National Network to Eliminate Disparities in Behavioral Health (NNED)

OBHE sponsors the National Network to Eliminate Disparities in Behavioral Health (NNED), a network of community-based organizations across the U.S. focused on the mental health and substance use issues of diverse racial and ethnic communities. The NNED supports information sharing, training, and technical assistance towards the goal of promoting behavioral health equity.

Three flagship NNED opportunities include NNEDLearn, Partner Central, and NNEDshare. NNEDLearn is an annual intensive training for NNED members from community-based organizations to develop their skills in evidence-supported and culturally appropriate practices for mental illness and substance use. Partner Central is a private space for NNED members to search for community-based organizations in the network to build partnerships to achieve a shared goal. NNEDshare is a collaborative online space for NNED members and the public to share resources and intervention efforts to improve the delivery of behavioral health care interventions in diverse populations.

Watch the NNEDLearn Overview video!

View highlighted NNEDLearn digital stories on the SAMHSA NNEDLearn YouTube Playlist.

Read the NNEDLearn Implementation Analysis Report!

Evidence-Based and Culturally Relevant Behavioral Health Interventions in Practice: Strategies and Lessons Learned from NNEDLearn (2011-2020)

Archived Webinars

NNED

• May 2021- Partnering to Strengthen the Behavioral Health Infrastructure and Capacity in Communities of Color
• March 2021- Adapting to the Behavioral Health Needs of Underserved and Racially/Ethnically Diverse Youth
• July 2020- Taking on the “Perfect Storm”: Faith-based Organizations and Partnerships Address COVID-19 and Critical Behavioral Health Needs in Communities of Color
• May 2020- Communities Respond to COVID-19: Implications for Asian Pacific Islanders (APIs)
• April 2020- Communities Respond to COVID-19 with Innovative High-Impact Strategies
• August and September 2019 (SAMHSA and NNED 2-part series)- Strategies to Address the Opioid Epidemic in Black and Hispanic/Latinx Communities
• July 2019- Moving Forward: Diverse Community Perspectives and Strategies on Trauma, Healing, and Trust
• April 2019- Workplace Environment Matters: Strategies to Support and Retain Behavioral Health Staff Providing Services to Diverse Ethnic and Racial Populations
• February 2019- Building the Evidence: Innovative Partnerships to Move Community-Defined Evidence to Best Practice
• September 2018- Creating Supportive Systems to Improve Mental Health Outcomes for Young African American Boys: An Urgent Conversation
• Visit all archived NNED webinars

Joint SAMHSA and Federal Partners

• April 2020- SAMHSA OBHE and the Office for Disparities Research and Workforce at the National Institute of Mental Health Responding to the Alarm: Addressing Black Youth Suicide
• April 2018- SAMHSA OBHE and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Forum on Opioids: Strategies and Solutions for Minority Communities (two hours)

Training Curricula and Guides

• Behavioral Health Implementation Guide for the National Standards for Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services in Health and Health Care (Behavioral Health Guide) (PDF | 409 KB) This Behavioral Health Guide, developed by HHS OMH in collaboration with SAMHSA, underscores the ways in which the National CLAS Standards can improve access to and quality of behavioral healthcare for underserved minority communities. It provides concrete, feasible implementation strategies for the health and behavioral healthcare community to improve the provision of services to all individuals, regardless of race, ethnicity, language, socioeconomic status, and other cultural characteristics.

• Improving Cultural Competency for Behavioral Health Professionals is a free, e-learning program to help behavioral health professionals increase their cultural and linguistic competency offered by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Minority Health (OMH) and was collaboratively developed with SAMHSA and other federal and external partners.
• SAMHSA TIP 59: Improving Cultural Competence This guide helps professional care providers and administrators understand the role of culture in the delivery of mental health and substance use services. It describes cultural competence and discusses racial, ethnic, and cultural considerations.
• Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Training Curricula for Behavioral Health and Primary Care Practitioners This SAMHSA webpage includes information about professional training curricula to improve the health and well-being of the LGBT population.

SAMHSA Blog - Featured OBHE Posts

• One size does not fit all: Appreciating the diversity of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders (AANHPIs) and the Implications for Mental Health
• National Minority Health Month Spotlight: Strategies to Position Youth for Potential Behavioral Health Careers (Mes Nacional de la Salud de las Minorías: Estrategias para posicionar a los jóvenes para posibles carreras de salud conductual)
• Confronted with Multiple Crises, Latinos Draw Upon Culture and Community (Enfrentando múltiples crisis, los latinos recurren a la cultura y a la comunidad)
• Opioid and Illicit Drug Use Among the Hispanic/Latino Populations
• Alarming Suicide Trends in African American Children: An Urgent Issue
• Destigmatizing Mental Health in Asian American and Pacific Islander Communities
• Get “Active and Healthy” For Your Mental Health
• Three African American Leaders Making An Impact On Mental Health In The Community