Skip to content 
Search

Latest Stories

Why Asians need culturally sensitive mental health support

BRITISH Asians suffering with mental health problems are often being failed by support services due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, according to experts.

Why Asians need culturally sensitive mental health support

The Mind mental health charity said mainstream services often fail to provide therapies that meet a person’s cultural or language needs and they are not referred to the right support.

It comes after a study in May by the Mental Health Foundation found that people from a black, Asian or minority ethnic background are at a higher risk of reporting loneliness than other groups. Overall, a quarter of people have felt lonely some, or all, of the time over the previous month.


Marcel Vige, head of equality improvement at Mind, called for urgent further investment for support services that are close to people’s homes and existing support network. He told Eastern Eye: “The pandemic has had a huge impact on the nation’s mental health, which has widened existing inequalities.

“Awareness campaigns are helping tackle the misunderstanding around mental health and encouraging those of us who are experiencing poor mental health to open up.

“However, there is still mental health stigma attached, this can be particularly true for people from south Asian communities where community norms can be experienced as barriers to people speaking up, also stereotypes about people living in self-supportive communities mean services can be less responsive.”

Vige added: “Even in cases where people do feel able to seek support, mainstream mental health services often fail to provide accessible services that meet the particular cultural or language needs, and too often people are not referred to the right support.

“The UK government must start tackling the social factors which can really impact someone’s mental health such as financial and housing worries, loneliness and isolation, employment, racism, and racial trauma.”

Meanwhile, new research from biography-writing service StoryTerrace found that around one in three people from ethnic minority backgrounds said they have little understanding of their cultural heritage.

And 25 per cent said not knowing enough about their cultural origin negatively affects their wellbeing such as developing feelings of guilt, imposter syndrome or loneliness.

Dinesh Bhugra Dinesh Bhugra

Professor Dinesh Bhugra, professor of mental health and cultural diversity at King’s College London, told Eastern Eye: “People with long-term illnesses may experience stigma against their illness more so if it is mental illness, which may isolate them further.

“The pandemic has led to [less] social contact thereby creating a sense of alienation leading to double jeopardy in many minority groups.”

On the research by StoryTerrace, professor Bhugra added: “Our heritage teaches us language, religion, and other aspects of our identity which makes us who we are.

“Not knowing or knowing certain partial bits can affect an individual’s identity and how they function.

“Identity is critical for all of us because that is how we see ourselves but also (how) we see others seeing us, if we are uncertain about our identity then it is going to affect our functioning.”

Some 76 per cent of British Indians face barriers in accessing mental health care, according to research earlier this year by The 1928 Institute think-tank.

And 86 per cent said they faced discrimination and 81 per cent reported feeling shame or stigma when accessing NHS mental healthcare.

Kiran Kaur Manku, from The 1928 Institute and a professor at the department of psychiatry at the University of Oxford, said: “In our work commissioned by NHS England, we found that 93 per cent of British Indians feel the clinical approach to mental health by the NHS is alienating. Critically, participants called for a multidimensional approach to mental health, which includes values, spiritual

philosophies, and history.

Kiran Kaur Manku Kiran Kaur Manku

“This urgently needs to be addressed.”

Naushad Qayyum developed symptoms of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) after his father died of a heart attack on his son’s wedding day.

After undergoing therapy and practising regular mental health exercises, he is now a campaigner for suicide awareness.

Qayyum, from Leeds, Yorkshire, said: “What my experience taught me is that we have to talk – especially men.

“Where suicide rates are at the highest they have ever been, we have few options left. “Talking about my experiences with StoryTerrace helped me feel connected to myself, it helped me remember things I thought I had forgotten and allowed me to let go of shame. “Seeing my experience in writing and re-reading what happened is an incredible tool to help me process what happened.”

In May, the government said it is over half way to delivering on its manifesto pledge of having 26,000 more primary care staff by March 2024. This includes mental health practitioners and social prescribing link workers, who refer patients to community services to support their wellbeing.

There are now over 18,200 more people working in general practice in March 2022 compared to March 2019 and nearly 30,000 overall.

Health and social care secretary Sajid Javid said: “I am hugely grateful for the tireless work of GPs and primary care staff who act as the ‘front door’ to the NHS and provide advice and support to their patients.

“We have been working closely with the NHS to continue building the workforce and tackle the Covid backlog. “With over 18,200 more primary care staff already, we are on track to deliver 26,000 more by 2024, backed by record funding to help increase capacity and get patients the care they need more quickly.”

Elsewhere, millions of school pupils now have access to specialist mental health support, NHS England said.

A record 650,000 children and young people were in contact with NHS mental health services over the last year, up from 534,000 before the pandemic.

Mental health support teams are now in place in around 4,700 schools across the country offering support to children with conditions including anxiety and depression. Referrals to the teams can be made by teachers or GPs, or young people can even refer themselves.

Claire Murdoch, head of mental health care in England, said the services will provide a “lifeline for many young people who are struggling and need some help”.

Anyone feeling emotionally distressed can call Samaritans for help on 116 123, email jo@samaritans.org or ring Mind’s information line on 0300 123 3393

More For You

Brothers deny assaulting police during Manchester Airport brawl

Photo for representation. (iStock)

Brothers deny assaulting police during Manchester Airport brawl

TWO brothers accused of assaulting a man inside a Starbucks and later attacking police officers at Manchester Airport are standing trial, with the prosecution arguing they used "unlawful and extreme violence".

Mohammed Fahir Amaaz, 20, and his older brother Muhammad Amaad, 26, both from Rochdale, are said to have acted aggressively on July 23 last year while at the airport to pick up their mother, who had arrived on a flight from Qatar.

Keep ReadingShow less
Court to review teen's sentence in Bhim Kohli case
Bhim Kohli

Court to review teen's sentence in Bhim Kohli case

THE seven-year prison sentence handed to a 15-year-old boy convicted of the manslaughter of 80-year-old Bhim Sen Kohli is to be reviewed under the UK’s Unduly Lenient Sentence (ULS) scheme.

The Attorney General’s Office confirmed on Friday (5) that the teenager’s sentence will now be considered by the Court of Appeal.

Keep ReadingShow less
Dalai Lama hopes to live 'beyond 130 years'

Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama attends a prayer meet held for his long life at the Dalai Lama temple in the northern hill town of Dharamshala, India, July 5, 2025. REUTERS/Anushree Fadnavis

Dalai Lama hopes to live 'beyond 130 years'

THE Dalai Lama said on Saturday (5) he hopes to live until he is more than 130 years old, two decades longer than his previous prediction, following his assurance to followers that he would reincarnate as the spiritual head of the faith upon his death.

The Nobel Peace Prize winner was speaking during a ceremony organised by his followers to offer prayers for his long life, ahead of his 90th birthday on Sunday (6), and as China insists it will choose his successor. The Dalai Lama told Reuters in December he might live to 110.

Keep ReadingShow less
UK heatwave by mid-July

Daytime temperatures meeting or exceeding set thresholds of 25°C

iStock

Met Office warns of potential third UK heatwave by mid-July

Key points

  • Met Office forecasts rising temperatures by mid-July
  • Possible third heatwave after record-breaking June
  • High pressure system likely to bring hot air from the Atlantic
  • Yellow rain warning and flood alerts issued in parts of Scotland and Cumbria

Possible heatwave to return by mid-July

The UK could experience its third heatwave in a month by mid-July, the Met Office has said. Forecasters expect rising heat and humidity during the second weekend of July, following two weekends of unusually warm weather in late June.

June was officially the hottest on record in England, and the return of high temperatures could mean another heatwave for parts of the country. However, the Met Office cautioned that it is too early to confirm how hot conditions will get.

Keep ReadingShow less
crypto

Two men have been jailed for defrauding investors of £1.5 million through a fake crypto investment scheme. (Representational image: iStock)

iStock

Two jailed over £1.5m crypto investment scam

TWO people who duped investors of £1.5 million by selling fake investments in crypto have been jailed for 12 years, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) said.

Raymondip Bedi, of Bromley, and Patrick Mavanga, of Peckham, conned at least 65 people by cold-calling them between February 2017 and June 2019. They operated companies including CCX Capital and Astaria Group LLP.

Keep ReadingShow less