ASIAN AMERICANS ATTAINING AWARENESS

The Asian American Health Coalition (AAHC) is delighted to be one of 10 organizations in Texas to be a recipient of the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health’s “Communities of Care” grant. Through this endeavor, AAHC will take a closer look into attitudes, barriers, and stigmas among Asian communities that prevent families from seeking behavioral health services.  AAHC’s “Asian Americans Attaining Awareness” initiative will work to bridge the gaps in behavioral health care in the Asian community. The program will have two major aims: addressing the root causes behind not seeking timely care for behavioral health issues and building the knowledge and capacity of providers so they can be culturally sensitive.

The communities that will benefit from the grant are Asian Americans as well as Asians, including those who recently emigrated from the Asian continent extending from the Philippines to Saudi Arabia. Unfortunately, this community is commonly referred to as the “The Model Minority” where behavioral health issues are often hidden, or not mentioned, leaving them unaddressed. This may include anxiety, undiagnosed depression, phobias and other mental health disorders.

We are excited to be working with the following collaborative partners:

• HOPE Clinic
• Chinese Community Center
• VN Teamwork
• Boat People SOS
• YMCA International
• India House Houston
• Culture of Health Advancing Together – CHAT
• IBN Sina Foundation
• DePelchin Children’s Center
• Olive Branch Muslim Family Services
• People Caring for the Community Inc – PCCI

This initiative also includes partnership with local parent and youth representatives from throughout Greater Houston.

Dr. Andrea Caracostis, the CEO of HOPE Clinic, agrees that the Asian Americans Attaining Awareness initiative is a great way of bringing local partners representing different Asian ethnicities and sectors together to address mental/behavioral health. Through this collaboration, our partnership will be able to better serve children and families in the community.  We will identify barriers that hinder seeking behavioral health services and support, as well as raise awareness in Asian communities that have misinformation about these services.  Ultimately, by addressing barriers to care, the collaborative aims to improve timely access to behavioral health support and increase the resilience of families in the community.