Finding a mental health provider in rural areas is hard but Minnesota researchers said it is much harder for communities of color in small towns and a new report laid out specific obstacles to care and solutions showing hope.
The Center for Rural Policy and Development said rural communities across the state are becoming more diverse but the center's latest report showed there is still little awareness about the mental health needs of people of color in these areas. Lack of insurance, stigma, and trust issues are factors complicating the issue.
Marnie Werner, vice president of research and operations at the center, said refugee and immigrant populations also tend to be isolated from their small-town neighbors.
"Information doesn't travel instantly in rural areas," Werner said. "If you have a group of people who aren't in constant communication with everybody else, they may not know about or learn about things as quickly as the general population."
It means some people may not know about a new mental health provider in town. Recommendations in the report include identifying mentors who can work with students of color, in hopes they will eventually take on mental health care roles in their communities or become school social workers. The report also cited a move by the state Legislature last year to adopt licensure reforms. Backers said it could open more career pathways in the mental health field.
No matter the solution, Werner stressed minority populations in small towns need to have agency in making mental health care culturally appropriate.
"When a group looks at something that the larger population is saying, 'Here, do this,' and they're like, 'Why? I don't understand this, or this doesn't fit with my culture or my understanding of the world, or anything,'" Werner outlined. "I think that's the big thing, is to give groups the tools and then get out of the way."
For example, the report pointed to the Red Lake Nation, where the Native American band reinvented its social services department using its own words, values and beliefs.
