Factors Affecting the Usage Rate for Mental Health Sections of College and University Health Services

Abstract

The history of the Mental Health Annual Program Survey (MHAPS) is briefly reviewed. Characteristics of the institutions participating in MHAPS during the 1975–76 program year are reported. Usage rate data for the sample are reviewed, and the procedures employed in determining the predictors of sample variability in mental health section usage rate are described. Variability in usage rate was regressed against six categories of variables: institutional characteristics, alternative available resources, mental health section staffing levels and staffing patterns, allocations of staff time, and programming options. When the significant predictors included in these six categories were pooled, five variables were sufficient to account for 95% of usage rate variance. The number of weekly interview hours per 1000 full-time students and the proportion of full-time staff each accounted for 29% of usage rate variance. Visits per patient accounted for 18%, time allocated to consultative services for 10%, and the availability of off-campus resources for 8%. The effects that changes in the values of the predictors can be expected to have on usage rate are illustrated, and the implications of these results for the use of comparative data are discussed.