An Innovative Approach to Equity in Mental Health
A Conversation with Makinie Fortino
Makinie Fortino is changing the game when it comes to culturally responsive behavioral healthcare. Makinie, who identifies as Black and Afro-Caribbean American, is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT) who has been working in mental health for 10 years. In addition to to running her own private practice, Makinie is the Founder and President of DMHS: Deconstructing the Mental Health System, Inc, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit created to bring anti-racist therapists together to address the mental health system’s racial and financial inequities through education and other initiatives.
One key offering of DMHS is the Free Provider Directory for B.I.POC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color), a resource Makinie has built where people are able to filter providers by their racial and ethnic identities. The directory has seen tremendous growth over the past year and now includes nearly 180 listings of providers located all around the country, centralized in digital location, and completely free for the public to view. On top of that, the DMHS website links to hundreds of other resources and directories via their “Organizations We like” and “Get Help” sections.
Acknowledging that costs associated with therapy can often be prohibitive, DMHS recently launched a free therapy program prioritizing those in need who identify as Black, Indigenous, and People of Color. They are currently seeking therapists who either offer free therapy slots or are associate therapists in need of supervision to join the program.
“There’s more than one way to heal. It’s not just through traditional mental health services.”
CoLab’s Dominique Smith recently spoke with Makinie about the importance of access to culturally relevant care and how she is expanding equity in mental health systems through her work. Check out their conversation, below:
“We’re seeking to shorten the amount of time that it takes for people to find services that are culturally relevant from people who aren’t going to harm them, intentionally or unintentionally. ”
CoLab and the CARE for Kids & Families team are honored to partner with visionaries like Makinie who are finding new and innovative ways to make culturally responsive care more prevalent and accessible! We extend our gratitude to Makinie and DMHS for working with us on this piece.
To learn more about Makinie’s nonprofit, Deconstructing the Mental Health System, visit dmhsus.org.
To learn more about the DMHS Free Therapy program, visit dmhsus.org/dmhs-free-therapy.
To learn more about Makinie and her other projects, visit linktr.ee/MakinieTherapy.
To learn more about CARE for Kids & Families, visit uwcolab.org/CARE.