In this episode of the Public Health Report, we share the latest public health news including:

• National Sleep Awareness Month
• Featured PHIAT Speaker: Azizi Seixas
• COVID and Latinx Mental Health
• What the End of the Public Health Emergency Declaration Means
• RTI Press: Addressing Medical Misinformation
• Upcoming Events

To read the text version, access our newsletter: https://phpn.substack.com/p/phpn-midweek-newsletter

References:

The Science of Sleep Video:

https://www.hsph.harvard.edu/event/the-science-of-sleep-exploring-the-connection-between-rest-and-health/

Learn more about National Sleep Awareness Month:

Read the PDF from Albany Medical College

Learn more about the PHIAT Conference:

phiatconference.com

Latino Mental Health and COVID:

Depression and Anxiety Among Latinos: Urgent Call for Mental Health Services:

According to LCH co-Director Leo S. Morales, MD, PhD, “COVID-19 has illuminated and exacerbated disparities in anxiety and depression impacting Latinos. WA state must do much more to provide accessible, and culturally and linguistically appropriate mental health services for all Latinos in our state, including rural and urban, insured and uninsured, migrant and non-migrant, and immigrant and non-immigrant.”

University of Washington Latino Center for Health

Why More Needs to Be Done for Latinx/Hispanic Mental Health:

“The COVID-19 pandemic has especially laid bare the health inequities affecting Hispanic/Latina/o immigrants, with recent reports indicating Hispanics have the highest age-adjusted infection rates than all other racial/ethnic groups, and COVID-19 cases are higher in areas with a larger proportion of Hispanics, undocumented individuals, and immigrants. Furthermore, Hispanics are at the highest risk for SARS-CoV-2 infection, hospitalization, and mortality.”

https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/pdf/10.1089/heq.2022.0041

Mental Health and COVID-19 Pandemic Stressors Among Latina/o/x College Students with Varying Self and Parental Immigration Status:

“Ultimately, we argue that the high-stress nature of the pandemic elevated mental distress across all student groups, but the structural exclusion of undocumented immigrants contributes to unique experiences of stress among Latina/o/x undocumented students and US citizen students with undocumented parents.”

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40615-021-01218-x

Mental health among rural Latino immigrants during the COVID-19 pandemic:

Abstract excerpt: “The mental health of the United States' Latino population significantly deteriorated during the SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) pandemic, and Latino immigrants living in rural areas faced unique vulnerabilities. However, few studies have specifically examined the mental health burden and experiences of rural Latino immigrants during the COVID pandemic….Our findings suggest that mental health intervention models that engage with multiple family members, policies that support infrastructure for encouraging exercise and outdoor activity, and ensuring access