NPR’s ‘Morning Edition’ Examines Access to Treatment for Depression Among Latino Immigrants

NPR's "Morning Edition" June 25 examined the barriers some Latino immigrants in the United States face in receiving treatment for depression. The segment profiles Elias Lorensana, a man from Mexico who for years could not find a therapist who spoke Spanish to treat his depression, and examines cultural differences in the approach to mental illness as illustrated by Lorensana's experience (Field, "Morning Edition," NPR, 6/25). According to a supplement to the 1999 "Surgeon General's Report on Mental Health," disparities in mental health care for minorities can be related to language differences, racism and discrimination, and to the stigma that some cultures ascribe to mental illness (Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, 8/27/01). The report also found that one in 20 Latino immigrants contact a mental health provider, according to NPR. The segment includes comments from Suzanna Jimenez Schlesinger, a Mexican-born psychotherapist practicing in the United States, and Raul Castro, a therapist who works at Association House, a community clinic that provides mental health services in Spanish to Latinos living at the poverty level ("Morning Edition," NPR, 6/25).

The full segment is available online in RealPlayer.