Funding to provide mental health support for immigrants is coming to the Catholic Multicultural Center (CMC) after it received a multi-year grant.
Programs will provide informed care to address short- and long-term mental health needs of immigrants and refugees in Dane County. The project is grant-funded through 2027 by the Wisconsin Partnership Program at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health to provide first-level mental health support.
The project aims to use four key components. It will provide first-level mental health support in the form of immigrant-led peer support groups, conduct peer-led research on barriers to access mental health, educate the community on the mental health needs of immigrants and open career pathways in mental health-related fields.
“Many immigrants have made the journey to the United States because their lives were threatened in their countries of origin. This means that they may have experienced trauma before coming here and during their immigration process,” said CMC associate director Becca Schwartz in a press release announcing the grant. ”We are offering support that is language-specific and culturally responsive, to meet people where they’re at, which we hope will give them what they need to heal as they build their lives here.”
The initiative aims to make mental health services more accessible to immigrants. A heightened focus in the project is on Latinos, Afghanis, Swahilis and Arabs. In its effort to create more culturally informed mental health care, the CMC will hire peer leaders from various communities represented in the project.
Peer leaders will receive training to offer evidence-based mental health and administer a psychosocial support group curriculum. The curriculum will look at common mental health conditions especially common with groups who experienced trauma during immigration.
“Any refugee and many other immigrants, if they’re seeking asylum here, they’ve had to flee their country of origin,” Schwartz said. “They’ve experienced trauma, and as part of that, maybe undergoing stress in their daily lives, potentially feeling isolated and feeling depressed.”
Trauma-induced mental health issues can arise in many forms, Schwartz said. She points to common issues that could be overlooked and not readily attributed to the trauma of immigration like sleep trouble and physical manifestations of stress.
In addition to peer support groups, CMC is partnered with Madison College to open career pathways for peer leaders and members. Small scholarships are available for those involved in the groups who wish to seek a career path in mental health areas such as psychology, social work and peer support specialists.
The CMC plans to have its first immigrant-led mental health support groups ready by June later this year.
Interested applicants can apply on the CMC’s page for mental health support.
