Mental Health Services and Primary Care

Introduction

The research question aims to answer what can be done to enhance the access of people with mental illnesses to primary care. This exploration topic is essential because it will help healthcare practitioners know how they should integrate primary care with mental health services to guarantee patient satisfaction. A psychiatric institution should consider melding primary care and operations rather than sending patients with physical and psychological illnesses to psychiatric departments to motivate regular patient checkups. For instance, Missouri healthcare facilities are combining primary and physical health treatment with the help of mental health providers.

Possible Ethical Issues

Confidentiality

The phrase “confidentiality” has various connotations for medical professionals and researchers. Confidentiality for health professionals entails not disclosing personal information unless necessary (Bhandari, 2021). The privacy responsibility of investigators is less apparent and requires an explanation of the potential study outcome. The investigator will minimize confidentiality issues by avoiding asking the participants about personal issues such as their emails or age. The researcher will further maintain confidentiality by securing records using passwords.

Informed Consent

Informed consent is a crucial constituent of ethics in numerous domains. Qualitative studies must outline which information will be gathered and how it will be handled. The informed agreement principle emphasizes the investigator’s duty to clarify all relevant information about the research to contributors (Bhandari, 2021). The researcher will eliminate issues relating to informed consent by clarifying the type of the study, potential participant roles, the research’s purpose, and the end-use of the results to the participants. Naturally, as the study develops, the conditions of the agreement must be continually discussed to obtain informed consent.

Sample Characteristics

The sample will represent the demographic profile of the respondents if each measurement is chosen at random. The sample size ought to be big enough to depict the cosmos adequately. The sample scope must be adequately large to guarantee statistical steadiness or dependability. The sample should be random and provide the precision needed for the specific study’s objectives (Riley et al., 2020). Since it is typically unworkable to examine the entire populace, tests are performed on populations. Assumptions drawn from illustrations are destined to be extrapolated to the whole population. The researcher will therefore diminish issues relating to sample characteristics by obtaining a large sample for the study.

Type of Data Collection

The tools to gather data are crucial because they affect the technique and analytical strategy, which in turn affects how the data is used and what conclusions it might produce. There is a continuum of data collection techniques used for impact evaluation. By collecting data, researchers may keep and analyze vital information about their current and potential consumers (Bhandari, 2021). Researchers can save cash by generating a client database to develop marketing policies and retarget enterprises. The most crucial elements in selecting a data collection strategy are the nature of the research issue and the identified question to be examined. The researcher will lessen data collection issues by keeping the survey format simple.

Potential for Bias

Understanding study bias enables researchers to autonomously and critically assess the published research and steer clear of therapies that may be ineffective or even hazardous. Bias can be deceptive and leads to incorrect judgments. Therefore, doing little research is wrong morally and ethically. Thus, every researcher should be conscious of all possible reasons for prejudice and take appropriate measures to limit or lessen the departure from reality. Bias in the descriptive study impacts the reliability and validity of findings, impacting business decisions (Bloomfield & Fisher, 2019). By carefully expressing the interviewee’s comments using the researcher’s words, ideas, and framing techniques, the investigator will limit the likelihood of cultural bias. In qualitative marketing research, bias skews and slants the findings. It falsifies the reliability and validity of the systematic study by skewing the data and distorting the research conclusions.

Research Proposal

Purpose and Importance of the Research

Recent epidemiological research has shown that the disease burden related to mental and neurological illnesses is among the greatest worldwide. Despite the high impairment rate, more than 85% of those with serious mental illness in low- and middle-income nations do not obtain the necessary care (Eaton et al., 2018). Less than 1% of the health budget in sub-Saharan Africa is generally allocated for mental health (Eton et al., 2018). This meager allocation occurs in nations where health spending is already relatively low and frequently inefficient, with practically all resources going toward tertiary hospital treatments that are out of the reach of the vast majority of people. Therefore, this research aims at answering what can be done to enhance the access of people with mental illnesses to primary care. The topic is essential because it will highlight health facilities on what they can do to integrate mental care into their primary care to enhance their accessibility, promote parity between mental and physical health, and lower the stigma associated with accessing services.

Literature Review

There is an urge for globally validated techniques for multi-dimensional evaluation due to the dramatic rise in the prevalence of the adolescent depressive disorder, as described by the Pharmacological and Psychiatric Association. When evaluating depression, anhedonia affects, low self, and physical complaints, the second version of the Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale (RADS-2) integrates with sufficient accuracy and consistency (Blomqvist, 2021). This study will enable the researcher to know the appropriate scale to measure patient satisfaction when integrated with primary care. The research results by Ensink et al. demonstrated that either the long or short “French Personality Feature Scale for Children “(BPFS-C) has solid internal coherence and external validity (Ensink et al., 2020). Emotional regulation, identity, interpersonal problems, and self-harm were strongly inter-connected instead of independent elements. These findings will help the researcher analyze whether integrating primary care will benefit victims of mental health.

To ascertain the frequency of child-reported despair, anxious sensations, and negative self, Hendry et al. looked into the self-reported well-being of adolescents with brain damage (ABI). Their findings suggested that young girls, in particular, may be more susceptible to experiencing poor mental health following an ABI (Hendry et al., 2020). These findings will help the researcher consider the patient’s needs when integrating or researching primary care integration. People with mental illness have medical and physical issues more frequently, increasing their mortality rate and out-of-pocket expenses (Pickren & Rutherford, 2010). Spies et al. contend that there has never been a more critical and evident time for checking in on daily life (Spies et al., 2010). This source is effective in this research since it will help the researcher recognize and comprehend the issues disturbing mental health victims while obtaining their treatments, hindering their satisfaction.

Research Questions and Hypothesis

The researcher acknowledges that integrating primary care with mental health services may have vital benefits since patients like to have both forms of care in one place. General and mental health care provide optimal care for those with mental health issues. The first question of the study is: can a primary care physician on-site at a mental health institution help patients attend regular check-ups? Recently, there has been a declining rate of governments employing primary care physicians and a rising number of untreated mental health issues. Therefore, the researcher needs to answer the second question: what can be done to improve mental health patients’ access to primary care?

People with severe mental concerns who receive preventive care in psychiatric health facilities should have gained in their well‐being, according to the Satisfaction with Life Scale, a measurement of happiness and health. This hypothesis predicts that when primary care is provided to people with mental illness in psychological counseling, their overall health and well-being will not improve. Combining primary maintenance guarantees improved health services access and declined unnecessary hospital admissions and readmissions (Integrating Health Services, 2018). Hence, mixing principal upkeep encourages better treatment adherence, increased patient consummation, and general health outcomes improvement. In this study, assimilating excellent care with mental health services can be done by coordinating both primary care and mental services. Accessibility to care for psychiatric patients will be improved by incorporating front-line providers and screening procedures into primary care settings, where individuals contact with the medical challenges most frequently visit.

Methods

Sample, Procedure, and Analysis

The sample of this research will concentrate on the individuals who use community mental health clinic services, including primary care providers who operate in mental health settings and mentally ill people. This research would be helpful for patients with mental illnesses since it would encourage them to attend doctor’s appointments and maintain good health. To conduct the research, the researcher will first write a letter to the specific healthcare facility requesting permission to conduct the research. The researcher will attach an official document with the learning institution’s request letter. The document will prove that the research will only be used for study purposes and activities other than the intended purpose. The information the researcher will gather will be kept confidential. The researcher will conduct the research through the facility’s approval and collect data using interview methods. Afterward, the researcher will analyze the data using regression analysis and interpret the results using the SPSS software.

Ethical Considerations

Rules that direct the study strategies and measures are ethical apprehensions in research. Charitable participation indicates that all study participants are allowed to select to engage without any burden or coercion. Other principles the researcher will consider include anonymity, informed consent, and confidentiality. Every participant is free to stop participating in the research without feeling obligated. No explanation for abandoning the study needs to be given by the researcher’s subjects. The researcher will convey to the participants that rejecting to engage has no consequences or consequences. The investigator will respect their decisions and abstain from trying to persuade them because they spent the time to help with the investigation. The investigator will have to provide all prospective participants with the data needed to make an informed choice on whether to participate, particularly facts on the survey’s benefits, risks, funding, and support mechanisms. The examiner will give the respondents a document to read before asking them if they have any queries. The respondents who are not vulnerable will seek approval by signing an agreement.

The researcher will verbally explain the written consent to anyone collecting data with limited literacy before asking them to participate. The researcher will translate the study materials for participants with extremely poor English competence or work with an interpreter to ensure they have everything in their native tongue. Because the participants are anonymous, the researcher will not identify them or connect their data to any specific individual. The researcher will ensure the anonymity of the participants by refraining from gathering personal identifying data, such as names, phone numbers, I.P. addresses, email addresses, physical traits, photographs, and videos. Knowing the participants while omitting all identifiable details from the researcher’s report demonstrates confidentiality. The researcher will keep the participant’s personal information secure for privacy reasons. Researchers must always ensure privacy even if they are unable to gather information in an unbiased manner.

Discussion

Expected Results

Integrating mental health services by coordinating mental and primary care services will ensure patient satisfaction and increase the rate of mental illness cases attending check-ups. At the same time, there must be an adequate number of primary healthcare professionals, including medical doctors, general nursing staff, midwives, medical assistants, and health workers who possess the necessary knowledge and abilities to recognize mental disorders, administer essential medications and psychosocial interventions, conduct crisis interventions, refer patients to specialized mental health services when necessary, and provide psychoeducation and assistance to patients and families. 10 Undergraduate medical and paramedical programs should include mental health education instruction, which should be actively maintained through on-the-job monitoring and retraining.

Conclusion

While the high prevalence of psychological illnesses should be treated, managed, and identified by primary care professionals, some more extreme symptoms might require referral to experts in the tertiary quality of care. Therefore, an efficient referral program between health care and tertiary mental hospitals is vital to providing mental healthcare in primary healthcare. Another critical element for successful and long-lasting integration is a high degree of control of primary care workers. Primary care workers must access mental health specialists such as physicians or mental health providers to provide advice and direction on managing and treating patients with mental disorders.

Limitations

The study’s first drawback is the limited sample size the researcher plans to use. Since statistical tests typically require a more significant sample to guarantee a fair population distribution and to be regarded as representative of people and groups to whom findings can be generalized or transmitted, it will be challenging to find patterns in data if the population is small. The sample size is typically less important in qualitative research and is discussed in the context of the study problem. The absence of earlier study papers on the subject is still another drawback. The literature review is built on the citation of earlier research studies, laying the groundwork for understanding the study issue under investigation. There may be little, if any, prior study on the investigator’s issue, depending on the relevance or scope of the research topic. Another limitation is that the researcher may be denied access to the health institution to interview the sample size due to a lack of proper documentation or the fear of stigmatizing the mentally ill individuals or attacking their confidentiality.

References

Bhandari., P. (2021). Ethical Considerations in Research | Types & Examples. Scribbr. Web.

Blomqvist, I., Ekbäck, E., Dennhag, I., &Henje, E. (2021). Validation of the Swedish version of the Reynolds Adolescent Depression Scale second edition (RADS-2) in a normative sample. Nordic Journal of Psychiatry, 75(4), 292-300. Web.

Bloomfield, J., & Fisher, M. J. (2019). Quantitative research design. Journal of the Australasian Rehabilitation Nurses Association, 22(2), 27-30. Web.

Eaton, J., Gureje, O., De Silva, M., Sheikh, T. L., Ekpe, E. E., Abdulaziz, M.,… & Cohen, A. (2018). A structured approach to integrating mental health services into primary care: development of the Mental Health Scale Up Nigeria intervention (mhSUN). International journal of mental health systems, 12(1), 1-12. Web.

Ensink, K., Bégin, M., Kotiuga, J., Sharp, C., &Normandin, L. (2020). Psychometric properties of the french version of the Borderline Personality Features Scale for Children and Adolescents. Adolescent Psychiatry, 10(1), 48-58. Web.

Hendry, K., Ownsworth, T., Waters, A. M., Jackson, M., & Lloyd, O. (2020). Investigation of children and adolescents’ mood and self-concept after acquired brain injury. Child neuropsychology, 26(8), 1005-1025. Web.

Integrating Health Services. Who. int. (2018). Web.

Pickren, W., & Rutherford, A. (2010). A History of Modern Psychology in Context. John Wiley & Sons.

Riley, R. D., Ensor, J., Snell, K. I., Harrell, F. E., Martin, G. P., Reitsma, J. B.,… & Van Smeden, M. (2020). Calculating the sample size required for developing a clinical prediction model. Bmj, 368. Web.

Spies, R. A., Carlson, J. F., & Geisinger, K. F. (2010). The eighteenth mental measurements yearbook. Institute of Mental Measurements. 1(1), 41-45.