Journal
JOURNAL OF RURAL HEALTH
Volume 34, Issue 1, Pages 48-62Publisher
WILEY
DOI: 10.1111/jrh.12229
Keywords
health services research; labor economics; mental health; task sharing; task shifting
Categories
Funding
- Office of Rural Mental Health Research at the National Institute of Mental Health [HHSN271201300463P]
- Geriatric Mental Health Services Research Fellowship through the National Institute of Mental Health [T32 MH073553]
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PurposeRural areas persistently face a shortage of mental health specialists. Task shifting, or task sharing, is an approach in global mental health that may help address unmet mental health needs in rural and other low-resource areas. This review focuses on task-shifting approaches and highlights future directions for research in this area. MethodsSystematic review on task sharing of mental health care in rural areas of high-income countries included: (1) PubMed, (2) gray literature for innovations not yet published in peer-reviewed journals, and (3) outreach to experts for additional articles. We included English language articles published before August 31, 2013, on interventions sharing mental health care tasks across a team in rural settings. We excluded literature: (1) from low- and middle-income countries, (2) involving direct transfer of care to another provider, and (3) describing clinical guidelines and shared decision-making tools. FindingsThe review identified approaches to task sharing focused mainly on community health workers and primary care providers. Technology was identified as a way to leverage mental health specialists to support care across settings both within primary care and out in the community. The review also highlighted how provider education, supervision, and partnerships with local communities can support task sharing. Challenges, such as confidentiality, are often not addressed in the literature. ConclusionsApproaches to task sharing may improve reach and effectiveness of mental health care in rural and other low-resource settings, though important questions remain. We recommend promising research directions to address these questions.
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