Disparities & Cultural Competency

Cultural Competence is a continuous learning process that builds knowledge, awareness, skills and capacity to identify, understand and respect the unique beliefs, values, customs, languages, abilities and traditions of all Ohioans in order to develop policies to promote effective programs and services.

Cultural Competence is a process necessary to support recovery and to deliver consumer-driven, person-centered mental health services. ODMH considers cultural competence when developing statewide policies, programs and practices because services are most effective when delivered in a culturally competent way. The Department considers race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, geography, and faith, and/or disability such as deafness when assessing populations across the state.

ODMH has two approaches to eliminating behavioral health disparities. The first is an internal approach which includes development of appropriate policies and guidelines, each to eliminate barriers to initiatives like the Toll Free Bridge or to improve the provision of services for example in Regional Psychiatric Hospitals. The Department has a program lead who works across divisions to develop these resources. In addition, the Lead supports ODMH cultural competency work by:

• Providing technical assistance to Boards and providers seeking more information or resources about disparities or cultural competence;
• Improving the availability and utilization of data to reduce disparities;
• Providing training opportunities to enhance ODMH staff development;
• Identifying grant opportunities to support ODMH initiatives and community programs;
• Collaborating with ODMH statewide partners to develop a cross-systems approach to eliminating health and behavioral health disparities; and,
• Managing ODMH grants dedicated to reducing behavioral health disparities

The Department's second approach to eliminating behavioral health disparities includes sponsorship of activities such as annual conferences, regional trainings, needs assessments, and research. Specific research studies are often conducted through the Office of Research Evaluation, however, most statewide programs are done in partnership with the Multiethnic Advocates for Cultural Competence(MACC).

• Ohio Department of Mental Health Interpreter Guidelines
• Guidelines for Provision of Culturally Competent Patient-Centered Care

Historical Timeline 1984 – 2000
To learn more about how ODMH's commitment to cultural competence has grown and transformed throughout the years, view our Cultural Competence Historical Timeline.

MACC promotes culturally and linguistically appropriate services in Ohio through an annual cultural competence conference, cultural competence training and the promotion of cultural competence resources. By conducting a thorough needs assessment, MACC has identified how Ohio's various cultural groups perceive and respond to mental illness and has identified the special needs of various groups. Using this information, MACC develops reports to share with local mental health boards and agencies with the goal of enhancing their ability to deliver culturally and linguistically appropriate services. For more information, visit the MACC Website.

The Ohio Department of Mental Health (ODMH), in partnership with the Ohio Department of Alcohol and Drug Addiction Services, is sponsoring development of a state behavioral health plan to eliminate disparities. This effort is being led by the Multiethnic Advocates for Cultural Competence (MACC). Other participating stakeholders include the Ohio County Behavioral Health Authorities; Ohio Department of Health and Job and Family Services; Ohio Asian American Health Coalition; Children's Defense Fund; Ohio Commission on Minority Health and Latino/Hispanic Affairs; and the Red Bird Center. The focus of this dynamic group will be to promote system integration of mental health and alcohol and drug addiction services.

The project builds on the behavioral health transformation work that led to the Ohio cultural competence definition. Greg Moody, Director of the Office Health Transformation, met with the advisory committee to discuss the vision of Ohio health transformation, and talked about how cultural competence can be included in the vision. The primary goal of the plan is to provide behavioral health system stakeholders with key strategies to reduce disparities. The plan will provide ODMH, ODADAS, system Boards and providers with the tools to:

• Increase awareness of the significance of behavioral health disparities, their impact on communities, and the actions necessary to improve behavioral health outcomes;
• Strengthen and broaden leadership for addressing behavioral health disparities;
• Improve cultural and linguistic competency and the diversity of the workforce; and
• Improve the coordination, utilization, and diffusion of research and evaluation outcomes.

Cultural Social Interaction (CSI) Study Circles is dedicated to helping staff experience personal growth and development to better understand how cultural diversity can affect recovery and resiliency and to address systemic disparities and service inequity impacting the delivery of quality mental health services and health outcomes. The dialogue process of the Study Circles was chosen as a way to address diversity and racial equity issues that often emerge when examining disparities and service inequities. The CSI Study Circles program focuses on moving from dialogue into action and change and involves the participation of all ODMH staff to ensure that each service area has the opportunity to address the impact of diversity and racial equity in their work.

• Cultural Competence Disparities Review: SFY 2010-2011 Community Plan
• Minority Community Recruitment Initiative: African American Consumer and Family Member Engagement in the Mental Health System

• Think Outside Stigma English
• Think Outside Stigma Spanish
• Mental Health Guide Somali
• Mental Health Guide Spanish
• Clients Rights Regional Psychiatric Hospitals English
• Clients Rights Regional Psychiatric Hospitals Somali
• Clients Rights Regional Psychiatric Hospitals Spanish
• Grievance Process in Ohio English
• Grievance Process in Ohio Somali
• Grievance Process in Ohio Spanish
• 2007-2008 TVBH Recovery Management Journal English
• 2007-2008 TVBH Recovery Management Journal Arabic
• 2007-2008 TVBH Recovery Management Journal Russian
• 2007-2008 TVBH Recovery Management Journal Vietnamese

SAMHSA's Office of Behavioral Health Equity (OBHE) coordinates agency efforts to reduce behavioral health disparities for diverse populations. OBHE seeks to impact SAMHSA policy and initiatives by:

• Creating a more strategic focus on racial; ethnic; and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) populations in SAMHSA investments
• Using a data-informed quality improvement approach to address racial and ethnic disparities in SAMHSA programs
• Building on the Affordable Care Act's (ACA's) attention to health disparities to influence how SAMHSA does its work, including grant-making operations and policy development

1. The Data Strategy ensures that SAMHSA surveillance and performance data guide program planning to address behavioral health disparities.
2. The Communication Strategy promotes awareness and access to information about behavioral health disparities.
3. The Policy Strategy addresses relevant disparity issues and behavioral health equity by targeting these issues in SAMHSA policy and funding initiatives.
4. The Quality Practice and Workforce Development Strategy creates and supports innovative, cost effective trainings that contribute to a well-trained, high quality, diverse workforce.
5. The Customer Service/Technical Assistance Strategy establishes OBHE as a trusted broker of disparity-related information and experts.

The Office of Minority Health (OMH) was created in 1986 and is one of the most significant outcomes of the 1985 Secretary's Task Force Report on Black and Minority Health. The Office is dedicated to improving the health of racial and ethnic minority populations through the development of health policies and programs that will help eliminate health disparities.
Poor health outcomes for African Americans, Hispanic Americans, American Indians and Alaska Natives, Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders are apparent when comparing their health indicators against those of the rest of the U.S. population. These populations experience higher rates of illness and death from health conditions such as heart disease, stroke, specific cancers, diabetes, HIV/AIDS, asthma, hepatitis B, and overweight and obesity. OMH's primary responsibility is to improve health and healthcare outcomes for racial and ethnic minority communities by developing or advancing policies, programs, and practices that address health, social, economic, environmental and other factors which impact health.
OMH programs address disease prevention, health promotion, risk reduction, healthier lifestyle choices, use of health care services, and barriers to health care. The Office also:

1. Promotes the collection of health data by racial, ethnic, and primary language categories and strengthening infrastructures for data collection, reporting, and sharing;
2. Works to increase awareness of the major health problems of racial and ethnic minorities and factors that influence health;
3. Establishes and strengthens networks, coalitions, and partnerships to identify and solve health problems;
4. Develops and promotes policies, programs, and practices to eliminate health disparities and achieve health equity;
5. Fosters research, demonstrations, scientific investigations, and evaluations aimed at improving health;
6. Funds demonstration programs that can inform health policy and the effectiveness of strategies for improving health.

http://www.samhsa.gov/grants/

http://www.nimh.nih.gov/research-funding/grants/opportunities-announcements/index.shtml

http://www.hhs.gov/grants/

http://grants.nih.gov/grants/oer.htm

http://www.rwjf.org/