Psychiatrists and other medical professionals in Belgium show a substantial lack of knowledge about poverty

The bidirectional relationship between poverty and poor physical and mental health is well-known. All physicians should have sufficient knowledge on poverty as a social determinant and its impact on (mental) health. The knowledge of poverty in physicians is seldom investigated. An online and paper survey was circulated in March/April 2022 in Belgium, to assess physician’s opinions about and attitudes toward patients in poverty. Not only was interest in the subject rather low, but there were also substantial contradictions in the responses. The lack of knowledge about poverty among physicians l... Mehr ...

Verfasser: Kirsten Catthoor
Marc De Hert
Hans De Loof
Ingrid Jongeneelen
Yves Wuyts
Kris Van den Broeck
Dokumenttyp: Artikel
Erscheinungsdatum: 2023
Reihe/Periodikum: European Psychiatry, Vol 66 (2023)
Verlag/Hrsg.: Cambridge University Press
Schlagwörter: health professionals / psychiatrists / general practitioner / mental health / poverty / 10-point action plan / knowledge / Psychiatry / RC435-571
Sprache: Englisch
Permalink: https://search.fid-benelux.de/Record/base-26612675
Datenquelle: BASE; Originalkatalog
Powered By: BASE
Link(s) : https://doi.org/10.1192/j.eurpsy.2023.2430

The bidirectional relationship between poverty and poor physical and mental health is well-known. All physicians should have sufficient knowledge on poverty as a social determinant and its impact on (mental) health. The knowledge of poverty in physicians is seldom investigated. An online and paper survey was circulated in March/April 2022 in Belgium, to assess physician’s opinions about and attitudes toward patients in poverty. Not only was interest in the subject rather low, but there were also substantial contradictions in the responses. The lack of knowledge about poverty among physicians leads to reduced quality of medical care for this target group. This is an individual medical–ethical and societal problem. We suggest 10 point-action plan for policymakers, educational institutions, and physicians.