Assessing the behavioral health needs of Latinos and Brazilians in a Massachussetts community

Inequities in access, cost and quality of health care continue to exist for persons of diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds, regardless of income and health status. Immigrants and refugees confront multiple barriers in accessing and utilizing health care services which place them at higher risk for mental health and substance abuse disorders. In response to these issues, the MetroWest Mental Health/Substance Abuse Task Force, a collaborative of providers, consumers and state agencies in Framingham, Massachusetts, partnered with the Central Massachusetts Area Health Education Center and the School of Psychology at Clark University to study behavioral health disparities in the local Brazilian and Latino communities. The Framingham Mental Health and Substance Abuse Health Disparities Project was designed to engage Brazilians and Latinos in a meaningful assessment of their service needs and to identify barriers to treatment-seeking that prevent them from accessing services. 11 Brazilian and Latino community members were recruited and trained to conduct the needs assessment. A total of 249 face-to-face interviews were conducted with 125 Brazilians, 49 Puerto Ricans and 75 immigrant Latinos. Participants reported high rates of experiences with behavioral health related problems (84% of Puerto Ricans, 61% of immigrant Latinos and 69% of Brazilians) with only 63% of Puerto Ricans, 38% of immigrant Latinos and 28% of Brazilians seeking help. A number of attitudinal and systemic barriers to treatment-seeking were identified. We will discuss community-based interventions (e.g., behavioral health educational programs) and local provider-based strategies (e.g., integration of behavioral health and primary care services) to improve access.