Hispanic Heritage Month – Una Celebración

For our mostly remote staff, this Hispanic Heritage Month sparked an opportunity for our growing bilingual team to come together and discuss their journeys in social work, and the nuance of Advance Care Planning within the Hispanic/Latino/a/x community.

Expanded in July with new team members, our bilingual team of Specialists are able to connect with our Spanish-speaking members in their native language. Beyond the spoken word, our bilingual team reminds us that there is comfort in representation, especially when navigating difficult conversations over the phone or video.

We’re humbled by their passion and service to their communities, and we share their perspectives in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month — a time to recognize, celebrate, and honor the diverse achievements, history, culture of Latino/a/x & Hispanic people.

What do you love most about working with your Hispanic clients? 

Stephanie – I came from Costa Rica. My mom was a nurse and has a thick accent. It’s hard for her to be understood. How important it is to have someone on the other end of the phone who understands not just your language but also your culture. It’s not something we learned in a class or a lunch & learn. When a Spanish speaking Specialist is offered the clients are so relieved.

Jennifer – When I’m speaking to a Spanish speaking client, I feel a closer connection. The client feels more comfortable, opening up and having a conversation with me.

Elizabeth – We have a huge family, we’re from Honduras and came over for treatment. This isn’t common or understood there. I realized how difficult these conversations were. Not wanting to disappoint, not wanting to make the wrong decision. I really wanted to create a bilingual team. Being part of that growth.

Theresa – I had to see my mom & dad struggle a lot, they didn’t feel comfortable coming to parent night. It was hard. You want to show up for your kid but it’s hard when you can’t be understood. I saw people being lost in this huge hospital system. I’d stop, help them, walk them where they’re going. That’s essentially what I do now. Helping people work through a struggle.

Ana – There’s a big difference between living in Miami with a big Latino community and smaller pockets of diversity in Wisconsin, where I grew up. My mom was part of that movement – bringing more diversity to our midwest town. It’s always been important to devote myself to the Latino community. I was born in Brazil and also speak Portuguese. You can hear it across the phone that representation matters. It really matters.

What are some Cultural nuances you’ve noticed in this work? 

Zully – When there are differences in how we talk, there’s still an underlying appreciation that we’re all Latino. It’s more comfortable to ask clarifying questions when there are cultural nuances. Sometimes it turns into spanglish!

Stephanie – It’s really something that we don’t need to overthink. We’re all Latinos. Where are you from? We know, we can recognize accents. Lots of us have grown up in urban areas with lots of Latino diversity. Nobody’s correcting. We’re all under one umbrella and we’re all proud of our cultures and love learning about each others’.

Elizabeth – How to conceptualize Advance Care Planning over the phone, it comes together through storytelling. Our members like to tell us what is meaningful to them through stories. Latinos communicate through story. It’s unique. It allows us to connect with them, and understand their experiences.

What do you wish people knew about Hispanic culture? 

Zully – That’s tough. We are so different. We don’t fit in one mold.

Mabelin – I see two things common in our communities: resilience – even though we may cope with situations in a different way. Another thing is our sense of community and family. We care about family. We do what we can do to be close and present. I see this in all countries in our culture.

What barriers have you noticed related to Advance Care Planning conversations?

Jennifer – There’s a stigma – ‘I’m not at a point where I’m dying. Let’s not talk about it. It’s not easy to talk to my mom about this. We just don’t talk about it.’ That barrier is common in the community.

Theresa – There’s also a lot of faith in God. Just let it be. Things will get better.

Annabys – We also don’t tend to question authority; we don’t question the doctors. So speaking with a specialist in your own language, who understands these cultural roots really matters. The delivery of ACP matters in Latino communities — it needs to be supportive, not intrusive.

I love working with clinicians to get confidence to talk about ACP — something that is so taboo culturally. I love helping our Specialists get comfortable in having these uncomfortable conversations, and work through the discomfort. It’s a beautiful way to support a person and their family.