Cross-cultural training for mental health professionals: effects on the delivery of services

The emerging need for culturally appropriate services for ethnic populations has generated several cross-cultural training programs for mental health professionals but little data on how such training affects the delivery of mental health services. An evaluation of the impact of training on the personal and agency caseloads of clinicians and administrators trained at the Cross-Cultural Training Institute for Mental Health Professionals in Miami revealed a significant increase in minority use of services and a significant decrease in minority dropout from services in both caseloads. Cost analyses reinforce the efficacy of cross-cultural training for mental health professionals.