OBJECTIVES: Mental health is an essential component of overall health and well-being. In Sub-Saharan Africa, mental health is usually a low-priority issue on the list of policy makers, with high profile issues like AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis given more attention. Mental health services in this region suffer from lack of resources. However, research also shows that even when mental health facilities exist, people do not utilize them or delay in using them. The purpose of this study is to explore the factors that influence the uptake of mental health services in Sub Saharan Africa.

METHODS: MEDLINE, EMBASE, ASSIA, PsychINFO, Web of Science and CINAHL were searched for qualitative or mixed method studies exploring the factors that influence the uptake of mental health services in Sub-Sahara Africa. Studies were critically appraised using the CASP checklist, and data extracted with the aid of a data extraction form. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data and identify relevant themes.

RESULTS: A total of 548 studies were identified, of which 7 met the inclusion criteria. The themes that emerged showed that the influencing factors could be divided into barriers and facilitators. The barriers and facilitators could also be divided into personal and service-related factors. Personal barriers included; Stigma/discrimination, poor knowledge, poverty/inability to pay for services and belief in spiritual causes/traditional healers while personal facilitators included positive health outcomes and testimonies of other service users. Service-related barriers included; centralised mental health service, access to facilities, lack/attitude of staff while service-related facilitators were proper management and care received from mental health staff.

CONCLUSIONS: The utilization of mental health services in Sub-Saharan Africa is dependent on both the availability of mental health services and the nature of service delivery, as well as the knowledge, attitudes and perspectives of people regarding mental illness and mental health services.