Impact of integrated care and co-location of care on mental help-seeking perceptions

Background: Integrated care may offer a solution to subpar mental health referral adherence, but people’s openness to receiving psychological treatment in this setting is understudied. Aims: The present study examined the influence of the integrated care context and co-location of care on people’s help-seeking perceptions. Method: This study (N = 397) used an experimental vignette design to compare the impact of treatment type (integrated care vs. traditional psychotherapy) and distance (close vs. far) on help-seeking perceptions. Results: The integrated care environment (significant effect on perceived behavioral control) and closer proximity of the psychologist (significant effect on intention, attitudes, perceived effectiveness of treatment, self-stigma) only improved help-seeking perceptions among those with prior experience with mental health treatment. In the overall sample, treatment type and distance only demonstrated an effect among women, but not men. Conclusions: Pending replication with samples from diverse populations, these findings provide a cautionary tale about lay perceptions of integrated care’s anticipated utility. However, co-location and, to a lesser degree, the common attributes of the integrated care format (e.g. team approach, flexible scheduling) may represent a potential pathway for reducing resistance to help seeking that can accompany traditional psychotherapy referrals among those with past exposure to behavioral healthcare.