Cultural Competency in Mental Health: Are We Doing Enough?
Only 5-16% of People of Color with a mental health diagnosis will seek therapy.
Many cultural competency trainings for mental health professionals have taught us the sensitivities necessary to provide people of color the best quality of care. While the force of mental health professionals is becoming more knowledgeable every day, are we doing enough?
The mental health disparities People of Color face will not be reduced to a statistic. It is past time to begin engaging those who face overwhelming symptoms yet underutilize treatment options.
POC experience complex stress and higher instances of trauma responses. Systems of oppression contribute to poor mental health functioning, including anxiety, depression, and suicidal thoughts.
Those most likely to experience mental illness are often the least likely to seek help.
Unlike their white counterparts, POC can face systemic barriers to accessing care like increased stigma, insurance costs, language barriers, finding a therapist of color, transportation, and other geographic challenges.
Black men can encounter severe toxic hypermasculinity and homophobia making them more likely to compartmentalize, bury their feelings, and develop long-lasting mental health concerns.Black women historically witness and endure extreme violence, sexism, and childhood trauma resulting in mental health symptoms from a young age. However, their symptoms are often minimized or dismissed because of their perceived strength and tolerance.
Symptoms of Racial Trauma
- Mirror PTSD
- Re-experiencing distressing events
- Chronic stress
- Hypervigilance
- Avoidance
95-98% of POC will drop out of therapy if there is a cultural mismatch.
Despite the required training, many white mental health professionals still do not understand the unique challenges faced by POC. A lack of knowledge about the importance of community in black culture, misunderstanding of non-western European religions, and the nature of microaggressions are large factors that hinder the care a professional can provide. This can result in invalidation and undermined symptoms, leaving the patient feeling even more unvalued in an already marginalized community.
POC also struggle to find black mental health professionals because there are simply not enough. In 2019, nearly 70% of U.S. social workers and 88% of mental health counselors were white. As we work to promote diverse knowledge and equitable mental health communities, we all must ask: Are we truly culturally competent?
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