Major
Public Health
Anticipated Graduation Year
2022
Access Type
Open Access
Abstract
Census data shows the United States becoming more diverse. In 2019 more than half of the youth population under the age of 16 has identified as part of an ethnic or racial minority. One of the fastest growing ethnic and racial groups in the United States are Latinos and Hispanics. This growth within the Latine and Hispanic populations presents challenges when looking at healthcare utilization, particularly in families with undocumented members. According to Kaiser Family Foundation, forty-six percent of undocumented immigrants were uninsured, and twenty-five percent of lawfully present immigrants were uninsured in 2019. The act alone of seeking basic health care is limited by cost and language. In seeking more services beyond basic healthcare, such as addressing mental health issues, access becomes even more limited, by cultural stigma, and a lack of understanding of existing resources. Human service agencies also lack the staff to be able to communicate effectively with those seeking care. These many factors amplify the current situation of health discrimination on the population of undocumented immigrants, leading to poorer health outcomes and a lower quality of life.
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Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License.
Human Services Professionals Perceptions on the Trauma, Stigma, and Mental Health on the Wellbeing of Latine and Hispanic Undocumented Immigrants
Census data shows the United States becoming more diverse. In 2019 more than half of the youth population under the age of 16 has identified as part of an ethnic or racial minority. One of the fastest growing ethnic and racial groups in the United States are Latinos and Hispanics. This growth within the Latine and Hispanic populations presents challenges when looking at healthcare utilization, particularly in families with undocumented members. According to Kaiser Family Foundation, forty-six percent of undocumented immigrants were uninsured, and twenty-five percent of lawfully present immigrants were uninsured in 2019. The act alone of seeking basic health care is limited by cost and language. In seeking more services beyond basic healthcare, such as addressing mental health issues, access becomes even more limited, by cultural stigma, and a lack of understanding of existing resources. Human service agencies also lack the staff to be able to communicate effectively with those seeking care. These many factors amplify the current situation of health discrimination on the population of undocumented immigrants, leading to poorer health outcomes and a lower quality of life.