Using Needs Assessments to Target Culturally-Relevant Stigma Reduction: A Statewide Evaluation

Background: Stigma is a critical barrier to treatment and recovery of persons with mental health conditions. As a part of California's voter-approved Mental Health Services Act, one project partnered with existing grassroots efforts to inform best practices in culturally-relevant stigma reduction.  This presentation describes findings and actions resulting from Needs Assessments conducted by this statewide project to reduce stigma in culturally-diverse groups.

Methods:  Programs providing culturally-relevant stigma reduction were identified by 5 regional California project coordinators.  Once confirmed by research and project staff as providing culturally-specific programming, needs assessments were conducted and analyzed for themes.

Results: Eleven community partners in six counties completed Needs Assessments, representing communities of African American (immigrant and heritage), Asian American (Cambodian, Chinese, Hmong, and Vietnamese), Native American, and Latino (Mayan and general). Findings were categorized into themes: Empowerment of participants/attendees, Visibility in the greater community; Trainings in a train-the-trainer model; Program evaluation; Financial assistance; Culturally-specific research findings; Stigma education; Networking with similar agencies; Improving outreach; Language-specific materials.  Examples of each need category will be presented. Certain groups identified more tailored requests; for instance, an African American community organization requested research findings that positively portrayed outcomes in their cultural group.  Ways needs were addressed will be presented; for example, establishing an online registry for programs to increase visibility and connect with other culturally-relevant programs statewide.

Implications: Existing grassroots efforts can inform best practices in culturally-relevant stigma reduction. Lack of resources and communication between small local organizations are barriers to sharing ideas and effective practices.