Leader discusses ways to reduce mental health stigma

Health care leaders should consider the impact of their words as they work to reduce the stigma around mental health issues, particularly among minority populations, according to Mark Sevilla, vice president of behavioral health and emergency services for Yale New Haven Hospital in Connecticut. Sevilla shared how a Yale New Haven Health program to create safe spaces for conversations around racism, racial equity and racial healing could be used to reduce mental health stigma in cultural and ethnic minority populations. The American Hospital Association’s “People Matter, Words Matter” campaign includes posters that provide examples of how one might respond to some examples of language that does not demonstrate cultural or racial awareness. (AHA blog, 7/13/22)