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Access to University Mental Health Services: Understanding the Student Experience: L’accès aux services universitaires de santé mentale : comprendre l’expérience des étudiants

Nathan King Orcid Logo, William Pickett, Kurtis Pankow Orcid Logo, Gina Dimitropoulos, Emma Cullen, Stephen McNevin, Scott B. Patten Orcid Logo, Anne Duffy Orcid Logo

The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, Volume: 69, Issue: 12, Pages: 841 - 851

Swansea University Author: Kurtis Pankow Orcid Logo

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DOI (Published version): 10.1177/07067437241295640

Abstract

Objective: To describe student access to university mental health services and barriers and gaps in support. Methods: This multiple cohort study used self-report data from 4,138 undergraduate students who completed the U-Flourish Well-Being Survey at the start and completion of first year from 2018...

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Published in: The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry
ISSN: 0706-7437 1497-0015
Published: SAGE Publications 2024
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URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa68209
first_indexed 2024-11-25T14:21:39Z
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Methods: This multiple cohort study used self-report data from 4,138 undergraduate students who completed the U-Flourish Well-Being Survey at the start and completion of first year from 2018 to 2023. The survey incorporated validated measures of mental health symptoms, barriers to care, and open-text questions about the mental health care experience and perceived gaps. Quantitative analyses summarized utilization patterns and barriers. An interpretive qualitative analysis identified common themes about support services and opportunities for improvement from the student perspective. Results: At university entry, 43% of students screened positive for anxiety and/or depression, 30% reported a lifetime mental disorder and 23% a lifetime history of self-harm. Over first year, 15% of students surveyed accessed university mental health services. Access was more likely in students identifying as older, gender diverse, female, having a prior mental disorder and those who screened positive for anxiety or depression. Common attitudinal and practical barriers reported included thinking problems would resolve (74%), being uncomfortable sharing (73%), and not knowing how to get help (50%). Common stigma barriers included concerns about what family or friends might think. Students expressed that both campus-based well-being and mental health care offered during flexible hours and accessible through online booking were important. Conclusions: Student-tailored mental health literacy may be a sustainable approach to address the attitudinal and practical barriers identified. If such barriers are reduced, an increased service demand would be expected and improved efficiencies needed. A clear Statement of Services, an online singular point of access with embedded triage to signpost students to indicated levels of care, and clearly worked-out care pathways including to community-based services would better align with a stepped care model, improve efficiency and access, and foster realistic expectations around university mental health support.</abstract><type>Journal Article</type><journal>The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry</journal><volume>69</volume><journalNumber>12</journalNumber><paginationStart>841</paginationStart><paginationEnd>851</paginationEnd><publisher>SAGE Publications</publisher><placeOfPublication/><isbnPrint/><isbnElectronic/><issnPrint>0706-7437</issnPrint><issnElectronic>1497-0015</issnElectronic><keywords>university; mental health services; student; student health services; access to care; barriers; gaps; student experience</keywords><publishedDay>1</publishedDay><publishedMonth>12</publishedMonth><publishedYear>2024</publishedYear><publishedDate>2024-12-01</publishedDate><doi>10.1177/07067437241295640</doi><url/><notes>Editorial</notes><college>COLLEGE NANME</college><department>Engineering and Applied Sciences School</department><CollegeCode>COLLEGE CODE</CollegeCode><DepartmentCode>EAAS</DepartmentCode><institution>Swansea University</institution><apcterm>Another institution paid the OA fee</apcterm><funders>This work was supported by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research under grant numbers PJT 152976 and TG1 165597, the Rossy Family Foundation and the Mach-Gaensslen Foundation.</funders><projectreference/><lastEdited>2025-12-01T10:45:28.4221996</lastEdited><Created>2024-11-07T12:14:11.7560768</Created><path><level id="1">Faculty of Science and Engineering</level><level id="2">School of Engineering and Applied Sciences - Sport and Exercise Sciences</level></path><authors><author><firstname>Nathan</firstname><surname>King</surname><orcid>0000-0003-4664-5456</orcid><order>1</order></author><author><firstname>William</firstname><surname>Pickett</surname><order>2</order></author><author><firstname>Kurtis</firstname><surname>Pankow</surname><orcid>0000-0002-1782-3877</orcid><order>3</order></author><author><firstname>Gina</firstname><surname>Dimitropoulos</surname><order>4</order></author><author><firstname>Emma</firstname><surname>Cullen</surname><order>5</order></author><author><firstname>Stephen</firstname><surname>McNevin</surname><order>6</order></author><author><firstname>Scott B.</firstname><surname>Patten</surname><orcid>0000-0001-9871-4041</orcid><order>7</order></author><author><firstname>Anne</firstname><surname>Duffy</surname><orcid>0000-0002-5895-075x</orcid><order>8</order></author></authors><documents><document><filename>68209__35717__a61ff80b95854f7c99d449c7af2d2cff.pdf</filename><originalFilename>68209.pdf</originalFilename><uploaded>2025-12-01T10:45:21.3687063</uploaded><type>Output</type><contentLength>1191907</contentLength><contentType>application/pdf</contentType><version>Version of Record</version><cronfaStatus>true</cronfaStatus><copyrightCorrect>false</copyrightCorrect></document></documents><OutputDurs/></rfc1807>
spelling 2025-12-01T10:45:28.4221996 v2 68209 2024-11-07 Access to University Mental Health Services: Understanding the Student Experience: L’accès aux services universitaires de santé mentale : comprendre l’expérience des étudiants fefaac12947ce639c98ee81f632c5686 0000-0002-1782-3877 Kurtis Pankow Kurtis Pankow true false 2024-11-07 EAAS Objective: To describe student access to university mental health services and barriers and gaps in support. Methods: This multiple cohort study used self-report data from 4,138 undergraduate students who completed the U-Flourish Well-Being Survey at the start and completion of first year from 2018 to 2023. The survey incorporated validated measures of mental health symptoms, barriers to care, and open-text questions about the mental health care experience and perceived gaps. Quantitative analyses summarized utilization patterns and barriers. An interpretive qualitative analysis identified common themes about support services and opportunities for improvement from the student perspective. Results: At university entry, 43% of students screened positive for anxiety and/or depression, 30% reported a lifetime mental disorder and 23% a lifetime history of self-harm. Over first year, 15% of students surveyed accessed university mental health services. Access was more likely in students identifying as older, gender diverse, female, having a prior mental disorder and those who screened positive for anxiety or depression. Common attitudinal and practical barriers reported included thinking problems would resolve (74%), being uncomfortable sharing (73%), and not knowing how to get help (50%). Common stigma barriers included concerns about what family or friends might think. Students expressed that both campus-based well-being and mental health care offered during flexible hours and accessible through online booking were important. Conclusions: Student-tailored mental health literacy may be a sustainable approach to address the attitudinal and practical barriers identified. If such barriers are reduced, an increased service demand would be expected and improved efficiencies needed. A clear Statement of Services, an online singular point of access with embedded triage to signpost students to indicated levels of care, and clearly worked-out care pathways including to community-based services would better align with a stepped care model, improve efficiency and access, and foster realistic expectations around university mental health support. Journal Article The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry 69 12 841 851 SAGE Publications 0706-7437 1497-0015 university; mental health services; student; student health services; access to care; barriers; gaps; student experience 1 12 2024 2024-12-01 10.1177/07067437241295640 Editorial COLLEGE NANME Engineering and Applied Sciences School COLLEGE CODE EAAS Swansea University Another institution paid the OA fee This work was supported by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research under grant numbers PJT 152976 and TG1 165597, the Rossy Family Foundation and the Mach-Gaensslen Foundation. 2025-12-01T10:45:28.4221996 2024-11-07T12:14:11.7560768 Faculty of Science and Engineering School of Engineering and Applied Sciences - Sport and Exercise Sciences Nathan King 0000-0003-4664-5456 1 William Pickett 2 Kurtis Pankow 0000-0002-1782-3877 3 Gina Dimitropoulos 4 Emma Cullen 5 Stephen McNevin 6 Scott B. Patten 0000-0001-9871-4041 7 Anne Duffy 0000-0002-5895-075x 8 68209__35717__a61ff80b95854f7c99d449c7af2d2cff.pdf 68209.pdf 2025-12-01T10:45:21.3687063 Output 1191907 application/pdf Version of Record true false
title Access to University Mental Health Services: Understanding the Student Experience: L’accès aux services universitaires de santé mentale : comprendre l’expérience des étudiants
spellingShingle Access to University Mental Health Services: Understanding the Student Experience: L’accès aux services universitaires de santé mentale : comprendre l’expérience des étudiants
Kurtis Pankow
title_short Access to University Mental Health Services: Understanding the Student Experience: L’accès aux services universitaires de santé mentale : comprendre l’expérience des étudiants
title_full Access to University Mental Health Services: Understanding the Student Experience: L’accès aux services universitaires de santé mentale : comprendre l’expérience des étudiants
title_fullStr Access to University Mental Health Services: Understanding the Student Experience: L’accès aux services universitaires de santé mentale : comprendre l’expérience des étudiants
title_full_unstemmed Access to University Mental Health Services: Understanding the Student Experience: L’accès aux services universitaires de santé mentale : comprendre l’expérience des étudiants
title_sort Access to University Mental Health Services: Understanding the Student Experience: L’accès aux services universitaires de santé mentale : comprendre l’expérience des étudiants
author_id_str_mv fefaac12947ce639c98ee81f632c5686
author_id_fullname_str_mv fefaac12947ce639c98ee81f632c5686_***_Kurtis Pankow
author Kurtis Pankow
author2 Nathan King
William Pickett
Kurtis Pankow
Gina Dimitropoulos
Emma Cullen
Stephen McNevin
Scott B. Patten
Anne Duffy
format Journal article
container_title The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry
container_volume 69
container_issue 12
container_start_page 841
publishDate 2024
institution Swansea University
issn 0706-7437
1497-0015
doi_str_mv 10.1177/07067437241295640
publisher SAGE Publications
college_str Faculty of Science and Engineering
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hierarchy_top_title Faculty of Science and Engineering
hierarchy_parent_id facultyofscienceandengineering
hierarchy_parent_title Faculty of Science and Engineering
department_str School of Engineering and Applied Sciences - Sport and Exercise Sciences{{{_:::_}}}Faculty of Science and Engineering{{{_:::_}}}School of Engineering and Applied Sciences - Sport and Exercise Sciences
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description Objective: To describe student access to university mental health services and barriers and gaps in support. Methods: This multiple cohort study used self-report data from 4,138 undergraduate students who completed the U-Flourish Well-Being Survey at the start and completion of first year from 2018 to 2023. The survey incorporated validated measures of mental health symptoms, barriers to care, and open-text questions about the mental health care experience and perceived gaps. Quantitative analyses summarized utilization patterns and barriers. An interpretive qualitative analysis identified common themes about support services and opportunities for improvement from the student perspective. Results: At university entry, 43% of students screened positive for anxiety and/or depression, 30% reported a lifetime mental disorder and 23% a lifetime history of self-harm. Over first year, 15% of students surveyed accessed university mental health services. Access was more likely in students identifying as older, gender diverse, female, having a prior mental disorder and those who screened positive for anxiety or depression. Common attitudinal and practical barriers reported included thinking problems would resolve (74%), being uncomfortable sharing (73%), and not knowing how to get help (50%). Common stigma barriers included concerns about what family or friends might think. Students expressed that both campus-based well-being and mental health care offered during flexible hours and accessible through online booking were important. Conclusions: Student-tailored mental health literacy may be a sustainable approach to address the attitudinal and practical barriers identified. If such barriers are reduced, an increased service demand would be expected and improved efficiencies needed. A clear Statement of Services, an online singular point of access with embedded triage to signpost students to indicated levels of care, and clearly worked-out care pathways including to community-based services would better align with a stepped care model, improve efficiency and access, and foster realistic expectations around university mental health support.
published_date 2024-12-01T12:10:44Z
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