San Leandro, California Therapists

An Overview of Mental Health in San Leandro, California

The city of San Leandro is centrally located in the San Francisco Bay area and is home to 90,553 people. A perfect climate makes outdoor activity possible every day of the year. With a 450-berth Marina and lovely vistas of blue water, the appeal of this city is unparalleled. San Leandro combines the charm of leafy green neighborhoods, quaint homes, and the scented air of cherry blossoms in summer. The annual Cherry Festival attracts visitors and residents alike.

San Leandro is piquant in its charm and vitality. Not just a peaceful haven, the city supports a wide variety of fine dining, shopping, and culture. A diverse heritage enriches the arts scene, entertainment, and sports venues. Exciting events for singles, families, and friends of all ages take place throughout the year.

Schools in San Leandro are among the best in the nation. The University of California, Berkeley; St. Mary’s College; and California State University, East Bay are among the area’s higher institutions of learning. Graduates find many public business entities provide excellent career opportunities in San Leandro.

Statistics Related to Mental Illness Risk Factors

American life is complex, and its cities are no exception. Few families remain untouched by challenges. Mental health issues revolve around social and economic factors. Some of the unique challenges facing San Leandro appear in statistical analyses. By race, the city is 39.7% White, 32.4% Asian, 11.7% Black, with the remaining percent Hispanic and other.

The divorce rate in San Leandro is 11%. Those living below the poverty level in Alameda County are over 9.3%. A higher percentage of residents in San Leandro live below the poverty level at 8.8%. The largest group is Asian, followed by White, Hispanic, and Multicultural. Poverty correlates with anxiety, depression, substance use, and other mental illnesses. Poverty also correlates with crime. San Leandro’s rank is 7% on the U.S. crime analytics scale; 93% of the nation’s cities are safer than San Leandro. The number of violent crimes is 5.49 per 1,000 residents, and property crimes are 40.21 per 1,000 residents, for a total of 47.19 crimes per 1,000 residents.

Research on Mental Illness Conditions

A study performed by Applied Survey Research and commissioned by a substantial medical foundation in San Leandro found several issues of concern. Mental health is essential to a feeling of personal well-being. Mental health, according to the study, requires self-reliance, the ability to contribute to society, making and keeping satisfying relationships with other people, and adapting successfully to change. The study noted that in the San Leandro service area, several problems contribute to poor mental health such as lack of treatment, poor education, poverty, and too few social support services:

• Insufficient mental health providers
• ER visits high for youth self-harm
• Insufficient insurance coverage for mental health treatment
• Higher suicide rate among Whites than the state
• Much higher ER visits by Blacks for severe mental illness than the state
• More frequent use of alcohol and drug use in San Leandro
• Lack of substance abuse treatment services
• Blacks have much higher ER visits for substance abuse than other ethnic groups
• Lack of health system literacy

Problems of education and social support services include:

• 1 in 6 residents experience food insecurity
• Higher rates of poverty among ethnic groups
• Lack of ability to read at fourth-grade level is worse than the state
• Low wages, lack of employment, and housing not affordable

Problems due to crime and violence include:

• Homicide rates are worse than the state
• School suspension/expulsion rates are worse than the state
• The Black population homicide rate is much higher than that of other ethnicities
• Unsafe streets and domestic violence rates

Mental Illness Treatment is Available in San Leandro

Although the barriers to mental health treatment are significant, non-profit organizations provide outreach programs and funding to help those in need. Services provided include help to remove mental health barriers and retain employment; delinquency prevention counseling for at-risk youth; and counseling for different age levels.