Rate of mental health service utilization by Chinese immigrants in British Columbia

Objective: Reports suggest that immigrants are under-served by the mental health service system. The aim of this study is to examine the rates of mental health visits and hospitalization of Chinese immigrants in British Columbia using historic administrative databases. Method: A total of more than 150,000 Chinese immigrants who landed in BC between 1985 and 2000 were identified from an immigration database which was linked to the province's administrative health records, as part of a national study on immigrant health. Controls were individually matched to immigrants by sex, age and region and randomly selected from the general BC population. Results: Preliminary results confirm that, while Chinese immigrants use less overall health care than controls, the difference in utilization rates is particularly pronounced with regard to mental health problems, especially for visits to psychiatrists and psychiatric hospitalization. Discussion: The under-utilization of mental health services may reflect better health status, ongoing barriers to access, or other factors. There are different implications for health policy-makers. Further research is necessary to determine the reasons for the low rates of utilization.