Mental Health Issues in the Latino Communities
Latino communities are at significant risk for mental health problems, including anxiety, depression, suicide attempt, and are less likely to access culturally responsive mental health services. Immigration, cultural identity, poverty, and discrimination create high levels of stress among Latinos. Mental health issues that are undiagnosed or untreated can lead to negative outcomes for Latinos, including negative interactions at school and with authorities, increased disconnection from family and society, and exposure to the criminal justice system. Culture plays an important role in the lives of Latino communities.
Equity Mental Health: Breaking barriers to access mental health treatment & increase community awareness about the Latino populations
Culturally and linguistically appropriate services are respectful of and responsive to diverse consumers' health beliefs, practices, and needs" (Office of Minority Health). By developing Latino cultural competence, the services can be effectively delivered in a sense of respect and responsive to the health beliefs, practices, cultural and linguistic needs of diverse students and families. In that regard, we will discuss barriers and facilitators to community participation and the importance of making referrals that lead to positive engagement for Hispanic and Latino families considering cultural and linguistic characteristics.
Who should attend? This is an intermediate level workshop designed for non-clinicians, case managers, clinical supervisors, health providers, program directors, administrators, and personnel who provide services for Latino communities.
About the speakers:
Inma Iglesias, LICSW, LCSW-C, RPT-S - is a licensed clinical social worker with over 15 years of experience working with children, families, and adults in different multicultural settings. Originally from Spain, she speaks Spanish and English fluently. Inma received her Master’s in Clinical Social Work from the Catholic University of America, Washington, D.C. in 2011 and obtained her Bachelor’s degree in Social Work from the University of Salamanca, Spain, in 1999. Inma is a Registered Play Therapist Supervisor, a certified Parent-Child Interaction Therapist, a certified Child-Parent Psychotherapist, and a Level I Theraplay practitioner. She currently works as a Senior Clinical Manager at a large Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) where she provides oversight to clinical services provided by the Behavioral Health Department within the School-Based Program. Her areas of clinical expertise include trauma, anxiety, OCD, depression, ADHD, home transitions (divorce, loss of a loved one, blended families, and family reunification), and disruptive behavior in children. She has experience working with children from birth to age 12, as well as their parents. She also works with adults providing individual and group psychotherapy. Inma has experience providing immigration evaluations for asylum seekers. She completed the Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) Training in the Medical and Psychological Evaluation and Documentation of Torture and Human Rights Survivors Seeking Asylum. Inma has additional experience providing clinical supervision, training, and consultation. Some of the presentations provided include: Creating a Trauma Informed School Culture, Family Reunification, Impact of Chronic Stress in Children and Parents, Teacher Wellness and Stress Management, and Assessment and Treatment of Clients using Expressive Therapies.
Luis R. Torres-Hostos, PhD - is Founding Dean and Professor of the School of Social Work at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley in Edinburg, TX. He assumed his role on August 1st, 2020 and rapidly integrated into the university, local, and binational communities of the Rio Grande Valley, where he is positioning the School of Social Work to play a key role in promoting health, health equity, and social justice. He is leading a strategic planning effort that will increase the number of faculty and researchers in the School; expand community-engaged research and scholarship in topics impacting the Rio Grande Valley communities; and strengthen educational initiatives like expanding clinical preparation in the master's program, developing additional specializations, creating a bilingual master’s program, and building a doctoral program. Dr. Torres-Hostos’ research focuses on health inequities and social determinants of health with a focus on Hispanic and African American communities. He also works on community engagement initiatives aimed at building community resilience. He is currently leading a team of researchers, community partners, and students in an NIH-funded project titled Community Engagement Strategies for COVID-19 Prevention and Response in Underserved Communities in Hidalgo County, which is part of the Texas CEAL (Community-Engagement Research Alliance Against COVID-19 in Disproportionately Affected Communities) Consortium (see www.TexasCeal.org). Dr. Torres-Hostos’ research and community work have been funded by federal, state, and private entities. He has traveled and worked extensively in Latin America, and has established research collaborations in Mexico, Central America, and Puerto Rico. He serves on the Board of Directors of the American Red Cross South Texas Chapter and is a member of the Rotary Club of Mission. Originally from Puerto Rico, Dr. Torres-Hostos holds a doctorate in clinical psychology from Fordham University in New York City and has over 30 years of clinical, teaching, research, and administrative experience.
Please read the following before registering:
• The National Hispanic and Latino Mental Health Technology Transfer Center use GoToWebinar as our online event system.
• Audio for the event is accessible via the internet. To receive audio, attendees must join the event by using computers equipped with speakers or dial in via telephone.
• After registration, a confirmation email will be generated with instructions for joining the event. To avoid problems with log-in, please use the confirmation email to join the event.