Asian American mental health during COVID-19: A call for task-sharing interventions

Nicole Misun Kormendi; Adam D Brown

doi:10.1016/j.ssmmh.2021.100006

Asian American mental health during COVID-19: A call for task-sharing interventions

SSM Ment Health. 2021 Dec:1:100006. doi: 10.1016/j.ssmmh.2021.100006. Epub 2021 Jun 17.

Authors

Nicole Misun Kormendi^{1

2}, Adam D Brown^{3

4}

Affiliations

¹ Apicha Community Health Center, 400 Broadway, New York, NY, USA, 10013.
² Vassar College, 124 Raymond Ave, Poughkeepsie, NY, USA, 12604.
³ Department of Psychology, New School for Social Research, 80 5th Avenue, 601, New York, NY, USA, 10011.
⁴ Department of Psychiatry, New York University School of Medicine, 1 Park Avenue, New York, NY, USA, 10016.

Abstract

In the age of COVID-19, the Asian American community is facing a number of unique risks and barriers to mental health care. Mounting challenges-including language barriers, unemployment, racialized trauma, and anti-Asian violence-threaten the health and wellness of these communities. Yet, structural obstacles prevent Asian Americans from accessing care within the professionalized behavioral health workforce. Leveraging the resources of Asian American peer networks, collectives, and community-based organizations through a task-sharing program presents an attractive alternative for mental health care provision. Investing in task-sharing approaches to care would both address access barriers and build capacity within the Asian American community.

Keywords: Asian American; Mental health; Peer-to-peer; Task-sharing.

Publication types

Editorial