Amplifying Voices and Building Bridges: NIMH Symposium Calls for Action Towards an Inclusive Path Forward
Ann Millermental health

June 14, 2024
• Institute Update • 75th Anniversary

It is estimated that one particular in 5 U.S. adults reside with a mental illness. These situations can variety in severity and lead to disability. “But hidden within those statistics are the striking disparities that exist in the prevalence, course, and burden of mental illnesses,” stated Joshua A. Gordon, M.D., Ph.D., Director of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH).

Gordon’s remarks opened the “75th Anniversary: Amplifying Voices and Building Bridges: Toward a More Inclusive Future” symposium, which was held at the National Archives Building in Washington, D.C., and videocast on the net on March 18, 2024. Part of a year-lengthy celebration featuring a trio of themed symposiums and other events, this symposium focused on inclusion in analysis, disparities in wellness and access to care, and diversity in the mental wellness workforce.

“As an institute, we have much to be proud of, but we also need to reflect on our failures, particularly those related to racism and discrimination,” stated Dr. Gordon. “Understanding the past and present will enable us to continue deconstructing systemic racism within biomedical research and pave the way for a brighter future.”

The symposium brought collectively researchers, these living with mental illness, clinicians, and communities to reflect on possibilities to engage persons in mental wellness analysis in meaningful and equitable methods. The symposium opened with remarks from NIH Director Monica Bertagnolli, M.D., and Gordon, followed by a keynote by Ruth Shim, M.D., M.P.H. , the Luke Grace Kim Professor in Cultural Psychiatry and Professor of Clinical Psychiatry in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the University of California, Davis.

In her speak, Dr. Shim detailed the difficult and checkered history of mental wellness care and analysis in the United States, from the situations of the early institutions to structural forces that harm persons inside Black and other minority communities. She also discussed systemic troubles, ideas of oppression, and the significance of a shift from focusing solely on equality to prioritizing equity and justice, applying neighborhood-primarily based approaches that center on the experience of oppressed and minoritized communities and folks with lived experiences of mental illness.

“Maya Angelou said, ‘History, despite its wrenching pain, cannot be unlived, but if faced with courage, need not be lived again.’ That’s our hope when thinking about NIMH in the future: We have the courage not to repeat the mistakes of the past,” stated Dr. Shim.

The keynote was followed by many panels, like:

  • Engaging Partner Perspectives in Research, featuring Loretta Sweet Jemmott, Ph.D., M.S.N., R.N., FAAN , Rinad Beidas, Ph.D. , and Carlos Laurrari, J.D., M.PA., M.S.N. , and moderated by Joel Sherrill, Ph.D., Deputy Director of the NIMH Division of Services and Intervention Research.
  • Inclusion in Access to Care/Health Disparities, featuring Jessica Goodkind, Ph.D. , Benjamin Le Cook, Ph.D. , and Sidney Hankerson, M.D., M.B.A. , and moderated by Christina P.C. Borba, Ph.D., M.P.H., Director of the NIMH Office for Disparities Research and Workforce Diversity.
  • Cultivating Inclusion in the Mental Health Research Workforce, featuring Gina Poe, Ph.D. , Cynthia Rogers, M.D. , Fátima Sancheznieto, Ph.D. , and Cesar Escobar-Viera, M.D., Ph.D. , and moderated by Janet Clark, Ph.D., Director for Fellowship Training in NIMH’s Intramural Research Program.

These talks concentrate on navigating and eliminating barriers to inclusion and advancement in mental wellness analysis and therapy. The speakers advocated for cultivating diversity and empowering early profession researchers. They also discussed the significance of centering marginalized individuals’ participation, experiences, and values via neighborhood engagement, amplifying voices, and leveraging lived encounter to address disparities and reach equity in mental wellness care delivery.

Altha Stewart, M.D. , Senior Associate Dean for Community Health Engagement, Director of Public and Community Psychiatry, and Director of the Center for Youth Advocacy and Well-Being at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center, delivered the closing keynote address. Weaving stories from her encounter as a Black psychiatrist, Dr. Stewart discussed historical context, the energy of pivotal moments for modify, and addressing future analysis and funding for wellness equity.

“We’ve made some tremendous progress. There are things that have happened in the last decade that many of us would never have imagined,” stated Dr. Stewart, when acknowledging there is nonetheless considerably operate to do.

“It was an incredibly insightful day, and we’re so grateful to all the speakers for sharing their time and experiences with us,” stated Shelli Avenevoli, Ph.D., NIMH Deputy Director, in her closing comments. “This symposium served as a commemoration and a call to action for all of us to create a more inclusive future.”

The recordings from this symposium are accessible on the NIMH web site and its YouTube channel . To discover additional about NIMH’s 75th Anniversary, check out www.nimh.nih.gov/75years.

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Ann Miller
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