Culturally sensitive behavioral health care strives to acknowledge, understand and respond to a diversity of cultures, including:

o       Religion and/or Spirituality

o       Race/Ethnicity

o       Immigration Experience

o       Sexual Orientation

Culturally sensitive behavioral health care is important to us because attention to cultural issues and the unique needs of diverse cultural groups has been shown to improve quality of care, as neglect has resulted in health disparities[1].

The importance of such health care will continue to increase because underrepresented cultural groups make up ¼ of the US population[2], and by 2020 the majority of school-age children will be ethnic minorities[3].

As culturally sensitive behavioral heath care specialists, we make every effort to:

o       Fight stereotypes and discrimination

o       Increase clients access to culturally-relevant care

o       Enhance respect and awareness

o       Acknowledge and use clients’ strengths in order to instill a sense of esteem and personal control

There are four aspects of culturally sensitive care[4] that we are continuously working towards:

o       Awareness of our own and other peoples’ perspectives and biases

o       Knowledge of differences and similarities between and within cultures, and of how culture affects
         psychological, family, social and academic functioning

o       Skill, such as culturally appropriate assessment and intervention techniques

o       Experience – multicultural training, as well as professional and personal experience

All of the staff members at CFPS are dedicated to providing culturally sensitive behavioral health care services.   Dr. Lauren Gaskill is the coordinator of our culturally sensitive services program. Lauren Gaskill, Ph.D. was born and raised in the Greater Boston area in a multicultural family.  Her personal experience inspired her passion for helping diverse cultural groups.  She received graduate training in multicultural assessment, prevention, and intervention, particularly with youth and families. In addition to her many years of experience working with underrepresented cultural groups in hospital, community, and academic settings, she has also conducted various trainings and presentations regarding diversity to educators, behavioral health workers, and families.

   [1]Mutha, S., Allen, C., Welch, M., (2002). Toward Culturally Competent Care: A Toolbox for Teaching Communication Strategies. San Francisco, CA: Center for the Health Professions, University of California, San Francisco.
[2] Organista, P., Chun, K.M., & Marin, G. (Eds.) (1998). Readings in Ethnic Psychology. New York: Routledge, Inc.
[3] Lee, C. (1997). The Promise and Pitfalls of Multicultural Counseling. In C. Lee (Ed.), Multicultural Issues In Counseling: New Approaches to Diversity (pp. 3-13). Virginia: American Counseling Association.
[4] Campinha-Bacote, J. (1999). A model and instrument for addressing cultural competence in healthcare. Journal of Nursing Education, 38, 204-207.