Hablemos de la salud mental (let’s talk about mental health): suicide in the Hispanic community has increased by more than 70% between 2010 and 2020.
Compared to other groups, Latinos/as/x in Oregon do not seek mental health care and are less likely to find help.
When individuals experience a disconnect between the dominant mental health care model and their own values, they are more likely to drop out of care, or not initiate care based on others’ experiences. There are many barriers to accessing mental health services in Hispanic communities, one being stigma. Let go of these negative thoughts and language and explore new ways of thinking about mental health.
Our Racial Equity Support Line (RESL) is proud to be playing a vital role in supporting the mental health needs in Oregon’s Spanish-speaking communities. We have 6 Spanish bilingual responders with an extensive knowledge on the issues that affect the Latino/a/x community. No issue is too big or too small for our team.
Learn more about the Racial Equity Support Line
On the RESL, we have received calls about…
- Dealing with mental health issues surrounding being an immigrant in a different county.
- Struggling to feel connected to their roots in a foreign country.
- Wanting to connect with a familiar voice who can relate to their culture and beliefs.
We will never ask our callers for any immigration status questions nor will we ever send any information to a third party about them.
We have de-escalated 100% of calls to the Racial Equity Support Line without the need to call law enforcement or EMS for any of our callers.
As 988 has rolled out with huge success, RESL has been a key resource for callers who are not in a crisis and who would like to connect with a person whose background is similar to their own.