Mental Health Collective Receives Blue Cross Blue Shield Grant

The Mental Health Collective (MHC) has received a $ 40,000 program grant from the Blue Cross Blue Shield of MN Foundation to fund Bridges: Cultural Competence, Connection and Well-Being, a program which supports healthy emotional development and school success for children in the immigrant community; assists students and parents who are new to Minneapolis.  The grant will help cllients manage acculturation issues without sacrificing important family, cultural and religious values; and empowers parents to make healthy decisions on behalf of their family and to develop trust with community institutions such as schools, community centers and service agencies.

The Healthy Together: Creating Community with New Americans initiative supports the Mental Health Collective's ongoing efforts to improve the health of the diverse community in which we live and work. Because the schools and neighborhoods where we provide mental health services include a number of new immigrant families, we have actively engaged staff and community members from our agency and from other agencies in discussions about effective ways to identify and address the mental health needs of the immigrant community.  We believe that the health of the community is dependent on the health of its members regardless of their economic circumstances, cultural background, or religious beliefs and hope for a community that views diversity as an asset.

The Mental Health Collective African Aid was established in 2003 to educate African communities about mental health and raise awareness of treatment options and methods; to educate mental health care providers about cultures in the African community; and to help African immigrants and refugees navigate the complex systems of health care and insurance through referral and advocacy efforts.  African Aid works with health care professionals and the immigrant community to promote better understanding and more effective provision of care.  Since its inception, African Aid has established alliances with: Anoka Regional Treatment Center to provide ongoing education and training to staff and to assist African immigrants who are receiving treatment there; with the YWCA to create a culturally appropriate fitness program for African Muslim women so that isolation and depression can be reduced and connection and belonging in the community increased; with The Mental Health Collective to educate immigrant and refugee students in Minneapolis schools; and with numerous organizations to provide culturally sensitive training to their staff.  They are also developing outreach and educational materials in multiple African languages, offering one-on-one health care advocacy to connect Africans with the services they need, and helping to develop more effective interpretation and translation services.

Mental Health Collective has partnered with African Aid for this grant.  These two organizations have collaborated on mental health outreach to the immigrant community since early in 2004. Be watching for more details.