Comparing Mental Health of Francophones in Canada, France, and Belgium: 12-Month and Lifetime Rates of Mental Health Service Use (Part 2)

Abstract

Objectives: To compare 12-month and lifetime service use for common mental disorders in 4 francophone subsamples using data from national mental health surveys in Canada, Quebec, France, and Belgium. This is the second article in a 2-part series comparing mental disorders and service use prevalence of French-speaking populations. Methods: Comparable World Mental Health-Composite International Diagnostic Interviews (WMH-CIDI) were administered to representative samples of adults (aged 18 years and older) in Canada during 2002 and in France and Belgium from 2001 to 2003. Two groups of francophone adults in Canada, in Quebec (n = 7571) and outside Quebec (n = 500), and respondents in Belgium (n = 389) and France (n = 1436) completed the French version of the population survey. Prevalence rates of common mental health service use were examined for major depressive episodes and specific anxiety disorders (that is, agoraphobia, social phobia, and panic disorder). Results: Overall, most francophones with mental disorders do not seek treatment. Canadians consulted more mental health professionals than their European counterparts, with the exception of psychiatrists. Conclusions: Patterns of service use are similar among francophone populations. Variations that exist may be accounted for by differences in health care resources, health care systems, and health insurance coverage.

Factors associated with health service utilisation for common mental disorders: a systematic review

“…Few studies compared treatment-seeking between countries or by geographic region within countries, and those that did reported inconsistent findings [ 49 , 57 , 59 , 78 , 96 , 97 ]. There was a dearth of published evidence on the association between the health care environment and utilisation of services for CMD, with just one study on the effect of managed care [ 53 ], one on perceived availability of services [ 50 ], and one on perceived accessibility of services [ 67 ].…”

Factors associated with help-seeking behaviour among individuals with major depression: A systematic review

“…Living in an urban or rural area was not related to help-seeking behaviour in Spanish [41], Ethiopian [42], Canadian [38, 44] or American [32] samples. Additionally, no differences in help-seeking behaviour were found between the American and Canadian samples [40] or between the Francophone Canadian and European samples [67]. Differences in individuals’ help-seeking behaviour between different regions of the US were found in one [32] of two studies [31].…”

Access to psychiatrists by French-speaking patients in Ontario hospitals

“…1 An examination of access to mental health services by French-speaking language minority individuals or Francophones in Canada (including Quebec) showed that most Francophones with mental disorders do not seek treatment. 2 However, Canadian Francophones were more likely to consult mental health professionals than their European counterparts, with the exception of psychiatrists. An important question is whether the level or quality of services received by those accessing mental health services varies as a function of membership in a minority language group in Canada.…”