Reducing Mental Health Stigma in Primary Care: Impact of Behavioral Health Training on Clinician Attitudes

Highlight

• Primary care providers (PCPs) who completed a targeted behavioral health training fellowship demonstrate significantly lower mental health stigma compared to non-alumni.
• Stigma reduction was specifically noted in attitudes, disclosure, and help-seeking behavior domains.
• Socioeconomic disadvantage of practice location showed no significant association with stigma levels, suggesting stigma among PCPs is primarily influenced by training rather than practice environment.
• Behavioral health training programs may be a critical tool to advance equitable and high-quality mental health care in primary care settings.

Study Background