Diabetes, mental health, and utilization of mental health professionals among Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander adults

ABSTRACT

National reports of diabetes and mental health for Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islanders (NHPI) are high, yet mental health professional access is low. We used multiple logistic regression to analyze data from the 2014 NHPI National Health Interview Survey. We evaluated the association between diabetes and serious psychological distress, and the interaction effect of mental health professional utilization among 2,587 adults. Self-reported diabetes was positively associated with serious psychological distress, but mental health professional utilization did not affect this association. Stigma and measurement gaps may influence self-report and measurement of mental health symptomatology, suggesting the need for culturally grounded approaches.

KEYWORDS:

• Indigenous
• comorbidity
• mental health therapy
• access
• culturally relevant measures

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Acknowledgments

With gratitude to Dr. Ann Downer for her editorial assistance.

Disclosure statement

The authors reported no potential conflict of interest.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number S06GM127164.