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Utilization of Professional Mental Health Services Related to Population-Level Screening for Anxiety, Depression, and Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Among Public High School Students

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Abstract

This study examines results from three mental health screening measures in a cohort of adolescent public school students in seven public schools in Southeast Texas affiliated with the Dating it Safe study. We estimated the odds of receiving professional mental health treatment in the previous year given results from different mental health screening batteries: the CES-D 10 battery for depression screening, the Screen for Child Anxiety Related Disorders, and the Primary Care Posttraumatic Stress Disorder screen. Overall, students with higher scores on screening instruments for depression, posttraumatic stress disorder, and combinations of screening instruments were more likely to have sought past-year professional mental health treatment than non-symptomatic youth. However, the proportion of students screening positive and receiving professional treatment was low, ranging from 11 to 16 %. This study emphasizes the need for broader evaluation of population-based mental health screening among adolescents.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by Award Number K23HD059916 (PI: Temple) from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health & Human Development (NICHD) and 2012-WG-BX-0005 (PI: Temple) from the National Institute of Justice (NIJ). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of NICHD or NIJ. Funding was also provided by the UTMB Department of Preventive Medicine and Community Health. The authors would like to acknowledge the constructive feedback of the UTMB Preventive Medicine & Community Health Junior Faculty writing group in helping to further strengthen this publication.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Preventive Medicine and Community Health, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, 77555-1153, USA

    John D. Prochaska, Vi Donna Le & Jacques Baillargeon

  2. Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX, USA

    Jeff R. Temple

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  1. John D. Prochaska
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  2. Vi Donna Le
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  3. Jacques Baillargeon
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Correspondence to John D. Prochaska.

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Prochaska, J.D., Le, V.D., Baillargeon, J. et al. Utilization of Professional Mental Health Services Related to Population-Level Screening for Anxiety, Depression, and Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Among Public High School Students. Community Ment Health J 52, 691–700 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10597-015-9968-z

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