Louisiana Residents Still Face Mental Health Issues; Many Will Not Admit To Needing Help, Survey Finds

Main Category: Mental Health
Also Included In: Aid / Disasters
Article Date: 02 May 2008 - 8:00 PDT

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More than two-and-a-half years after Hurricanes Rita and Katrina, some Louisiana residents still experience negative health effects related to the storms, particularly mental health problems, according to a report released on Tuesday, the Baton Rouge Advocate reports (Gyan, Baton Rouge Advocate, 4/30). The findings were released at a forum cosponsored by the Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine (Tulane University release, 4/29). For the report, researchers conducted a telephone survey of 800 Louisiana adults from April 9 to 16. Nine out of 10 respondents were living in the state or along the Gulf Coast at the time of the hurricanes (Baton Rouge Advocate, 4/30).

The survey found that 41% percent of respondents said the storms had a significant impact on their mental health but did not believe they needed counseling. The survey also found that:

• Two-thirds of respondents in coastal parishes said the hurricanes affected the mental health of their community (Hammer, New Orleans Times-Picayune, 4/30);
  
  
• About 60% said there are few specialized health care services and medicines available for mental health care;
  
  
• Nearly 90% said their mental health is just as important as their physical health, and 30% said the current health care system treats the conditions equally;
  
  
• More than 55% said the health care system gives physical health more importance;
  
  
• About one-third said there have been improvements in access to health care professionals in the area, 40% said the access has remained the same and 20% reported access worsening;
  
  
• Almost 70% said in general residents feel ashamed or embarrassed about mental health problems (Baton Rouge Advocate, 4/30); and
  
  
• 38% said the hurricanes did not have a significant effect on their mental health.
  

According to the Times-Picayune, although 46% of respondents across the state said the storms did not leave them displaced, "depression and stress were still commonly mentioned health effects of the hurricanes." Karen Goraleski, research director at Research!America, said the results will have a greater impact on local lawmakers.

The report was commissioned by Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center and Pfizer and was conducted by Charlton Research (Baton Rouge Advocate, 4/30).

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