B. Inventory of Available Health Services

Table 5.5 lists an inventory of available health sources in Lompoc by type of providers. The most notable lack of services for Lompoc is in mental health and alcohol and drug recovery inpatient facilities. Mental health and alcohol and drug treatment services are an important component to the overall healthcare delivery system of any community. According to a report published by the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Mental Health in the United States, 1996, mental health services are not well aligned in terms of access to all communities. Service availability generally declines as one goes from major metropolitan areas to less urbanized non-metropolitan areas to rural areas. In addition, their findings reported that rural areas lack inpatient facilities and, therefore, residents of these communities must travel for such care. The travel patterns associated with these inpatient services tends to increase the length of stay. As cited in the study, "this could occur because, compared to other facilities, the staff of mental hospitals may be less willing to discharge patients who live a long distance from the hospital, particularly if a likelihood exists that the patient may have an acute psychiatric episode shortly after discharge." Such provider decisions could increase the cost of healthcare for these types of services.

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