Social exclusion of people with mental illness: the widening gap from 1997 to 2013 in the Belgian adult population
(2019) Society for Social Medicine and Population Health — Location: Cork, Ireland (4.September.2019)
Files
SOCSOCMED_CORK_SMITH.pdf
Closed Access - Adobe PDF
- 586.17 KB
Details
- Authors
- Abstract
- Background: People with mental illness (MI) face issues of social integration such as finding a job and maintaining social relationships. In the past decades, many countries have developed specific social integration policies towards people with MI. Despite heterogeneous assessments of those policies, the social integration of people with MI and its improvement over time remains inconclusive. Aim: This study aimed to assess the evolution of the social integration of adults with moderate and severe MI in the general Belgian population between 1997 and 2013. Methods: Data on the general adult population were retrieved from the Belgian Health Interview Survey in five cross-sectional waves (1997, 2001, 2004, 2008 and 2013, n ≈ 10,000 per wave). Three degrees of MI severity were compared using the 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12): no MI, moderate MI, and severe MI (score < 4, 4-7, and > 7). Indicators of social integration were the employment status, social contacts, and partnership situation. Adjusted prevalence of social integration indicators were estimated in the different periods. The evolution of prevalence was estimated with time-trend measures (absolute and relative change, and average annual percent chance). The association between social integration indicators and survey year was assessed with logistic regression models. Results: In 2013, the adjusted prevalence of social integration indicators of people without MI, with moderate MI, and with severe MI were respectively 26%, 35%, 56% for unemployment, 2%, 6%, 11% for low social contacts, and 14%, 18%, 32% for being single. For unemployment and low social contacts, the gap between people with severe MI and the other two groups increased over time. The probability of being unemployed decreased significantly in 2013 compared to 1997 for people without MI (AOR = 0.59, 95%CI = 0.53-0.65) and for people with moderate MI (AOR = 0.69, 95%CI = 0.51-0.97), but not for people with severe MI (AOR = 1.08, 95%CI = 0.78-1.49). Conclusions: The social exclusion gap between people with severe MI and people with moderate or without MI is widening over time. Social and economic policies and clinical practitioners should support the social integration of people with more severe MI, particularly their employability and social support.
- Affiliations
Citations
Smith, P., Nicaise, P., & Lorant, V. (2019). Social exclusion of people with mental illness: the widening gap from 1997 to 2013 in the Belgian adult population. Society for Social Medicine and Population Health, Cork, Ireland. https://hdl.handle.net/2078.5/126660