Date of Conferral

4-30-2026

Degree

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

School

Nursing

Advisor

Jill Sanko

Abstract

Mental health disparities among African immigrant populations are often influenced by cultural stigma, limited mental health literacy, and providers’ insufficient understanding of culturally specific beliefs and help-seeking behaviors. In outpatient psychiatric settings, these gaps can negatively affect engagement, diagnosis, and treatment outcomes. The purpose of this quality improvement project was to evaluate whether a structured staff education program could improve provider knowledge of culturally responsive care for African immigrant patients. Guided by the Johns Hopkins Evidence-Based Practice model, a pretest–posttest design was implemented with 13 interprofessional staff members, including psychiatric providers, therapists, and support staff, in an outpatient mental health clinic. The intervention consisted of an evidence-based educational session incorporating culturally relevant content and case-based scenarios. Data were collected using an investigator-developed tool with Likert-scale knowledge items and multiple-choice questions. Descriptive analysis demonstrated an increase in mean knowledge scores from pretest to posttest, indicating improved provider understanding of cultural factors influencing mental health care. These findings suggest that targeted staff education can enhance provider knowledge and support more culturally informed practice. Future efforts should focus on sustaining education, integrating cultural competence into routine training, and evaluating the impact on patient-level outcomes. This project contributes to ongoing efforts to reduce mental health disparities and promote equitable care delivery.

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