A recent national registry study in Finland reveals that children of immigrant parents are significantly less likely to receive mental health services for anxiety and depression compared to their Finnish peers. Interestingly, children with immigrant fathers and Finnish mothers are up to 60% more likely to utilize these services, underscoring the impactful role that having a native-born parent can have on a child’s access to care.
Researchers from the Child Psychiatry Research Center at the University of Turku conducted a comprehensive survey of approximately 172,000 children and adolescents born in Finland between 1992 and 2006. This study is the first of its kind to explore how parental immigration status affects children’s access to mental health services for anxiety and depression.
The findings indicate that children with two immigrant parents are 60% less likely to receive treatment for co-occurring anxiety and depression, 50% less likely to receive treatment for depression alone, and 20% less likely to get help for anxiety alone. This disparity is most evident among children with parents hailing from low-Human Development Index (HDI) countries, as well as those with mothers from sub-Saharan Africa.
This research highlights a concerning contradiction; children who are likely to experience mental health challenges due to migration-related stressors are also the least likely to access essential services that could assist them, as noted by Prakash Khanal, the lead author and postdoctoral fellow at the Child Psychiatry Research Center.
Impact of Maternal Background on Access to Mental Health Services
Children with immigrant fathers and Finnish mothers consistently demonstrate higher usage rates of mental health services across various diagnostic categories. Conversely, when the father is Finnish, this trend reverses, indicating that a mother’s familiarity with the healthcare system is crucial for the child’s access to care. As Karnall points out, “Typically, the mother serves as the child’s primary medical navigator.” The knowledge possessed by a Finnish mother about how to navigate the system becomes a vital asset in seeking help.
Influence of Timing and Regional Background on Mental Health Service Accessibility
The timing of entry into Finland and the region of origin plays a significant role in determining children’s access to mental health services. Mothers who migrated to Finland less than a year before giving birth were notably less likely to ensure their children received mental health support. Even mothers with over five years of residency continue to show lower odds of accessing such services. Canal emphasizes that barriers to care do not diminish over time; instead, prolonged residency may lead to dependence on informal coping strategies, delaying the pursuit of professional help.
Moreover, the region of origin further influences service usage. Children of mothers from sub-Saharan Africa were found to be up to 90% less likely to receive depression treatment, while children with fathers from Latin America exhibited higher utilization rates across all mental health outcomes. Karinall explains that in many Global South families, mental health concerns are often interpreted through spiritual or physical lenses rather than clinical perspectives, creating additional bridges to care that may not exist within the family dynamics.
Steps Towards Equitable Mental Health Care Access
The authors of the study advocate for systemic changes, including universal mental health screenings in schools and primary healthcare settings, cultural competency training through community health workers, and the availability of simplified referral pathways along with multilingual resources. Professor Andre Saulander, the lead researcher, highlights the particular importance of targeted support for immigrant mothers, proposing that enhancing mental health literacy and addressing stigma within immigrant communities should be integral to a national strategy aimed at ensuring equitable access to care for all children in Finland.
