Unmet need for community-based mental health and substance use treatment among rural adolescents

This research assessed the extent of unmet service need for rural youth with mental health (MH) and/or substance use (SU) problems. All adolescents (12-18 years old) living in a three-county region of Iowa and discharged from outpatient MH or SU treatment were included (n = 177). Chart review was used to retrospectively assess service utilization and clinical characteristics at time of admission and discharge. Two-thirds (64%) of adolescents with co-occurring disorders did not receive treatment consistent with widely supported guidelines recommending that individuals with co-occurring disorders receive treatment for both their MH and SU problems. Higher severity of depression, more supports, prior MH service utilization and lower prevalence of prior abuse predicted the receipt of dual services. Finally, adolescents with co-occurring problems who received only MH treatment showed improvement on MH needs at discharge but no improvement on SU needs. Similarly, adolescents with co-occurring problems who received only SU treatment showed improvement on SU needs but not on MH needs. There is considerable unmet treatment need among rural adolescents with co-occurring disorders. Efforts to improve care must focus on adolescent, familial, program, funding and policy factors that act as barriers to unifying philosophies and practices needed to advance appropriate care.