The disparities in mental health experienced by various segments of society including Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC), LGBTQ+, people with disabilities, and transition-age youth and young adults is already well-established in the literature. Moreover, the syndemic of the COVID-19 pandemic, structural racism, and climate change has also disproportionately negatively impacted marginalized communities across the world, and subsequently, exacerbated existing disparities in mental health. Nonetheless, the field’s greater attention to upstream factors and the role of social and structural determinants of health in influencing health outcomes, combined with an influx of innovation, particularly the digitalization of healthcare, presents a unique opportunity to solve for pressing issues in mental health through a health equity lens.
The goal of this Research Topic is to move beyond a synthesis of what is already known about mental health in the context of health equity; rather, the focus here will be on transformative solutions, recommendations, and applied research that have real world implications on policy, practice, and future scholarship. The aim of this Research Topic is to also elevate the importance of trans- and cross-disciplinary research, and draw from various methodologies and theories that highlight lived experiences and apply a more critical lens at the how structures of power and privilege have contributed to present-day inequities, particularly those seen in mental healthcare access, utilization, and outcomes.
• Linkages between mental health equity and other pressing co-occurring public health challenges e.g., systemic racism, climate change
• Mental health policy, including, but not limited to legislation, regulation, financing, accountability, and workforce development
• Innovations in payment models e.g., payment reform, value based care
• Delivery system reform e.g., access to care issues, patient-centered care, care coordination, inclusion of social determinants of health in patient care
• Barriers and opportunities to screening, diagnosis, and treatment of mental health issues in historically marginalized populations
• Community engagement and family/patient advocacy efforts
• Workforce development/pipeline, including diversifying the workforce
• Methodologies and frameworks to understand mental health equity, with particular emphasis on approaches that incorporate the voices of lived experiences
• Papers included in this special issue will focus less on a synthesis of the current literature, and rather emphasize big, bold recommendations for how to move forward in advancing mental health policy, research, and practice through an equity lens
The disparities in mental health experienced by various segments of society including Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC), LGBTQ+, people with disabilities, and transition-age youth and young adults is already well-established in the literature. Moreover, the syndemic of the COVID-19 pandemic, structural racism, and climate change has also disproportionately negatively impacted marginalized communities across the world, and subsequently, exacerbated existing disparities in mental health. Nonetheless, the field’s greater attention to upstream factors and the role of social and structural determinants of health in influencing health outcomes, combined with an influx of innovation, particularly the digitalization of healthcare, presents a unique opportunity to solve for pressing issues in mental health through a health equity lens.
The goal of this Research Topic is to move beyond a synthesis of what is already known about mental health in the context of health equity; rather, the focus here will be on transformative solutions, recommendations, and applied research that have real world implications on policy, practice, and future scholarship. The aim of this Research Topic is to also elevate the importance of trans- and cross-disciplinary research, and draw from various methodologies and theories that highlight lived experiences and apply a more critical lens at the how structures of power and privilege have contributed to present-day inequities, particularly those seen in mental healthcare access, utilization, and outcomes.
• Linkages between mental health equity and other pressing co-occurring public health challenges e.g., systemic racism, climate change
• Mental health policy, including, but not limited to legislation, regulation, financing, accountability, and workforce development
• Innovations in payment models e.g., payment reform, value based care
• Delivery system reform e.g., access to care issues, patient-centered care, care coordination, inclusion of social determinants of health in patient care
• Barriers and opportunities to screening, diagnosis, and treatment of mental health issues in historically marginalized populations
• Community engagement and family/patient advocacy efforts
• Workforce development/pipeline, including diversifying the workforce
• Methodologies and frameworks to understand mental health equity, with particular emphasis on approaches that incorporate the voices of lived experiences
• Papers included in this special issue will focus less on a synthesis of the current literature, and rather emphasize big, bold recommendations for how to move forward in advancing mental health policy, research, and practice through an equity lens