Assessment of barriers to mental health services in underprivileged African communities: A scoping review

Management of mental disorders has been a challenging task in many countries of the world likewise in African countries where healthcare systems are not as sophisticated as those of the developed nations. One of the major challenges that hinder full service delivery in many mental health facilities in underprivileged African communities are those relating to barriers to access to care. In these regions, the mental health professionals are limited to cater for the population seeking care. The objectives of this review were to identify and synthesise the barriers faced in accessing or delivering mental health services in underprivileged African communities and offer recommendations to address such barriers and enhance service delivery and utilization. The study was carried out following scoping review guidelines and studies included in the review were pulled from various databases including PubMed, Google Scholar, Dimensions, and African Journal Online and 8 studies were included in the review. The findings from this study reveal a wide range of barriers, including lack of trained personnel, stigma, cultural beliefs, geographical inaccessibility, and financial constraints. Healthcare providers and service users both identified these challenges, with significant overlap in the barriers reported by both groups. Addressing these barriers requires comprehensive policy reforms, increased training for healthcare workers, public awareness campaigns, and better integration of mental health services into primary healthcare.