New Free E-Learning Program on Cultural Competency for Behavioral Health Professionals

The HHS Office of Minority Health (OMH) announced a new, free and accredited e-learning program: Improving Cultural Competency for Behavioral Health Professionals. The program, available via OMH’s Think Cultural Health website, is designed to develop behavioral health providers' knowledge and skills related to culturally and linguistically appropriate services (CLAS).

This online program is a practical tool for behavioral health professionals who want to gain skills and knowledge about culture and diversity, which could be applied daily to better serve your clients. The tool is particularly timely for professionals working to address the opioid epidemic among racial and ethnic populations, which have low treatment rates and some of the highest rates of opioid misuse and overdose.

OMH encourages all certified counselors, nurses, psychiatrists, psychologists and social workers to take this program and earn up to five continuing education credits at no cost.

The program’s 4 courses cover:

• Connections between culture and behavioral health
• The impact of cultural identity on interactions with clients
• Ways to engage, assess and treat clients from diverse backgrounds

Learn more about the program  |  Spread the word - access the toolkit

About Think Cultural Health

Think Cultural Health is a program of the U.S. Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health that provides health and health care professionals with information, continuing education opportunities, resources, and more to learn about culturally and linguistically appropriate services, or CLAS. Are you looking for other free e-learning programs on cultural competency? Check out the suite of Think Cultural Health e-learning programs at thinkculturalhealth.hhs.gov/education

About the National CLAS Standards

The National Standards for Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services in Health and Health Care (The National CLAS Standards) aim to improve health care quality and advance health equity by establishing a framework for organizations to serve the nation's increasingly diverse communities.