Black and other minority groups in Europe are said to be discriminated against when they happen to come to get access to treatment in mental health care. There is a need to enforce legislation which will ensure that every one everywhere has access to treatment in mental health. There are still some issues affecting access to treatment in mental health. Specifically, this affect dwells on the Black and minority ethnic people.
Such minority communities are not empowered in terms of economics and politics. The fact that most blacks are illegal immigrants makes most of them avoid instances and areas where they can come into contact with the authorities. Usually some members of this community live in perpetual fear of prosecution and possible deportation. This leads to two problems: they suffer from emotional stress which is responsible for high prevalence in mental illness cases; even when treatment is available, it may be inaccessible due to the fact that many may not possess legal identification documents.
Laws and policies tend to be biased against the minority groups thus making it even harder for them to access mental health care. Many mental health care givers may belong to other racial backgrounds, if the policies of the health institutions are not very strong the blacks face direct discrimination even when they go to seek mental health services. Solutions to the issues raised above include enforcing responsive mental health policies and improved communication. Effective communication will mean better dissemination of information to the minority groups hence many people will be willing to seek mental health care.
