National Minority Health Awareness Month was in April, bringing awareness to the challenges immigrants and people of color in the U.S. face when seeking access to health care. But what’s less often discussed is mental health support.
Psychologists, researchers, and governmental institutions are increasingly calling attention to the mental health of immigrants, asylum seekers, and refugees, as studies and statistics have shown that they experience extreme stress, consistent vulnerability, and life-long health consequences due to the inability to receive psychological care.
The total number of immigrants to a record high of 46 million, according to recent estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau. In Massachusetts, about 18% of the state’s residents are foreign-born, a group that includes naturalized U.S. citizens, lawful permanent immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers, legal non-immigrants on student or work visas, and persons residing without authorization. But although more than one-sixth of Massachusetts residents, or about 1.2 million people, are foreign-born, psychological trauma of immigrants and their mental health are often overlooked.
Numerous combined factors add up to negatively affect the mental health of undocumented immigrants. A 2021 review of research on the mental health of undocumented immigrants showed that “discrimination, cultural adaptation stress, traumatic events, limited social services and healthcare resources, isolation, exploitation, and fear of immigration law enforcement” have been the greatest difficulties for illegal immigrants. On top of those constant challenges and anxieties, too many people remain in uncertainty, waiting for years for immigration court decisions while searching for job.
“Mental health outcomes, just like those of physical health, are deeply impacted by social determinants and access to care. As a result, communities of color experience enormous and unique barriers to mental health care, including cultural stigma, racial bias, limited English proficiency, and disparities in access to treatment. The (Asian American and Pacific Islander) community has especially faced a growing mental health crisis in recent years, ” says Judy Chu, the Chair Representative of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus (CAPAC), nothing the high suicide rate among Asian youth.
Recent studies by the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health have shown that immigrants and ethnic minorities may be at a higher risk of suicidal thoughts and behavior, as compared with the general population. Factors that increase the risk of these negative thoughts point toward migrants and ethnic minorities experiencing language barriers as non-English speakers, worrying about family back home, and separation from family, while external factors such as the lack of information on the health care system, loss of status, loss of social network, and acculturation were found as possible triggers for suicidal behavior. A study on why Chinese immigrants have suicidal thoughts, published in the World Journal shows that common adaptive stressors and adverse life events seem to be connected to immigrants experiencing mental illness, and negative or suicidal thoughts.
Psychologist Jeannine Cico Barker, who focuses on supporting immigrant and marginalized communities, says providing volunteer psychological services at the border and in detention centers is one example of how psychologists can help this vulnerable population.
But only 3.28% of psychologists identify as Asian, according to the American Psychological Association.
Mental health resources exist and are available locally, such as the Boston Center for Refugee Health and Human Rights (BCRHHR), MGH Center for Immigrant Health, and the BMC Immigrant & Refugee Health Center (IRHC)provide mental health care tailored to the needs of immigrant and refugee patients. But a University of California, Los Angeles study found that the biggest obstacle for Asian communities to access these resources is the lack of awareness of existing services. Many illegal immigrants are either unaware, afraid or unsure of how to seek assistance.