Answered Questions is a monthly resource for the Spanish language Disability Community that fills an information need. This month’s question is: Our neighbor has a mental health disorder and has had crisis in the past. Is there information and resources available that can help us help him before, during, and after a crisis? This edition of Answered Questions includes items that focus on building self-determination and enhancing community living and participation in young people with serious mental illness (SMI); peer supports in mental health; how technology can address global mental health; cultural competence and mental health; information for family and friends of young people experiencing psychosis; information for teens with mental illness; wellness and self-directed recovery tools; and a presentation on discussing mental health with the Latinx/Hispanic community. More about Answered Questions.
Please note: If you or a loved one is currently experiencing a crisis, please call 911. If you or a loved one are thinking about suicide, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800/273-8255.
NIDILRR-Funded Projects:
- The NIDILRR-funded Research and Training Center for Pathways to Positive Futures: Building Self-Determination and Community Living and Participation (RTC Pathways) (in English) (90RT5030) conducts research, training, and dissemination that are focused on building self-determination and enhancing the community living and participation in young people with SMI, particularly those in transition from school to college and the workplace. Resources include a series of online modules (in English) that are designed for professionals who work with transition-aged youth with SMI. RTC Pathways also develops and publishes resources for the field, young adults with SMI, their families, and those who provide support before, during, and after a crisis that include the Focal Point journal (in English); peer-reviewed articles (in English); and Pathways Comics (in English), which are created by and for young adults with SMI and the people that care about them. The Center also provides resources in Spanish for youth in transition with SMI, their families and friends, and professionals. The Pathways RTC offers a guide, Important information for parents and friends of young people experiencing psychosis: Lessons learned from young adult graduates of EASA, that offers basic information about psychosis and tips for supporting a young person that is experiencing psychosis, including ways to improve communication, promote recovery, and take care of oneself and family.
- The NIDILRR-funded Learning and Working During the Transition to Adulthood Rehabilitation Research and Training Center (L&W RRTC) (in English) (90RTEM0005) develops and shares new knowledge about core concepts, interventions, and policies to greatly improve the transition to employment for youth and young adults with SMI. This RRTC’s activities are deeply embedded in the participatory involvement with youth and young adults with SMI, their families, service providers, and policy experts and provides resources (in English), the Comeback TV Series (in English), webinars and multimedia (in English), and various publications in English, Spanish, and Vietnamese to help youth and young adults with SMI during and after their transition into adulthood before and after a crisis.
- The NIDILRR-funded Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Integrated Health Care and Self-Directed Recovery (in English) (90RT5038) provides wellness and self-directed recovery tools for people with mental health disorders. The wellness tools (in English) including curriculums on nutrition and exercise for wellness and recovery; a wellness activities manual; a workbook that helps people with mental health disorders assess their strengths in wellness, set goals, and access the needed support to achieve their goals; and more. The self-directed recovery tools (in English) include a curriculum on creating financial wellness; a workbook on the structured life planning process; a booklet on raising difficult issues with service providers; a guidebook on cultural competency in peer-run and community mental health programs; and a booklet on seeking supported employment.
From the NARIC Collection:
- Recent analyses have suggested that a greater engagement with peer specialist services is associated with fewer psychiatric symptoms. The article, Predicting engagement with mental health peer specialist services (in English), discusses a study that assessed the predictors of engagement of people with SMI with peer specialist services. Researchers found that greater hope, psychiatric symptoms, and service utilization predicted greater peer specialist engagement. The results of this study suggest subpopulations of people with SMI with whom peer specialists would be most likely to engage successfully.
Research In Focus:
- The article, Informants Share Insights on Peer Supports for Parents with Serious Mental illnesses, discusses a study by researchers at the NIDILRR-funded project Parents Empowering Parents: National Research Center for Parents with Disabilities and Their Families (90DPGE0001) where a diverse group of people familiar with peer supports to describe how peer support might specifically benefit parents with serious mental illnesses. The authors noted that peer specialists can fill some of the existing service gaps for parents with SMI. However, supporting parents with SMI may be emotionally challenging for peer specialists and the authors suggest additional training and organizational supports for peer specialists serving parents with SMI.
Technology:
- The low numbers of mental health professionals, along with the stigma associated with mental illness and the absence of integrated interventions can affect recuperation. The article, Technology to address global mental health: A World Bank report, discusses an interesting report on harnessing technology to address the global mental health crisis and that explores technologies to help treat a mental illness or to prevent suicide. The article includes examples of technology that can improve access to high quality treatments, such as telehealth and digital learning platforms. The authors also discuss how including technology in the treatment of mental illnesses could be key to face the challenge of global mental health issues.
Cultural Competence:
- The factsheet, Cultural competence in mental health (in English), from the NIDILRR-funded Temple University Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Community Living and Participation of Individuals with Psychiatric Disabilities (TU Collaborative) (in English), discusses concepts of cultural competence, diversity, and disparities in healthcare based on factors such as race, language, or sexual orientation. The factsheet provides suggestions on how service providers can incorporate cultural competency standards into their practice. It also places emphasis on how culture plays an important role in how people with mental illnesses express themselves, cope with stress, and meet life’s challenges.
Resources:
- The article, Search for low-cost mental health care from TeensHealth (in English), discusses what adolescents with mental health disorders can do if they are searching for mental health professionals or centers and are worried about the cost.
- The booklet, Sharing Hope: No Health Without Mental Health from the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) (in English), provides mental health information in English and Spanish in a sensitive manner through the use of stories and quotes. The booklet provides resources on how to find more information, how to seek help, types of treatments, and how to be supportive of a loved one in crisis.
Tools:
- This toolkit, Jump-starting community living and participation: A toolkit for promoting inclusion in community living (in English), from the TU Collaborative (in English), is designed to help local behavioral health programs to begin putting into place some of the policies, programs, and practices that support people with mental illnesses in participating more fully in the activities of everyday community life. The toolkit also offers suggestions that can be undertaken to make community living and participation a reality.
Courses and Programs:
- The program, Compartiendo Esperanza: Speaking with Latinos About Mental Health (in English) from NAMI, is a 90-minute bilingual presentation that helps to increase mental health awareness in Latinx/Hispanic communities by addressing a number of important topics, including the signs and symptoms of several disorders, where to find supports and services, and how to talk about mental health and decrease stigma.
Further Research:
REHABDATA:
PubMed:
International:
About Answered Questions
Each month, we look through the searches on our blog and through the information requests made by our patrons who speak Spanish and pick a topic that fills the largest need. Each resource mentioned above is associated with this month’s information need. We search the various Spanish language news sources and feeds throughout the month to bring you these articles. With the exception of the NIDILRR Projects, From the NARIC Collection, and Further Investigation, all the linked articles and resources are in Spanish – any that are in English will be clearly marked.
Collection Spotlight from the National Rehabilitation Information Center 