Panel Discussion 4 - Increasing Access to Care Among Under-resourced and Under-represented Couples in Research and Practice: What Is Working and What Else Is Needed?

Under-resourced and under-represented couples experience greater psychosocial stressors and different relationship stressors relative to higher income and white, heterosexual, couples. These couples also face greater barriers to accessing care, and many existing interventions have been developed and validated among primarily white, heterosexual, middle-class, participants, which may not fully address the needs of other communities being served. Such barriers make it difficult to access and retain these communities in research and clinical practice, which further perpetuates health inequities within these communities. Recent efforts in couples research has taken notable strides to increase access to care within these communities by developing brief, flexibly delivered interventions that are specifically tailored to the unique needs of the community being served, with good effect. Though these efforts are essential for increasing health equity for all couples and families, barriers still remain. The present panel will highlight progress on increasing access to care among under-resourced and under-represented communities in research and clinical practice as well as areas where barriers persist, and what resources and strategies are needed to address these barriers. We have six experts, who specialize in working with a range of under-resourced and under-represented couples and families. All panelists will speak to their experiences adapting interventions to specific community needs and efforts to increase the accessibility of treatment services among these communities. Drs. Gordon, Williamson, and Carlson will discuss efforts to increase access to care among couples and families with low-income. Drs. Whitton and Newcomb will discuss methods for engaging sexual and gender minority couples. Drs. Jones, Carlson, and Williamson and will discuss engaging parents as well as couples and families of color. Through this discussion, we will cultivate a rich dialogue with the audience about their experiences engaging under-resourced and under-represented populations as well as consider how we can continue to address existing barriers and deliver culturally sensitive interventions most suitable for the populations we seek to serve.