“Minnesota Refugee Mental Health Screening”
A training webinar from Minnesota Department of Health
Hosted by Dr. Patricia Shannon (University of MN-Twin Cities, School of Social Work)
and Dr. Jim Letts (HealthEast Roselawn Clinic)
July 15, 2015
Q&A Summary
Q: Do you have any recommendations about how to manage referrals, especially when resources can
be tight?
A: (Dr. Letts) One option we have used [at Roselawn Clinic] is to schedule follow-up with the primary
care provider, to continue to assess the patient’s needs. Also, as we’ve been looking more at mental
health needs, we’ve gotten more data from the screening to follow up internally and with the
community about developing additional mental health resources.
[MDH NOTE: The third webinar will also address best practices for referrals.]
Q: Could you talk about what to do if a refugee seems to give contradictory answers to the screening
questions, for example responding “no” to the question about sadness, but then saying “yes” to
avoiding the past. We usually have very limited time for the screening questions...
A: (Dr. Shannon) In my experience working with clinics, the timing of when the questions are asked
might vary, such as the first visit in the screening process or the second visit. The provider does usually
find time to clarify the screening results especially of a potentially positive screen, but it might not be at
the same time that the questions are originally asked.
(Dr. Letts) Most responses to the mental health screening component are clearly negative, and some are
clearly positive. However, some patients will definitely fall into a grey area, and I know what you mean
about “contradictory” responses. [As the primary care provider,] I will often take a few minutes to
explore the responses during the visit. If this is not an option, it is okay to consider it a positive screen if
that seems appropriate, or to make a note that this screening was unclear or ambiguous and to followup again further into resettlement.
[MDH NOTE: We at MDH expect the timing of the mental health screening questions and any needed
clarification questions may look different between clinics, much as the titer and lab result protocols are
somewhat different between clinics. We can offer support and facilitate conversations between
providers at different clinics as you work to find the smoothest process for your clinic.]