TY - JOUR
T1 - Needs for mental health care and service provision in single homeless people
AU - Salize, H. J.
AU - Horst, A.
AU - Dillmann-Lange, C.
AU - Killmann, U.
AU - Stern, G.
AU - Wolf, I.
AU - Henn, F.
AU - Rossler, W.
N1 - Funding Information:
■ Acknowledgements This study was funded by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) , He 2857/1-1.
PY - 2001
Y1 - 2001
N2 - Background: Specific problems in sampling methodology, case-finding strategies and a standardised needs assessment in mentally ill homeless people have contributed to their being neglected as a mental health care clientele. Method: We assessed a representative sample of homeless people “n=102” in the highly industrialised city of Mannheim “Germany” regarding their prevalence of mental disorders “using the SCID” and their needs for mental health care “using the NCA”. Results: We found high prevalences, with 68.6% of all assessed homeless persons having a current mental disorder. Thus, needs for mental health care were very common, with unmet needs predominating in all problem areas, which was supported by a very weak service utilization. Thus, even in a region with a comprehensive community mental health care network, like the study area, mentally ill homeless people are widely under-provided. Conclusions: Results suggest that the traditional shelter system for homeless people carries most of the mental health care burden for their clientele and must be supported by adequate interventions from community-based mental health care services. A closer connection of both sectors and a better co-ordination of the care offers seems to be a prerequisite for helping to reduce unmet mental health care needs in this specific high-risk group.
AB - Background: Specific problems in sampling methodology, case-finding strategies and a standardised needs assessment in mentally ill homeless people have contributed to their being neglected as a mental health care clientele. Method: We assessed a representative sample of homeless people “n=102” in the highly industrialised city of Mannheim “Germany” regarding their prevalence of mental disorders “using the SCID” and their needs for mental health care “using the NCA”. Results: We found high prevalences, with 68.6% of all assessed homeless persons having a current mental disorder. Thus, needs for mental health care were very common, with unmet needs predominating in all problem areas, which was supported by a very weak service utilization. Thus, even in a region with a comprehensive community mental health care network, like the study area, mentally ill homeless people are widely under-provided. Conclusions: Results suggest that the traditional shelter system for homeless people carries most of the mental health care burden for their clientele and must be supported by adequate interventions from community-based mental health care services. A closer connection of both sectors and a better co-ordination of the care offers seems to be a prerequisite for helping to reduce unmet mental health care needs in this specific high-risk group.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0034914328&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s001270170065
DO - 10.1007/s001270170065
M3 - Article
C2 - 11518035
AN - SCOPUS:0034914328
SN - 0933-7954
VL - 36
SP - 207
EP - 216
JO - Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology
JF - Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology
IS - 4
ER -