Mental Health Awareness and Barriers to Mental Healthcare Access in a Rural Indiana Community

Mental health awareness has increased, and treatments have advanced with the growth of social media campaigns, the widespread adoption of telehealth, and public health initiatives; however, there remains a large number of adults who have not received sufficient treatment for mental health issues. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of mental health issues in the rural community of La Porte, Indiana, and to evaluate key barriers to receiving treatment by surveying patients at a local primary care clinic. It was found that 8 of 21 respondents (38.1%) selected mental health as their largest or second largest mental health challenge. It was also found that 11 out of 23 respondents (47.8%) rated their difficulty accessing mental health services a three or higher on a scale of one (easy) to five (difficult). While the data implies high prevalence and high awareness of mental health issues within the community, the limitations of awareness were made clear given that 5 of the 11 (45.5%) who rated their difficulty a three or higher selected ‘unsure of what to do’ as a major barrier to treatment, suggesting private and public health campaigns which have raised awareness of mental health in general have insufficiently educated the population on how to treat it. Finally, 7 of 11 (63.6%) respondents selected wait times or availability as a major barrier, potentially signifying that greater awareness in the area has raised demand that local services have been unable to keep up with. While public awareness of mental health has grown significantly, the results of this study suggest that, for this community, it is time to shift the focus to providing specific education on treatment as well as supporting and expanding services, especially in areas such as La Porte and surrounding communities with availability issues.