Mary, Heather, and Neftalí got together in this webinar to discuss creative strategies aimed at increasing patient access to mental health care. From direct practice, community engagement, and integrated behavioral health perspectives, The panelists shared their experiences of successes from the past three years and highlighted growth opportunities. All mental health providers, professionals, clinicians, behavioral health graduates, public health researchers, and community-based organizations are welcome to review this session.
Some takeaways:
– “Do today’s work today.” If what we do is receive a new patient, they tell us the problem that’s bringing them in, and then all we do is set up another appointment to talk more about the problem next time. Then we have put off work that COULD have been done today for a future date. So the principal here is to do today’s work TODAY.
– Sometimes a deeper level of care is important. FEWER people will have to wait for an appointment if we stop treating everyone the same with just an intake without treating those problems today.
– When people DO have to wait on the waitlist, then we’re providing parenting support, phone calls that welcome them to our clinic and our list, what will happen next, etc. So instead of just putting them on a list and they wait with no word for 6 months, they are getting contact, opportunities for groups and other psychoeducation, potentially case management, etc.
– With the Lunch and Learn, El Futuro is building the capacity of the Mental Health system in NC to better serve the needs of Latino families. We can say thank you to Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina for the support to help us initiate these approaches. How happy we are to partner with them!!
Alvely Alcántara, LCSW
Rossy C. Garcia, MEd 
Katy Sims, MD 
Everardo Aviles, LCSW, LCAS (Eve)
As a medical anthropologist and social work researcher, Dr. Gulbas’ research embodies interdisciplinarity through the integration of applied theories of health and human development with qualitative and ethnographic methodologies. Her work seeks to understand how people—children, families, and providers—navigate complex sociocultural landscapes in the pursuit of mental health. Most of her work, to date, focuses attention on developing more robust interpretations of suicide risk. With funding from the National Institutes of Mental Health, this body of research has contributed to advancements in theoretical and empirical knowledge of the broader contexts within which youth suicide risk is situated. 
R. Gabriela Barajas-Gonzalez is a developmental psychologist and an assistant professor of Population Health at NYU Grossman School of Medicine. Dr. Barajas-Gonzalez is the principal investigator of a study that examines the impact of immigration-related threat and stress on school communities. She earned a PhD in developmental psychology from Columbia University and hold a BA in human biology from Stanford University. Dr. Barajas-Gonzalez is the daughter of Mexican immigrants and a first gen college student.
Dr. Parra-Cardona is an Associate Professor in the Steve Hicks School of Social Work (SHSSW) at the University of Texas at Austin. At the SHSSW, he serves as Coordinator for Mexico and Latin American initiatives. He also serves as Area Director for Research at the UT Austin Latino Research Institute. Dr. Parra-Cardona’s program of research is focused on the cultural adaptation of evidence-based parenting interventions for low-income Latinx populations in the US and Latin America.
Bianka Reese, PhD, MSPH is a research scientist and program evaluator specializing in adolescent and young adult sexual and reproductive health. Her previous research in the experiences of Latinx LGBTQ+ youth stems from her work as the Research and Evaluation Manager at SHIFT NC (Sexual Initiatives For Teens), where she led largescale evaluations of multilevel, community-based sexual health promotion initiatives and research projects aimed at elevating the voices of diverse youth in North Carolina. Dr. Reese is currently the Senior Research Strategist at Creative Research Solutions, LLC, an award-winning national evaluation, research, and assessment firm.
Tania Connaughton-Espino, MPH is an independent researcher focused on adolescent and young adult sexual and reproductive health. Her interest in the experiences of Latinx LGBTQ+ youth stems from her previous work with SHIFT NC (Sexual Initiatives For Teens), where she led the training and evaluation department, conducted capacity-building workshops for youth serving professionals including on the topic of how to be more affirming of LGBTQ youth, and from her extensive experience working with the Latinx population in NC.
Maru Gonzalez, EdD is an Assistant Professor and Youth Development Specialist in the Department of Agricultural and Human Sciences at North Carolina State University. Her areas of inquiry include youth development with a focus on activism, social justice, and the experiences of LGBTQ+ young people across familial, school, and community contexts. 
Nayeli Y. Chavez-Dueñas, PhD
Hector Y. Adames, PsyD