USE OF MENTAL-HEALTH-SERVICES BY HIV-INFECTED WOMEN

In this study, the first to examine the use of mental health services among a large cohort of HIV-positive women, our objective was to quant ify the use of such services by infected women enrolled at one site of the HIV Epidemiology Research Study and to describe the factors assoc iated with such use. One hundred sixty-seven HIV-seropositive women an d 67 seronegative women were interviewed between March and November 19 95 during their semiannual study visit. Women were asked to report vis its they had made to mental health counselors (psychiatrists, social w orkers, or psychologists) or HIV support groups and any psychiatric ho spitalizations during the previous 6 months. About half the seropositi ve women had a history of injection drug use, were Caucasian, and live d with children, three quarters were insured, and one third were churc h members. A minority of seropositive women (38%) sought at least one outpatient mental health visit, and 4% had been hospitalized during th e previous 6 months. Being a member of a church, having a high school education, and being Caucasian were significantly associated (p < 0.05 ) with seeing a mental health counselor. Among HIV-positive women who reported at least one visit their CD4 cell count was the only factor a ssociated with the number of mental health visits. Only 13% of women h ad attended an HIV support group. Among seronegative women, 27% had at least one outpatient mental health visit during the preceding 6 month s. The use of mental health services by women with HIV has economic, n ot just therapeutic, implications for all HIV service delivery systems .