October is National Depression Awareness and Education month. The National Institute of Mental Health estimates that each year, approximately 20 million people over age 18 suffer from depression. Depression is a serious condition that can affect persons of all genders, ages, and backgrounds and lead to substantial impairments that disrupt an individual’s life. The condition often coexists with other serious medical illnesses (e.g., heart disease, stroke, cancer, HIV/AIDS, diabetes). Depression is treatable.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that 4% of all Latinos in the U.S. suffer from depression at least once in their lifetime; however, Latinos have been found to underuse mental health services in comparison to their non-Hispanic counterparts. There are many reasons for this, including poverty, lack of access to health care services, language barriers, and cultural stigmas associated with mental disorders.
To address this need, NCLR and five of its affiliated community-based organizations developed the award-winning project, De Blanco y Negro a Colores: Entendiendo la Depresión (From Black and White to Color: Understanding Depression). The project includes culturally and linguistically appropriate education materials that have been used by promotores de salud (lay health educators) to conduct community health interventions. Furthermore, NCLR has actively engaged in discussions with academics, researchers, policymakers, and community leaders to better address the barriers that Latinos face in accessing mental health services. These efforts have resulted in publications that include Critical Disparities in Latino Mental Health: Transforming Research into Action and Latino Mental Health in the United States: A Community-Based Approach.
Additional information regarding depression and other mental illness is available at the National Alliance on Mental Illness.