MAVEN Project and Americares join forces to address mental health
As Americares responds to disasters and tackles health needs all over the world, one issue consistently and increasingly needs to be addressed: mental health and wellbeing. In the U.S., Americares is working with partner health clinics to help them address this ever-present need.
In 2022, nearly half of Americans lived in mental health workforce shortage areas. And despite the increased attention on mental health and wellness, particularly in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, getting appropriate treatment remains a challenge. This is especially true in community health care settings, where patients often face additional barriers to care, including cost, transportation and language difference.
To help providers gain a deeper understanding of mental health treatments and how to safeguard their own wellbeing, MAVEN Project and Americares joined forces to host a series of education sessions on mental health. The series was made possible with the generous support of Cencora Impact Foundation.
The series of 30 sessions included:
- Treating Patients with OCD and Panic Disorder
- How to do a Physical, Sexual and History Taking for the LGBTQ Patient
- Working with Patients with Borderline Personality Disorder in Primary Care
- Pharmacological Treatment of Anxiety Disorders
- Using Laughter to Improve Health and Wellbeing
- Time Management and Preventing Burnout
Each session was uniquely tailored to the needs of free and charitable clinics and community health centers and included digestible, actionable information. By better preparing providers, they’ll be able to expand and elevate access in an environment where patients are already receiving primary care services.
The content was enthusiastically appreciated by the hundreds of providers who attended the sessions. Here’s some of the great feedback from workshop attendees:
- “This was one of the best educational events that I’ve attended; extremely informative and useful in treating patients more inclusively and respectfully. Thank you very much!”
- “Excellent talk. Concise and clear with a wealth of useful info.”
- “This was a fantastic session! I’ve attended a number of CME sessions on gender affirming care including how best to communicate with patients, but this gave me far more info on how to welcome and help with patient comfort with great examples of language to use. Thanks so much! Great presentation and speaker!”
- “Thank you so much. This was an excellent presentation.”
- “My whole staff needs to watch this.”
Americares is a health-focused relief and development organization that saves lives and improves health for people affected by poverty or disaster. In the United States, Americares responds to emergencies and provides health facilities serving low-income and uninsured patients the resources they need to provide accessible health services and support equitable health outcomes. Resources include medicine and medical supplies, education, operational support, funding, training and innovations in health care delivery. Americares U.S. Programs support nearly 1,000 free clinics and community health centers nationwide.
For more information, visit americares.org.
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