Community mental health staff utilization in Washington State: characteristics and target groups

Abstract

This study addresses human resource development issues for the State of Washington by examining relationships among clinical staff characteristics such as sex, educational level, discipline of academic study, race-ethnic group, and years of mental health treatment experience, and relationships between these staff characteristics and characteristics of staff caseloads, primarily percent of caseload falling into various state priority populations: chronically mentally ill, children, elderly, and minority groups. Results are interpreted in terms of past and future state goals for the mental health service system.