Capacity for delivering culturally competent mental health services in New Mexico: results of a statewide agency survey.

The Federal government has promoted National Standards for Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services (CLAS) to reduce mental health disparities among Hispanic and Native American populations. In 2005, the State of New Mexico embarked upon a comprehensive reform of its behavioral health system with an emphasis on improving cultural competency. Using survey methods, we examine which language access services (i.e., capacity for bilingual care, interpretation, and translated written materials) and organizational supports (i.e., training, self-assessments of cultural competency, and collection of cultural data) mental health agencies in New Mexico had at the onset of a public sector mental health reform (Office of Minority Health 2001).