Gays see doctors more often: StatsCan
Meagan Fitzpatrick, Canwest News Service Published: Thursday, March 20, 2008
National Post
http://www.nationalpost.com/opinion/columnists/Story.html?id=386932

OTTAWA - A new study says the use of the health care system in Canada -- and mental health services in particular -- differs by sexual orientation.
A report published yesterday by Statistics Canada sought to answer whether sexual identity had anything to do with having a regular doctor, consulting health care providers, taking preventive screening tests and having any unmet medical needs.

It found that gay men were much more likely than heterosexual men to have consulted a doctor or medical specialist in the year prior to the survey.

Among women, lesbians were less likely than heterosexual women to have seen a family doctor in the year prior to the survey or to have undergone a pap test in the three previous years.

The study also determined that gay men, lesbians, bisexual men and women were more likely to access mental health services than heterosexuals. They had more frequent contact with counsellors, social workers and psychologists and were more likely to report attending self-help groups.

"It might be more acceptable to use those services in those populations, but our data didn't speak to the reasons," said the study's author, Michael Tjepkema.

Relatively large proportions of bisexuals reported mental health problems, the study noted. Bisexual men were more than twice as likely as heterosexual men to perceive their mental health as fair or poor, and for bisexual women the proportion reporting fair or poor mental health was three times that of heterosexual women, the findings showed.

Cherie MacLeod, executive director of PFLAGCanada, a support and education organization, was not surprised by the findings on mental health.

"It is well known that there's increased depression in the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community because of dealing with widespread societal homophobia and transphobia," she said. "The fact that our community is looking to obtain these services is not surprising at all."