Mental Health Disparities in Rural Midwest: A Community Call to Action

Mental health disparities are prominent in rural areas. In one rural Midwest Minnesota community, a group aimed to address these disparities by focusing on the lack of access to acute mental health services. The project goal is to establish a walk-in mental health clinic that provides immediate care. During their research, they discovered a lack of literature on how to start such a clinic, prompting them to present their findings to assist others who may be interested in launching similar initiatives. The action research methodology was utilised in the quality improvement project to address mental health disparities in the community. The project included researching the model for walk-in mental health clinics in the tri-state area, considering accessibility, patient experience, cost-effectiveness and potential impact on mental health care delivery. The work group conducted visits to other mental health clinics and utilised a community needs assessment to establish goals for the walk-in clinic and developed a plan outlining the clinic's day-to-day operations, including staff schedules, patient flow and resource management. The work group secured funding to ensure the sustainability of the clinic over the long term to begin to address the mental health disparities in the community with the planning and implementation of a walk-in mental health clinic.