Microaggressions and Cultural Ruptures in Psychiatry: Extending Multicultural Counseling Orientation to Psychiatric Services

Racial microaggressions and cultural ruptures have a significant impact on mental health care for Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) communities. This article reviews the application of the multicultural counseling orientation framework in psychiatry to address these challenges and improve therapeutic outcomes. The authors outline strategies to integrate cultural humility into psychiatric practice, with an emphasis on self-reflection, feedback, and the recognition of microaggressions. By fostering cultural humility, providers can create therapeutic spaces where patients feel safe and validated. The article also discusses cultural opportunities for exploring patients’ identities and advocates for open dialogue that addresses these aspects early in treatment. Structural recommendations include enhancing training programs to incorporate equity-focused coursework, promoting recruitment and retention of BIPOC clinicians, and developing institutional policies to address systemic inequities. Adopting these approaches can reduce the adverse effects of microaggressions, build trust, and improve mental health outcomes for BIPOC patients. The authors suggest that future efforts should emphasize systemic changes in training, recruitment, and community engagement to create a more inclusive mental health care system.