Barriers hindering timely access to mental health care

Authors

Keywords:

health equity, health services accessibility, mental health, mental health services, social stigma

Abstract

Introduction: Mental health is an essential component of well-being and social development, yet a persistent gap remains between need and access, shaped by individual, structural, and sociocultural barriers.

Objective: To analyze the barriers that hinder timely access to mental health care.

Opinion: Stigma, perceived self-sufficiency, and the normalization of distress limit individuals’ willingness to seek care. Added to this are structural obstacles such as the shortage of professionals, the concentration of services in urban areas, the costs of treatment, and long waiting lists, which restrict timely access. On the sociocultural level, gender norms, religious beliefs, and the spread of pseudoscientific discourses reinforce distrust of professional care. These barriers do not operate in isolation; rather, they reinforce one another and form a cycle of exclusion that increases the vulnerability of the most disadvantaged groups.

Conclusions: Barriers to accessing mental health care represent a complex problem that demands comprehensive policies aimed at expanding resources, promoting culturally relevant awareness, and ensuring accessible community support, in order to reduce the gap and recognize mental health as both a right and a global public good.

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Author Biography

Edwin Gustavo Estrada-Araoz, Universidad Nacional Amazónica de Madre de Dios

Doctor en Educación. Maestro en Administración de la Educación y en Psicología Educativa. Maestría en Políticas y Gestión de la Educación y Licenciado en Educación Primaria. Docente de pregrado en la Universidad Nacional Amazónica de Madre de Dios y ha sido reconocido como investigador RENACYT por el Consejo Nacional de Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación Tecnológica – CONCYTEC, Perú.

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Published

2026-01-30

How to Cite

1.
Estrada-Araoz EG. Barriers hindering timely access to mental health care. Rev. cuba. med. mil [Internet]. 2026 Jan. 30 [cited 2026 Feb. 3];55(1):e026076965. Available from: https://revmedmilitar.sld.cu/index.php/mil/article/view/76965

Issue

Vol. 55 No. 1 (2026): January - March (In progress)

Section

Opinion Article

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Copyright (c) 2026 Edwin Gustavo Estrada-Araoz

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