Efforts increase to bring mental health services to Hispanics

Factors such as lack of access to care, lack of awareness concerning mental illness, and a fear of stigma correlated  to diagnosis are factors that may explain why Hispanics are less likely to seek mental health services compared to non-Hispanic whites.

Many initiatives in research offer programs to reach Hispanics, and other minority populations however are not being used. As part of the Improving Access to Mental Health in Primary Care program, funded by NIHR, researchers investigated why minorities were less likely than others to explore available mental health services.

“Many people with mental health problems don’t get the help and support they need. We wanted to understand why this was and explore different ways to address this,” said in a statement Professor Chris Dowrick, from the Institute of Psychology, Health and Society in Liverpool, who led the research.

“Crucially, we found that there is a wealth of mental health expertise and knowledge in communities but it needs to be better nurtured and better coordinated.”

Early recognition of patients in general practice clinics can help overall treatment, this can only be done so through the education of staff members so mental health issues are recognized in patients and treated properly .

“Overall, our study found that a range of interventions across different providers resulted in greater awareness and use of mental health services by underserved groups,” stated Dowrick. “Further research is needed to test these results.”

With the Hispanic population in the United States growing and expected to triple by the year 2050, the importance of solutions produced by the studies are more and more urgent.

“Community education efforts are important to reduce stigma and the fear of being considered ‘crazy’ by seeking mental health care,” Robin L. Shallcross, Ph.D., Associate Professor and Licensed Psychologist at the Pacific University School of Professional Psychology, told Saludify.

“We would like to see a time when all members of our communities, regardless of where they originate from or live now, can come forth to ask for help out of courage and strength…not fear or shame.”