Minority Mental Health Awareness Month
July was proclaimed as Minority Mental Health Awareness Month in 2008 to improve access to mental health treatment, raise public awareness, and destigmatize mental illness in minority communities.
Mental health conditions can affect anyone, regardless of background, race, gender, or identity. However, these factors can create more barriers to accessing mental health treatment and ultimately lower the quality of care. Over the last year, the effects of COVID-19 and racial trauma have had a significant impact on mental health, particularly among minority communities who already face disparities in health care and have difficulty finding a culturally competent provider who can effectively address their needs.
In Philadelphia, many organizations focus on minimizing the barriers that prevent minority communities from accessing the proper support that enables them to live healthy, fulfilling lives. We’re highlighting some organizations that are on a mission to close ethnic and cultural gaps in mental health by providing services and resources for underrepresented communities, raising awareness and destigmatizing mental illness, and connecting those who feel alone in their struggles.
Members of Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual disAbility Services
Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual disAbility Services
DBHIDS has been working on solutions to closing the treatment gap and addressing shortcomings of mental health treatment among minority groups. The disproportionate impact of the COVID pandemic on these groups proves that equitable access to mental health care is vitally important. In response to these needs, DBHIDS has offered free online screenings, evaluations, and mental health services to all residents in need via mindPHLtogether.com. Philadelphians can also visit DBHIDS.org/boost for resources in English, Spanish and traditional Chinese.
National Alliance on Mental Illness: NAMI Philadelphia
The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) is devoted to building better lives for the millions of Americans affected by mental illness. NAMI offers education programs, advocates to shape national public policy for people with mental illness, provides free referrals and support through helplines, and successfully fights stigma through public awareness events and activities. NAMI Philadelphia connects people to services that aid and assist in recovery and community integration. Each week, they host a peer-led POC Support Group to provide a safe space for discussion about the frustration, stigma, and challenges of being a person of color diagnosed with a mental illness.
Black Men Heal’s goal is to minimize the three barriers preventing Black men from accessing mental health treatment: remove the stigma so Black men feel safe being vulnerable and going against the perceived traditional masculinity ideals, match clients with providers who can identify with their unique cultural stressors, and match clients with providers that meet their financial needs. As demand for services reached an all time high in the last year, they’ve added more therapists to their team and expanded their offerings to include a weekly virtual support group, opportunities for free therapy sessions, a private Facebook group for men to stay connected, and more.
Members of the Chinese Immigrant Family Wellness Initiative
Chinese Immigrant Family Wellness Initiative
In 2020, Philadelphia Chinatown Development Corporation partnered with Hall-Mercer Community Behavioral Health Center of Pennsylvania Hospital to launch the Chinese Immigrant Family Wellness Initiative. This wellness program cultivates a culture of care by introducing mental and emotional health as a key component of community development. CIFWI offers wellness workshops for parents and youth, racial healing circles, support groups in Chinese languages, and youth leadership programs to raise awareness of mental health issues.
Founded by two marriage and family therapists in the Philadelphia area, Black Brain Campaign is on a mission to eradicate the stigma of mental health and provide proper mental health treatment to the Black community. They support the community by providing free therapy to high school students, assisting Black clinicians in completing licensing requirements, and advocating for mental health equality through education and resources.
Black Women's Health Alliance of Philadelphia
PBWHA’s mission is to improve health care accessibility and reduce health disparities for women of color and their families through advocacy, education, and support services. They support their community by connecting people to resources, providing programs and workshops, conducting research and focus groups, and planning conferences.
This organization aims to provide racially concordant care to members of the Black community. They create a safe and welcoming space for healing for Black people affected by the pandemic and racial trauma along with unique individual stressors and life transitions. In addition to providing mental health services, Oshun Family Center has raised over $100,000 to provide free therapy for those experiencing emotional distress and racial trauma, advocates to reduce Black maternal mortality, and provides support services to empower communities throughout the African Diaspora.
