The transition to university often involves students leaving their family systems and support networks for the first time. Low social support coupled with increased emotional and academic responsibility can exacerbate pre-existing psychological vulnerabilities, resulting in mental illnesses developing. In Canada, campus mental health services are overwhelmed with students seeking care, which can threaten accessibility to adequate treatment and discourage students from seeking care in the future (King et al., 2020).
King et al. (2020) designed the “U-Flourish Study” to assess the prevalence of psychopathology in Canadian first year university students, and to determine the rate at which these students accessed mental healthcare. Participants completed a comprehensive questionnaire that assessed their personal and family mental and physical health history, as well as their current psychiatric symptoms at the beginning of their first college semester.
Baseline results indicated that a large percentage of students began university with a diagnosed learning disability, mood, or anxiety disorder. Of students who self-reported a mental health diagnosis or met clinical criteria for a psychiatric illness, a significant proportion were not receiving pharmacological or psychological treatment. King et al. (2020) stresses that increasing access to adequate treatment and support improves the likelihood of academic and social success and decreases dropout rates. Researchers advocate for an integrative approach between on-campus and community care to ensure students can access appropriate levels of care when treatment needs arise.
Citation:
King, N., Pickett, W., McNevin, S. H., Bowie, C. R., Rivera, D., Keown‐Stoneman, C., Harkness, K., Cunningham, S., Milanovic, M., Saunders, K. E., Goodday, S., & Duffy, A. (2020). Mental health need of students at entry to University: Baseline findings from the U‐Flourish Student Well-Being and Academic Success study. Early Intervention in Psychiatry, 15(2), 286–295. https://doi-org.ezproxy.library.uvic.ca/10.1111/eip.12939
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