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Inequalities in Mental Health in the Spanish Autonomous Communities: A Multilevel Study

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 May 2015

Kátia B. Rocha ,
Katherine Perez ,
Maica Rodriguez-Sanz ,
Carles Muntaner ,
Jordi Alonso  and
Carme Borrell
Kátia B. Rocha*
Affiliation:
Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul (Brazil)
Katherine Perez
Affiliation:
Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona (Spain)
Maica Rodriguez-Sanz
Affiliation:
Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona (Spain)
Carles Muntaner
Affiliation:
University of Toronto (Canada)
Jordi Alonso
Affiliation:
CIBER en Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP) (Spain)
Carme Borrell
Affiliation:
Agència de Salut Pública de Barcelona (Spain)
*
*Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Kátia B. Rocha. Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS). Porto Alegre (Brazil). Av. Ipiranga, 6681. Prédio 11. Sala 931 90619–900. E-mail: katiabonesrocha@gmail.com/katia.rocha@pucrs.b
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Abstract

The aim of this study was to analyze inequalities in the prevalence of poor mental health and their association with socioeconomic variables and with the care network in the Autonomous Communities in Spain. A cross-sectional multilevel study was performed, which analyzed individual data from the National Health Survey in Spain (ENS), in 2006 (n = 29,476 people over the age of 16). The prevalence of poor mental health was the dependent variable, measured by the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12 > = 3). Individual and contextual socioeconomic variables, along with mental health services in the Autonomous Communities, were included as independent variables. Models of multilevel logistic regression were used, and odds ratios (OR) were obtained, with confidence intervals (CI) of 95%. The results showed that there are inequalities in the prevalence of poor mental health in Spain, associated to contextual variables, such as unemployment rate (men OR 1.04 CI 1.01–1.07; women OR 1.02 CI 1.00–1.05). On the other hand, it was observed that inequalities in the mental health care resources in the Autonomous Communities also have an impact on poor mental health.

Keywords

inequalities in healthmental healthmultilevel studiespublic health
Type
Research Article
Information
The Spanish Journal of Psychology , Volume 18 , 2015 , E27
Copyright
Copyright © Universidad Complutense de Madrid and Colegio Oficial de Psicólogos de Madrid 2015 

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