ordered logit regression revealed that racial/ethnic minorities and individuals for whom religion was more salient were disproportionately likely to find clergy-delivered mental health services satisfying and helpful, while older adults were more likely to report the services were helpful. The results suggest incorporating clergy in mental health scale-up plans via task-shifting may be a viable option, particularly for addressing the mental health needs of underserved racial and ethnic minorities, as well as older adults. Social workers—at least in theory—are well-positioned to collaborate with clergy in the process of implementing task-shifting.
Highlights
Most individuals with mental health needs do not receive professional care
This study examined the suitability of including clergy as providers in mental health scale-up plans based on the perceived satisfaction and helpfulness of their services
Using a nationally representative dataset allowed for cross-group comparisons which adds to the current literature on clergy-delivered mental health care
Summary
Most individuals with mental health needs do not receive professional care. One strategy to narrow this service provision gap is task-shifting, a process where certain responsibilities are shifted to less specialized workers. Ordered logit regression revealed that racial/ethnic minorities and individuals for whom religion was more salient were disproportionately likely to find clergy-delivered mental health services satisfying and helpful, while older adults were more likely to report the services were helpful. The results suggest incorporating clergy in mental health scale-up plans via task-shifting may be a viable option, for addressing the mental health needs of underserved racial and ethnic minorities, as well as older adults. Researchers have noted that most people with mental health needs do not receive professional treatment (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, 2017; Wang et al, 2005). Shortages in the mental health workforce exist, hindering scale-up efforts (Health Resources and Services Administration [HRSA], 2016).
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