A Homerton charity has launched a specialist mental health service for the African and Caribbean community. MindCHWF aims to address the imbalance in the numbers of black and minority ethnic (BAME) suicides and individuals with mental health issues.
Staffed and directed by African and Caribbean people, IRIE Mind will train community coaches who are culturally-sensitive and have lived experience of mental health in “street-wise therapy,” said programme director Nichola Laud. “For a long time people have told me they want a service that speaks to them, their culture, their heritage,” she added.
The focus of the service is prevention and early detection, providing individuals with the support they need to seek help early from people they trust.
Research by the Mental Health Foundation found that BAME people living in the UK are more likely to be diagnosed with mental health problems; more likely to experience poor outcomes from treatment; and more likely to disengage from mainstream mental health services.
Targeted services are particularly significant in Hackney, one of London’s most ethnically diverse boroughs.
At the IRIE launch, Psychiatrist Dr Jide Morakinyo said there was “mutual distrust between young black men and their doctors, especially when it comes to mental health… there are still reports of mis-diagnosis, that people get over-medicated… people are suspicious that you’ll lock them up”.
These fears are not unfounded. Government figures published in 2017 found that people in black ethnic groups were more likely to be detained under the Mental Health Act, and among specific ethnic groups, Black Caribbean people had the highest rate of detention.
As Dan Burningham, director of CCG Mental Health, said, “there is an over-representation of BAME individuals accessing services at the acute stage of mental illness, most being brought in by the police… research shows black-led services are best placed to work on prevention”.
