Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41736041›Full record

ArticleInternational journal of mental health systems2026

Patterns and predictors of the transition between minimally adequate treatment and effective treatment coverage for mental disorders: results from the World Mental Health Survey.

Alan E Kazdin, Julia R Pozuelo, Meredith G Harris, Dan J Stein, Maria Carmen Viana, Irving Hwang, Timothy L Kessler, Sophie M Manoukian, Nancy A Sampson, Sergio Aguilar-Gaxiola and 26 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in International journal of mental health systems, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

36 authors.

Alan E KazdinDepartment of Psychology, Yale University, Henry Koerner Center, 149 Elm Street, New Haven, CT 06511, USA.
Julia R PozueloDepartment of Global Health and Social Medicine, Harvard Medical School, 641 Huntington Ave, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
Meredith G HarrisSchool of Public Health, The University of Queensland, c/o QCMHR, Locked Bag 500, Archerfield, QLD 4108, Australia.
Dan J SteinDepartment of Psychiatry & Mental Health and South African Medical Council Research Unit on Risk and Resilience in Mental Disorders, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, ZA 7925, Rondebosch, South Africa.
Maria Carmen VianaDepartment of Social Medicine, Postgraduate Program in Public Health, Federal University of Espírito Santo, Av. Marechal Campos, 1468, Vitória, Espírito Santo (ES), CEP 29.043-900, Brazil.
Irving HwangDepartment of Health Care Policy, Harvard Medical School, 180 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
Timothy L KesslerThe Watson Institute for International and Public Affairs, Brown University, 111 Thayer St., Providence, RI 02912, USA.
Sophie M ManoukianDepartment of Health Care Policy, Harvard Medical School, 180 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
Nancy A SampsonDepartment of Health Care Policy, Harvard Medical School, 180 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
Sergio Aguilar-GaxiolaDepartment of Internal Medicine, Center for Reducing Health Disparities, UC Davis Health System, 2921 Stockton Blvd., Suite 1408, Sacramento, CA, 95817, USA.
Jordi AlonsoHospital del Mar Medical Research Institute, PRBB Building, Doctor Aiguader, 88, Barcelona, 08003, Spain.
Laura Helena AndradeUniversity of São Paulo Medical School, Núcleo de Epidemiologia Psiquiátrica - LIM 23, Rua Dr. Ovidio Pires de Campos, 785, São Paulo, 05403-010, CEP, Brazil.
Olatunde O AyindeDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Ibadan, University College Hospital, Ibadan, PMB 5116, Nigeria.
Guilherme BorgesNational Institute of Psychiatry Ramón de la Fuente Muñiz, Calz. Mexico-Xochimilco 101, San Lorenzo Huipulco, México, 14370, Ciudad de, Mexico.
Ronny BruffaertsUniversitair Psychiatrisch Centrum, Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (KUL), Campus Gasthuisberg, Herestraat 49, Leuven, B-3000, Belgium.
Brendan BuntingSchool of Psychology, Ulster University, Coleraine Campus, Coleraine, BT52 1SA, UK.
Graça CardosoLisbon Institute for Global Mental Health, Comprehensive Health Research Centre Nova University of Lisbon, Rua do Instituto Bacteriológico, Lisbon, 5, 1150 - 190, Portugal.
Stephanie ChardoulSurvey Research Center, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan, 330 Packard, Room G358, Ann Arbor, MI, 48104, USA.
Cristina DomenechParc Sanitari Sant Joan de Déu, Dr. Antoni Pujadas, 42, Sant Boi de Llobregat, 08830, Barcelona, Spain.
Oye GurejeDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Ibadan, University College Hospital, Ibadan, PMB 5116, Nigeria.
Elie G KaramInstitute for Development, Research, Advocacy and Applied Care (IDRAAC), Achrafieh, St. George Hospital Street, Beirut, Lebanon.
Viviane Kovess-MasfetyInstitut de Psychologie, UR 4057, Université Paris Cité, 71 avenue Édouard Vaillant - 92100, Paris, Boulogne Billancourt, France.
Fernando Navarro-MateuCIBER en Epidemiología y Salud Pública (CIBERESP), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Av. Monforte de Lemos, 3-5, Pabellón 11, Madrid, 0 28029, Planta, Spain.
Daisuke NishiDepartment of Mental Health, Graduate School of Medicine, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1, Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113 - 0033, Japan.
José Posada-VillaColombian Institute of the Nervous System, Clinica Montserrat University Hospital, Calle 134 No. 17-71, Bogotá, Colombia.
Charlene RapseyDepartment of Psychological Medicine, University of Otago, PO Box 56, Dunedin, 9054, New Zealand.
Annelieke M RoestDepartment of Developmental Psychology, Faculty of Behavioral and Social Sciences, University of Groningen, Grote Kruisstraat 2/, 9712 TS, Groningen, The Netherlands.
Juan Carlos StagnaroDepartamento de Psiquiatría y Salud Mental, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Buenos 85 Aires, Paraguay 2155, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Yolanda TorresCenter for Excellence on Research in Mental Health, CES University, Calle 10 A #2-04, Medellín, El Poblado, Colombia.
Cristian VladescuNational Institute for Health Services Management, 31 Vaselor Str., Bucharest, 21253, Romania.
Jacek WciórkaDepartment of Psychiatry, Institute of Psychiatry and Neurology, Jana III Sobieskiego 9, Warsaw, 02-957, Poland.
Bogdan WojtyniakDepartment of Population Health Monitoring and Analysis, National Institute of Public Health -National Institute of Hygiene, Chocimska 24, Warsaw, 00-791, Poland.
Zahari ZarkovNational Center for Public Health and Analyses, 15 Acad. Ivan Geshov Blvd., Sofia, 1431, Bulgaria.
Ronald C KesslerDepartment of Health Care Policy, Harvard Medical School, 180 Longwood Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA. kessler@hcp.med.harvard.edu.
Daniel V VigoDepartment of Psychiatry & School of Population and Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia UBC Hospital - Detwiller Pavilion, Room 2813, 2255 Wesbrook MallUBC Vancouver Campus, Vancouver BC, V6T 2A1, Canada.
World Mental Health Survey collaborators

Funding

Risk Factors for Psychopathology in the WHO WMH SurveysR01MH070884 · NIMH · HARVARD UNIVERSITY (MEDICAL SCHOOL) · PI KESSLER, RONALD C · 2005 to 2009
$6.0M
FIC NIH HHS FIRCA R03-TW006481NIMH NIH HHS R01 MH070884U.S. Public Health Service R13-MH066849
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundThe quality of mental disorder treatment varies widely, with many patients not receiving treatments based on evidence-based guidelines. We examine data from the World Mental Health (WMH) surveys to investigate prevalence and correlates of receiving effective treatment coverage (ETC) among patients receiving minimally adequate treatment (MAT) in the 12 months before interview.

methodsData come from 25 WMH surveys carried out in 21 countries that included n = 1,119 participants who met the criteria for at least one of nine 12-month disorders considered here who received MAT for n = 2,313 disorders. MAT was defined as either (i) medication with 4 + healthcare visits or (ii) 8 + counseling sessions. ETC was defined as a subset of MAT that additionally required (i) medication appropriate for the disorder (e.g., mood stabilizers, anticonvulsant, or antipsychotic for bipolar disorder) taken with adequate control and adherence; and/or (ii) 8 + counseling sessions with a mental healthcare provider. Multivariable regression analysis with person-disorder treated as the case was used to examine associations of socio-demographic, disorder-related, and treatment-related factors with receiving ETC given MAT.

resultsFewer than half (47.1%) the cases with MAT received treatment qualifying as ETC. The strongest predictors of ETC given MAT were high patient education, mild/moderate disorder severity, treatment by a mental health specialist rather than primary care provider, and receipt of combined treatment with both medication and counseling rather than only one of these types of treatment. Importantly, combined treatment was associated with a significantly higher relative-risk of ETC if it was provided by a psychiatrist rather than a combination of a general medical provider and a non-psychiatrist mental health provider.

conclusionsNoteworthy limitations include the data being cross-sectional, the predictor set being restricted, and the outcome being defined in terms of structural characteristics rather than fidelity of implementation. Within the context of these limitations, results suggest that fewer than half of cases with minimally adequate treatment receive treatment meeting published guidelines for effective treatment coverage. This finding underscores the importance of improving treatment. Future research should focus on targets to improve each stage of the help-seeking process beginning with entry into treatment through receipt of ETC.

Indexed as

Adequacy of treatmentCross-nationalEffective treatment coverageMental disorders treatmentWorld Mental Health Survey Consortium

Identifiers

PMID41736041
PMCPMC13037245

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.