HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 2 - Wedell - 10-03-20181
Sheffield, Alexis
From:Jay Bettergarcia <
Sent:Tuesday, October 2, 2018 10:25 PM
To:Advisory Bodies
Subject:QCARES Summary for HRC Meeting
Hello Advisory Body members,
My name is Emma Wedell and I am a research assistant with the Queer Community Action, Research, Education, &
Support (QCARES) research team led by Dr. Jay Bettergarcia, Assistant Professor in the Psychology & Child Development
Department at Cal Poly. I will be representing QCARES at the HRC meeting and Community Needs Workshop tomorrow. I
was advised by Cara Vereschagin to email a summary—found below—of the needs the QCARES team is working to
address in the LGBTQ+ community in San Luis Obispo County.
Queer Community Action, Research, Education, & Support (QCARES) is a research team led by Dr. Jay
Bettergarcia, Assistant Professor in the Psychology & Child Development Department at Cal Poly, San Luis
Obispo. The QCARES team is studying mental health and wellness in the LGBTQ+ community in order to
improve local access to LGBTQ+ affirming mental health care services.
San Luis Obispo County presently has no mental health programs aimed at fulfilling the unique needs of
LGBTQ+ residents, but a clear need exists for affirming mental health services in this locality. According to the
Central Coast Coalition for Inclusive Schools, results from the 2015 California Healthy Kids Survey indicate
that 46% of transgender youth and 49% of lesbian, gay, and bisexual youth in SLO County have seriously
considered attempting suicide as compared to 17% of cisgender and 14% of heterosexual youth. Further, a
2014 survey by The Community Foundation’s Growing Together Fund found that LGBTQ+ youth and adults
ranked queer supportive mental health services as the most pressing service need among the local LGBTQ+
community.
QCARES is currently partnered with the Behavioral Health Department in conducting a mental health needs
assessment consisting of an online survey and a series of focus groups of SLO County residents who identify
as LGBTQ+ and are at least 14 years old. The QCARES team aims to reach as many eligible community
members as possible for the study to better understand the specific mental health needs, experiences, and
barriers to accessing affirming care facing this population. QCARES hopes to use the results of the needs
assessment to inform the development of SLO County’s first LGBTQ+ affirming mental health care program
and ultimately address the serious mental health disparities in this community.
Thank you very much for your time. Please let me know if I can answer any questions.
Best,
Emma Wedell
2
Queer Community Action, Research, Education, & Support
Director: Dr. Jay Bettergarcia, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Department of Psychology & Child Development
California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
Phone: (805) 756-6178
Website: QueerCARES.com