EVENTS

Mental Health Interpreter Project 

Joint Project Between The National Latino Behavioral Health Association (NLBHA) and The National Asian American Pacific Islander Mental Health Association (NAAPIMHA)

In 2000, more than one-quarter of the population in seven U.S. states spoke a language other than English at home. One in five Californians (6-7 million) are designated as Limited English Proficient (LEP). Texas had the second largest number of non-English language speakers (6.0 million), followed by New York (5.0 million), Florida (3.0 million), Arizona (1.2 million), and Massachusetts (1.1 million). (Census 2000)

The disparities in quality care for communities of color has been highlighted in the President’s New Freedom Commission on Mental Health, the Surgeon General’s Report on Culture Race and Ethnicity and the Institute of Medicine’s Report Unequal Treatment, Confronting Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Health Care. For persons who do not speak English or have limited English proficiency (LEP), the likelihood of receiving quality care is even less.

In many professions, effective communication is essential for a successful provider-consumer interaction. In the mental heath system, overcoming language and cultural barriers between the client and the clinician is not an easy task. In our current culturally diverse population, with a dramatic increase in immigrants and refugees whose primary language is not English, it is next to impossible to staff an organization competent in so many languages and dialects. If we assume that language and cultural match can bring more beneficial effects to treatment outcome, we need to have many more bilingual and bicultural mental health professionals. The need for culturally competent mental health services far exceeds the available number of bilingual and bicultural mental health professionals. Therefore, the use of trained mental health interpreters is vital to bridge the language and cultural gap between Limited English Proficient clients and mental health practitioners.

Click for more information [PDF, 43KB]

NLBHA Reviews Programs Providing Effective Culturally Competent Services to Latino Families

Through a contract with the Annie E. Casey Foundation, NLBHA has identified several community-based programs that are effectively engaging and involving Latino families in treatment and services. While limited resources prevented us from following up on all programs that came to our attention, several excellent programs were extensively interviewed to examine elements of their programs that make them successful in meeting the needs of their communities. Ten programs were highlighted in the Casey Report, "Providing Culturally Appropriate Services in Latino Communities". More information on individual programs will be described in the future. We are continuing to focus on programs that are both culturally and linguistically competent and effective in their work in our communities and encourage you to bring these programs to our attention for follow-up.