Illegal Drug Use among Rural Adults: Mental Health Consequences and Treatment Utilization

Abstract

This study uses the National Household Survey on Drug Abuse to examine mental health consequences and treatment utilization among nonmetropolitan and rural adults. The study employs an ecological systems perspective, dividing the study population into three groups: nonmetropolitan-rural, nonmetropolitan-urban, and metropolitan-rural. Logistic regression analysis is used to examine four sets of factors related to self-report of mental health problems among drug-using adults, including community level features, family characteristics, personal characteristics, and stress factors. Perceived ease of purchasing cocaine, number of moves in last five years, employment in blue-collar occupations, number of jobs in last five years, and residence in neighborhoods with a low rate (< 10%) of minority households were significantly related to self-report problems. Results of the analysis are discussed in terms of barriers to utilization of treatment and rehabilitation services among nonmetropolitan and rural adults, such as availability and access to facilities and professional services, social stigma, ability to afford services, and the difficulty for rural communities to support in-hospital and outpatient services.