Psychology and Spanish Elective Opportunity (PASEO, LLC): A Language and Culture Training Program in Mental Health

Transcription

1 Psychology and Spanish Elective Opportunity (PASEO, LLC): A and Culture Training Program in Mental Health The Psychology and Spanish Elective Opportunity (PASEO): Starting in January 2015, SKIP will be pairing with PASEO, LLC, a bilingual mental health organization, to offer a specialized language and culture training program. The PASEO program is designed to help individuals in the mental health field strengthen their linguistic and clinical skills to better serve Latino populations. This program hopes to unite individuals who are passionate about global mental health and who are committed to increasing access to and quality of mental health services to Latino youth and families both domestically and abroad. Eligibility Ideal candidates for the and Culture Training Program with PASEO fit the following criteria: Current students or professionals in psychology and related fields, to include: a. Advanced undergraduate students in psychology or related fields who plan to enter graduate study or work in the field of mental health b. Current graduate students in psychology (e.g. clinical, school, or counseling psychology programs at the masters or doctoral level) or related fields (e.g. social work or psychiatry) c. Working professionals (e.g. psychologists, LCSWs, or LPCs) already in the field who are looking to advance their linguistic and cultural competencies for clinical practice Have experience with children, adolescents, parents, and/or underserved populations Demonstrate interest in and/or experience working with Latino cultures and underserved populations requirements*: Participants should have low intermediate to advanced Spanish language skills. More information about language assessment and requirements can be found in the application. Note that students whose language level is found to be too low can still arrange for other opportunities to volunteer with SKIP, and our team will work with these individuals on a case- by- case basis. Brieanne Kohrt, PhD, 2014 PASEO, LLC is a registered Limited Liability Corporation

2 Aims of the PASEO program: AIM 1: Build Spanish language skills for use in mental health settings. This program is designed for participants to become competent in providing the following services in Spanish: Conducting diagnostic interviews Engaging in basic helping skills (e.g. reflective listening, open questions, summarizing, clarifying) Providing psychoeducation to clients/parents about mental health/mental illness, and the process/purpose of therapy to help engage families/clients who have less familiarity with psychology For individuals with more advanced Spanish language skills and psychology experience, additional goal areas can be selected. This may include building Spanish language competencies in: Parent training (e.g. behavior management strategies, improving parent- adolescent relationships) Psychoeducational assessment (cognitive and academic assessment) CBT, Motivational Interviewing, suicide assessment/crisis intervention, and brief therapies (solution- focused, IPT) Facilitating short- term psychoeducational and process groups in Spanish AIM 2: Increase knowledge and competencies in working with Latino youth and families. Specifically, this program will: Increase participants ability to conduct ethnocultural mental health assessments in order to develop cultural case formulations, improve diagnostic accuracy, and develop collaborative treatment plans. Increase understanding of the importance of language in the assessment and treatment process from a multifaceted perspective, including such topics as language synchronicity, second language acquisition, and use of code switching as a therapeutic tool Build participants knowledge of key treatment considerations for working with Latino families, with a focus on Peruvian culture as a framework. AIM 3: Increase competencies in providing mental health care in low resource settings. Treating high rates of depression and other common mental disorders is difficult in Peru given a lack of mental health resources in low and middle- income countries. Within the United States, many language minority communities find common shortages of mental health professionals who can meet their needs. Thus, this program will build skills in providing mental health care in low resource settings. Topics for discussion will include: Using principals of task sharing and task- shifting Use of the public health model (universal/secondary/tertiary) to guide mental health intervention Mobilization of social supports and other naturally existing support communities Addressing stigma, marginalization, and discrimination against individuals with mental illness within their communities in order to increase the acceptability of mental health care Considerations for designing and conducting research in low resource settings Brieanne Kohrt, PhD,

3 Program Description This program is unique in combining didactic seminars on working with the Latino community, formal language instruction, skill practice, service learning, and immersion. Program length ranges from 3 weeks to 4 months based on the needs and time availability of participants. Training cycles occur at three time points throughout the year. Program descriptions are outlined below: Three or six week experience Patio at the SKIP center 1. Intensive Spanish language classes (intermediate to advanced) (2-2.5 hours daily, 5 days/week. Classes focus on the development of professional language and clinical skills for mental health. 2. Seminar on working with Latino youth and families (5 seminars per 3- week course/8 per 6- week course) This seminar will be reflective and experiential, with material taken from participant s past and present work with Latino clients and current work with Peruvian families. Readings will also be provided to ground experience in theory and research. 3. Seminar on providing mental health care in low resource settings and advancing initiatives of global mental health (5 seminars per 3- week course/8 per 6- week course). This seminar will be didactic in nature. Readings and discussions will focus on models for closing the mental health gap in low- resource settings and existing culturally- adapted programs used in low- and middle- income countries. 4. Service learning (3 hours daily/4-5 days week). Service learning opportunities at the SKIP center will provide additional immersion and informal practice of language skills through the observation of and participation in educational and recreational activities for the children and families at SKIP. These opportunities will vary based on language level, need, and participant interest. Opportunities include (but are not limited to): a. Co- leading classroom- based socio- emotional classes and violence reduction classes (using the Second Step model) and/or teen groups b. Co- leading parent workshops. Past workshops include child development basics, developmentally appropriate behavior management strategies, and fostering language development in children c. Assisting art, sport, music, or other extracurricular activity d. Assisting in the classroom e. Conducting diagnostic interviews or cognitive assessments. This opportunity is restricted to advanced language students with appropriate professional expertise. 5. and culture club (optional): For students who are interested, weekend excursions to area attractions will be coordinated. During these outings, all conversation will be entirely in Spanish, providing additional opportunities for language practice, immersion, and exposure to the rich Peruvian culture. How do the three- week and six- week experiences differ? The six- week program is designed with more flexibility and individualization in mind; participants will have fewer seminars and will be able to use additional time for more intensive language study or to carry out relevant clinical activities (e.g. leading a brief support group or administering evaluations). Students will continue to have language instruction and skills practice five days a week. Brieanne Kohrt, PhD,

4 Schedule, Timeline, and Practicum Options Sample weekly schedule: Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday 9:00 Breakfast Breakfast Breakfast 9:30-10:30 Breakfast at 10:00 10:30-11:30 11:30-1:00 Skill Practice MH in low- resource settings seminar Cultural issues seminar MH in low- resource settings seminar Breakfast at 10:00 1:00-2:30 Lunch Break Lunch Break Lunch Break Lunch Break Lunch Break Excursion to Chan Chan with and Culture Club 2:30-5:30 Assist in classroom/sport Co- teach Second Step Violence Reduction Class Co- lead new mothers group Observe/conduct assessments Shadow Psychologist Timeline Cycle 1 Cycle 2 Cycle 3 3- week program Jan 4 th - 24 th May 10 th - 30 th July 5 th - July 25 th 6- week program Jan 4 th - Feb 15 th May 10 th - June 20 th July 5 th - Aug 15 th Class Size and Composition Class size will vary between 3-8 people per class. There must be a minimum of three students per class in order for the class to be held. Students with flexibility will rank preferred options/cycles. If ability varies widely within a given class, classes will be divided for language instruction and combined for seminars. During seminars, instruction will be provided in a bilingual manner to encourage critical thinking in Spanish but also allow for students of different levels to communicate and understand material. Seminars led by Peruvian mental health workers will be in Spanish. Practicum experience (2 months or longer) Students may wish to complete a practicum placement with PASEO and the SKIP Psychology Department. This opportunity requires a minimum commitment of two months, though students can stay up to four months if desired. Students staying for two months or longer will complete the initial training, and then for the remainder of the time will be involved in ongoing psychology activities and projects, taking on more of a clinical role. Participants will take on a caseload of individual, couples, and/or family therapy clients, with caseload based on level of experience and time commitment. In addition, opportunities will be available for applied research activities, program evaluation, child assessment, and workshop development/presentation. Individuals completing a practicum placement will be supervised by a licensed clinical psychologist from the United States (Brieanne Kohrt, PhD) and thus will be able to count clinical hours as supervised work experiences for internship applications. Dr. Kohrt will work with practicum students and their universities to ensure that level of supervision and clinical work are commensurate with university standards, and will conduct all appropriate evaluations to ensure student skill development. Brieanne Kohrt, PhD,

5 Psychology in the El Porvenir Community The El Porvenir community Trujillo is divided into 11 districts. The district of El Porvenir, where SKIP is based, is the second largest and most populated; with a 2011 estimated population of 164,931 within an area of just over 36 sq. km. The settlers that have ventured to El Porvenir and the out- lying area have primarily migrated from the mountains. Roughly 70% of the population state that they have migrated to El Porvenir from their place of birth (the majority are from the Andes region), and El Porvenir has twice the rate of population growth as that of Trujillo as a whole. Many of the settlers in El Porvenir have been victims of political terrorism, such as that committed against peasants and indigenous communities by the Shining Path, or have suffered from various types of social, economic or political marginalization as well as direct physical and psychological abuse. Other risk factors facing this population include unsafe work conditions, inadequate housing, limited access to health care and social services, low rates of literacy, and limited educational attainment. Shoe making in El Porvenir The Psychology Program at SKIP Due to trauma suffered prior to, during, and post migration, as well as the stress associated with rural to urban migration in low resource settings, there are a high number of mental health needs in this community. A study conducted with the families at SKIP (Kohrt & Barrueco, in preparation) in 2010 Homes in the El Porvenir region found: High rates of depression: roughly 2/3 (64%) of the mothers at SKIP met criteria for clinical depression. High rates of domestic violence: 65% of the sample reported at least one type of current interpersonal violence. High rates of emotional problems in children: 50% of children were found to have significantly higher than expected levels of externalizing problems and nearly two in three children (65%) had significantly elevated internalizing problems. The SKIP community has a high rate of mental health needs, but the El Porvenir region has an extremely low rate of mental health resources. Thus, the SKIP psychology program follows a public health model, which increases the number of individuals who are able to access mental health resources. Through this model, interventions are provided at three different levels, primary, secondary, and tertiary. More information about this model can be found at Brieanne Kohrt, PhD,

6 Housing Housing and Program Costs There are three housing options available as part of the training program. 1) The SKIP volunteer house: The main volunteer house is a large, comfortable, and secure house in Trujillo. The home has a kitchen, large dining area, hot showers, and high speed Internet. Benefits of staying in the volunteer home include exposure to volunteers from all parts of the world as well as ease in being able to travel to and from the SKIP center and learning about many activities to do in and around Trujillo. Volunteers are constantly planning activities and excursions, and individuals staying for shorter stays who want to explore the area often prefer this option. 2) Host family home: This is a great option for those wanting an immersion experience and a better sense of Peruvian culture on a day- to- day basis. Houses tend to be near the SKIP house for ease of transportation to and from SKIP. 3) Individual accommodations: Individual accommodations are available on a case- by- case basis, such as for participants who are traveling with their families. We will work to help you arrange housing in those circumstances. Prices may vary slightly from numbers provided below. Program Costs Program fees are adjusted for volunteers with longer periods of commitment. Fees include the following: Housing Volunteer contribution to SKIP that is paid by all SKIP volunteers in all discipline areas (see for a breakdown of these fees) Tuition for the PASEO program, including curriculum materials Breakfast and lunch 5 days/week Transportation between Trujillo and El Porvenir Program fees do not include: Airfare and other transportation costs (assistance will be provided in arranging travel) Dinner and weekend meals (note that the cost of meals in Peru is very affordable; typically $2-5 /meal) Entry fees for excursions with the and Culture Club (typically $5-15 dollars) Standard Program Practicum placement monthly fee* 3- week program 6- week program Months 1-2 Months 3-4 $2,200 $3,400 $1,000 $750 * Practicum placement fees are instituted after the 3 or 6- week language program. Students will still be able to do clinical work during language training, but price change will occur after formal language training program concludes. Informal language training as well as individual and group supervision will continue throughout course of practicum. Scholarships/Funding Students are encouraged to speak with their university s academic departments and study abroad offices, as many universities offer small scholarships to cover training abroad. There are a number of other options available to help with the cost of the program. Fundraising ideas are available at the SKIP website- content/uploads/2014/01/skip- fundraising- ideas.pdf. In addition, students may be interested in education abroad scholarships, such as the following: Fund for education abroad: Rotary International Ambassadorial Scholarships (check local Rotary club for specifics): action/apply- grants/global- grants PsiChi grants can be used for undergraduate and graduate students who also do summer research projects with PASEO. Brieanne Kohrt, PhD,

7 Contact Information and Application Details Additional Funding Information: Discounted flights to Peru can also be found through: STA travel: After buying a $25 ISIC card, students (undergraduate and granduate) can get significantly discounted (up to 50% off) international flights. Fly For Good: Individuals of all ages (including non- students) can get significantly discounted flights when traveling to work with a registered non- profit. SKIP is a 501C3 in the United States. Application Information: Applications can be accessed at Please download and complete the PASEO Program application. You can also get an application by ing PASEO directly at PASEOLLC@gmail.com. All applications should be sent to PASEOLLC@gmail.com Application deadlines are as follows: Cycle Dates of Program Application Deadline 1 Three- week: 1/4/2015-1/24/2015 Six- week: 1/4/2015-2/14/ /1/ Three- week: 5/10/2015-5/30/2015 Six- week: 5/10/2015-6/20/2015 2/1/ Three- week: 7/5/2015-7/25/2015 Six week: 7/5/2015-8/15/2015 4/1/2015 Contact Information: For questions about the program, please contact: Brieanne Kohrt, Ph.D. Director, PASEO Program PASEOLLC@gmail.com For more information about SKIP, Trujillo, travel and housing accommodations, and funding, go to Si puede mirar, ve. Si puede ver, repara (If you can look, see. If you can see, fix) - Jose Saramago Brieanne Kohrt, PhD,