Nashua Telegraph Profiles Mental Health Advocate Working To Bridge Gap for Local Latinos

The Nashua Telegraph on Aug. 20 profiles Aida Cases, coordinator of the Nashua N.H., Latino Mental Health Program, who as a "cultural broker," educates the local Latino community about mental health. Funded by a grant from the Endowment for Health to the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill New Hampshire, in alliance with the New Hampshire Minority Health Coalition, Cases teaches about different types of mental illness, symptoms and treatment options. Her job consists of walking around the neighborhoods, distributing information, visiting community centers and health care facilities, in an effort to overcome the "stigmatiz[ation]" of mental illness that is compounded among Latinos because of language barriers and cultural differences. She also escorts patients to their first psychotherapy sessions, refers people to emergency rooms if necessary and offers translation services for non-English speakers. In addition, Cases provides "cultural competency training" to health care providers and says it is "critical" to overcome cultural differences that can affect the quality of care. For example, she says that many Latino and Hispanic people will give a physician an affirmative answer to a question even when they do not understand or the question is unclear, the Telegraph reports. Debra Sosin, director of the youth services program at Community Council, said that Cases is "a bridge to the Hispanic-Latino community, making connections, helping people feel more comfortable with mental health." Cases said that her job is "not to diagnose" but to "provide the link," adding, "I will get calls from families who are in serious situations, who don't know how to access (services and) medications. I also make referrals for families who have depression and don't understand" (Bernstein, Nashua Telegraph, 8/20).