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October 12, 2022
Contact: Elizabeth Goodsitt/Jennifer Miller 608-266-1683
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Office of Children's Mental Health Focuses on Hispanic Mental Health
In recognition of Hispanic Heritage Month, Office of Children?s Mental Health Director Linda Hall today announces the publication of a new fact sheet, Hispanic Mental Health, and what our families, schools, providers, and communities can do to make a difference.
Highlights
The data on Hispanic youth and their access to mental health care show that:
- 52% of Hispanic young adults ages 18-24 in Wisconsin experience poor mental health, which is higher than the national average of 44%.
- 51% of Hispanic youth in Wisconsin live in low-income families.
- Wisconsin Hispanic youth ages 14-24 are less likely to be insured than their counterparts from other racial/ethnic groups.
- The lack of insurance coverage and financial ability to pay for services presents a huge barrier to receiving care for mental health concerns which is compounded by some parents? hesitancy to seek mental health care and the lack of Hispanic and bilingual mental health professionals.
What We Can Do
Families
- Ask children how they feel and discuss their emotional well-being.
- Model openness by identifying and discussing your own feelings, emotions, and mental health.
- Learn how mental health affects a child?s overall health and their ability to succeed.
Schools
- Foster a positive school culture to ensure that students are connected to at least one adult in the school.
- Support the physical health of students (movement, nutritious school meals, later start times) and teach the connection to mental health.
- Recruit staff who are Hispanic and bilingual.?
Providers
- Engage in cultural competency training. Understand the strengths of Hispanic families.
- Understand the role of familismo and storytelling (cuento) in Hispanic patients.
- Understand the effects of generational trauma, poverty, and discrimination on mental health.
Communities
- Cultivate community resources to support mental health care that include faith, arts, family, and that celebrate Hispanic culture.?
- Create opportunities for Hispanic youth to get involved with their community and build positive relationships with safe, supportive adults (volunteering, working, mentoring) which promotes emotional well-being.
See the complete fact sheet.?
See the fact sheet in Spanish.
See previous fact sheets
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