An innovative community-oriented approach to prevention and early intervention with refugees in the United States

Thousands of refugees from around the world resettle in the United States every year. Many refugees suffer from mental health disorders as a result of experiences living in or escaping from their turbulent homelands, and many also experience mental health issues as they settle in their new host countries. As such, it is important to intervene during the early stages of refugee resettlement to help prevent or mitigate mental illness symptoms. However, because of several access and utilization barriers, such as stigma, refugees are not apt to receive needed mental health services. Moreover, the traditional Western model of treatment can be culturally incongruent with refugee practices. Alternative, culturally sensitive, community-based approaches must be considered. This article presents a community-oriented prevention and early intervention model that can be used with newly arrived refugees with limited English proficiency. Goals of the model are to increase knowledge of mental health and mental health service options to refugees, as well as support the process of adjusting to life in the United States. The New Refugee Services Project, developed by the Center for Survivors of Torture department of Asian Americans for Community Involvement (AACI) in San Santa Clara County, California is presented as an example case study. The structure outlined in this article aims to support the development, implementation, and assessment of future preventative interventions for refugee populations.