Mental Health of Immigrants in the U.S. by

Javier Silva

jsilva25_4 — 2024-10-24 14:52:42 UTC

I am from Edinburg, TX, that’s in the RGV. I’m studying Mental Health and Wellness Counseling, and I hope to obtain my LPC and work as a counselor for the company I currently work for, Southwest Key. Southwest Key is a nonprofit organization that houses unaccompanied immigrant children and reunifies them with their family in the U.S. I have been with Southwest Key for three years now, working as a case manager. The children I work with have encountered so many traumatic experiences and unfortunately are left to deal with mental health issues. Once I obtain my LPC I hope to provide the mental health services these children need.

Mental health of immigrants in the U.S.

jsilva25_4 — 2024-10-24 15:24:54 UTC

Research on the mental health of immigrants has revealed the many challenges and barriers immigrants face. Immigrants experience trauma and stress in their home country and journey that lead to mental health issues. Immigrants often cannot access mental health care, and when they do, they struggle to get the proper care because of language barriers, cultural differences, and stigma. Immigrants also fear seeking services due to the fear of deportation.

Research

jsilva25_4 — 2024-10-24 16:00:35 UTC

The ultimate goal of research in counseling is to improve the quality of counseling services and improve the outcome for clients. Through research, mental health professionals are able to identify what different types of methods are most effective for clients. Clients can also use the research to identify the type of therapy they will benefit most from.

Study of PTSD rates in unaccompanied immigrant children in the U.S.

jsilva25_4 — 2024-10-24 19:06:44 UTC

Unaccompanied children (UC) are children who crossed the U.S border illegally and are without a parent or legal guardian. Research shows that most children are exposed to many types of traumatic events before, during, and after migration. This research, conducted by Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Services (LIRS), focused on the PTSD rates of the population of children who received post-release services (PRS), which are case management services provided after the child is reunified with a parent or sponsor. Case workers collected data in 2018 using the Child PTSD Symptom Scale (CPSS) from unaccompanied children from El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras.

Participants and Procedure

jsilva25_4 — 2024-10-24 19:21:24 UTC

The data was collected between April 2018 and September 2018 by caseworkers employed at LIRS. The participants of this study were children who were receiving PRS after reunification. The data was gathered from nine sites in the following states: Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and Texas. Of the 178 children invited to participate, 163 agreed, (91.5%). The study was approved by the Boston College Institutional Review Board (IRB).

Measures

jsilva25_4 — 2024-10-24 19:37:27 UTC

LIRS case workers used the CPSS to collect date. CPSS is a self-report measure that assesses port traumatic stress symptoms for children between the ages of 8-18 years. CPSS is compromised of twenty items that are scored on a 5-point scale ranging from 0 (not at all) to 4 (six or more times a week/almost always). The range of the CPSS is 0-80 with the higher values indicating PTSD severity. The clinical cut for probable PTSD is 31 and above.

DATA

jsilva25_4 — 2024-10-24 19:41:17 UTC

Of the 163 UC who completed the study, 8.1% of the children showed probability of PTSD. 8.3% were female UC and 7.8% were male UC. With the results from the study, it is believed to be that 1 in 12 unaccompanied immigrant children will suffer from PTSD after reunification.

Takeaway

jsilva25_4 — 2024-10-24 20:15:31 UTC

As a case manager working with UC, my duties include recommendations of PRS to children after reunification. This study showed me where my company and me as a future counselor can improve our Post Release Services. Research like these are proof that counselors in this field need to be trained in specialized care for immigrant trauma, and in culturally competent care to provide the most beneficial services for these children.

References

jsilva25_4 — 2024-10-24 20:15:42 UTC

Hasson, R. G., Easton, S. D., Iriarte, A. D. V., O’Dwyer, L. M., Underwood, D., & Crea, T. M. (2020). Examining the Psychometric Properties of the Child PTSD Symptom Scale Within a Sample of Unaccompanied Immigrant Children in the United States. Journal of Loss and Trauma, 26(4), 323–335. https://doi.org/10.1080/15325024.2020.1777760

Moncrieffe, M., V. (n.d.). Specialized care for immigrants experiencing trauma is vital. Psychologists are breaking down the mental health barriers. https://www.apa.org. https://www.apa.org/monitor/2023/11/immigrant-mental-health