Engagement of Latino Mental Health: Voices from Professionals in the Minnesota Community

There is a concerning number of Latino individuals that underutilize mental health services. Research explains that reasons for not accessing mental health resources are due to: lack of information on mental health, socioeconomic factors, cultural factors, lack of representation, fear, and stigmatization. The purpose of this study was to define some of the challenges that Latinos face in accessing mental health services and to determine what type of treatment models are most effective when working with Latino clients. Additionally, the study is especially interested in how someone might work with a client who may have an alternative view of diagnosis, such as a supernatural event or brujería, and how therapists are able to work with clients on this belief. By conducting a qualitative study by doing interviews (N=5), this study was able to gather answers to those questions. Interviews were analyzed and coded to generate themes; twenty-one themes were identified, but eight of them were determined the strongest. These themes include 1) Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) or Trauma-Focused-CBT (TF-CBT) as the most effective model when working with Latino clients, 2) asking client’s perception of the situation, 3) not denying/negating client’s perceptions/views 4) understanding client’s way of thinking, 5) helping family support client, 6) challenges in accessing mental health and services, 7) resiliency of clients, and 8) admiration of client’s resiliency. Social work implications and recommendations for future research are also discussed