330.664.01 INTRODUCTION TO MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES

Examines the level of met and unmet need for mental health care and extent and predictors of mental health treatment-seeking in community settings. Addresses the issues of disparities in access to, and the use of, mental health services; mental illness stigma and attitudes towards mental health treatment seeking; the impact of public campaigns to reduce stigma and enhance treatment seeking; the impact of new pharmaceutical marketing strategies on demand for mental health care and national trends in mental health service use. Also introduces students to trends in service delivery system in the US, acquaints them with the structure, staffing and financing of mental health services in this country and briefly introduces the mental health care system in two other industrialized countries as a comparison. Discusses substance abuse treatment services and mental health services for special populations as well as other topics.

Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to: • Evaluate various approaches to assessing need for mental health care in the community; • Identify factors that enhance or act as barriers to mental health treatment seeking; • Describe historical and recent trends in mental health service use in the US; • Identify essential elements of financing and organization of mental health services in the US and 2 other industrialized countries; • Evaluate the major national and international public mental health campaigns aimed at decreasing stigma associated with mental illness and increasing service use; • Describe a brief history of modern pharmacoepidemiology as it applies to the study of psychiatric medications; • Identify specific features of mental health services for older adults and children and the essential features of substance abuse treatment services.