Barriers to mental health service use among hematopoietic SCT survivors

This study examined barriers to mental health service use and the demographic, medical and psychosocial correlates of these barriers among hematopoietic SCT (HSCT) survivors. A sample of 253 HSCT survivors who were 1 to 3 years posttransplant completed measures of demographic, physical, psychological and social characteristics as well as a newly modified measure of barriers to mental health service use. Only 50% of distressed HSCT survivors had received mental health services. An exploratory factor analysis of the barriers to mental health service use scale yielded four factors: scheduling barriers, knowledge barriers, emotional barriers and illness-related barriers. Patients with higher social constraints (perceived problems discussing the illness experience with significant others) reported higher levels of all four types of barriers. General distress and transplant-related posttraumatic stress symptoms were positively associated with emotional, knowledge and illness-related barriers to mental health service use, whereas physical and functional well-being were inversely associated with these barriers. Having more knowledge barriers and more emotional barriers predicted a lower likelihood of receiving mental health services, as did lower levels of education and general distress. Results suggest that a significant number of HSCT survivors may benefit from education about mental health services that is tailored to individual barriers.