APA Foundation Releases Mental Health Guide for Faith Leaders in Spanish
WASHINGTON, D.C. – This Hispanic Heritage Month, the American Psychiatric Association Foundation has released a Spanish-language translation of its resource guide, Mental Health: A Guide for Faith Leaders (Salud Mental: Una Guía Para Líderes Religiosos). The resource guide provides faith leaders with the insights and tools to understand mental health concerns and support congregants with mental health challenges.
According to a 2022 research study published in Psychiatric Services, the Hispanic population in the U.S. grew by over 4% between 2014 and 2019, but during the same time period, the proportion of facilities in the U.S. offering mental health treatment in Spanish decreased by over 17%. Recognizing this disparity, the APA Foundation seeks to counteract the trend by making more of their resources available in Spanish.
“Over 13% of the U.S. population speaks Spanish at home, and that number is growing rapidly,” said Rawle Andrews, Jr., Esq., Executive Director of the American Psychiatric Association Foundation. “By making our resources available in Spanish, we’re reaching a large yet frequently overlooked group that is often especially vulnerable to mental health conditions. Language barriers are a significant obstacle in accessing mental health care, and this translated guide is just one way we’re working to breaking down that barrier.”
The guide, in its second edition, adapts the APA Foundation’s Notice. Talk. Act.® framework for a faith community setting and offers advice to faith leaders on caring for themselves to avoid compassion fatigue, as well as other tools and resources.
The APA Foundation has convened experts on the role of faith and mental health through its Mental Health & Faith Community Partnership for nearly a decade. This partnership brings psychiatrists and other mental health professionals together with leaders from a diverse range of faith traditions to create dialogue, which informs the development of educational resources and training to both disciplines.
“Many of us rely on our faith communities for support in times of mental and emotional difficulty, whether we are struggling ourselves or we are supporting a loved one with a mental health condition,” said Marketa M. Wills, M.D., M.B.A., CEO and Medical Director of the APA, and Board Chair of the APAF. “When a faith leader supports and encourages conversations around mental health, it makes a difference to that community, and as psychiatrists we welcome that approach.”
Visit apaf.org/faith to download Mental Health: A Guide for Faith Leaders in Spanish, and visit lasaludmental.org to access other APA mental health information and resources in Spanish.