GlobalMentalHealth@Harvard Weekly Newsletter

GMH@Harvard Initiative Weekly Newsletter

View this email in your browser

View previous newsletters here

In this issue:

Upcoming Mental Health Related Webinars
Opportunities

April 5th 2021

Upcoming Mental Health Related Webinars

11th Global Mental Health Research without Borders Conference - April 5-7, 2021
Hosted by National Institute of Mental Health & Grand Challenges Canada
The National Institute of Mental Health and Grand Challenges Canada are sponsoring the 11th Global Mental Health Research without Borders Conference on April 5-7, 2021, which will bring together researchers, innovators, and other stakeholders from around the globe. The conference will showcase findings from cutting-edge science and explore new opportunities for groundbreaking research.

You can check the Agenda here.

Login NOW to the Zoom.us link here!

Free Daily Live - Online Mindfulness Sessions

In light of COVID-19, Cambridge Health Alliance (CHA) Center for Mindfulness and Compassion offers free guided daily online practices. These practices are secular and open to all. Sessions include Mindful Movement, bringing kindness to our stress, anxiety, grief and fear, Weekly People of Color (POC) Mindfulness Practice, Mindfulness Practice for Addiction Recovery, Mindfulness of Breathing, Mindful Movement in Spanish and Mindfulness Practices in Portuguese. We look forward to you joining us!
See the Schedule, as well as more specialized offerings, here.

United for Global Mental Health Mental Health for All - Webinar Series
Hosted by: United for Global Mental Health

6th April: Child and Youth Mental Health - Early Childhood Development
Speakers include:
•   Andrea Torres, Bernard Van Leer Foundation
•   GFF - Bruno Rivalan TBC
•   Giselle Dass, CAFS (Child, Adolescent and Family services)
•   Ben Perks, State of the World's Children Report
•   Zeinab Hijazi, UNICEF

20th April: Child and Youth Mental Health - Youth Mental Health

Webinars are held every other Tuesday at 09:00 EST; 14:00 GMT; 15:00 CET; 15:00 SAST; 18:30 IST.
Each session is 45 minutes.

Register for the webinars here!

McLean Hospital Webinars
McLean Hospital recognizes the need for reliable and helpful mental health resources. With this in mind, we have dedicated the time of our staff to ensure we are making free resources available for the public and professionals in hopes of promoting healthy individuals and communities. Register for the webinars here.

The Truth About Trauma
April 6 @ 3pm EDT
Join us as Patricia Mangones, PMHNP-BC, shares the intricacies of trauma, signs and symptoms of the condition, ways to help navigate traumatic experiences, and answers audience questions about trauma.

The Golden Years & Mental Health
April 14 @ 11am EDT
Join Ipsit Vahia, MD, as he discusses ways to improve mental well-being in older populations, highlights research about technology’s role in mental flourishing, and answers audience questions about how we and our loved ones can truly enjoy the golden years.

Become Friends With Your Anxiety
April 15 @ 11am EDT
Join us as Lisa W. Coyne, PhD, unearths the positives about feeling anxious, shares ways to befriend our fear, and answers audience questions about shifting our attitudes about anxiety toward acceptance.

Ask Me Anything About Marijuana, CBD, and Mental Health
April 22 @ 11am EDT
Join Staci Gruber, PhD, as she addresses the myths and misconceptions of marijuana, discusses groundbreaking research on cannabis, and answers audience questions about the intersection of marijuana and mental health.

Maintaining a Mentally Healthy Relationship
April 29 @ 11am EDT
Join us as Lisa W. Coyne, PhD, highlights the effects of mental wellness on relationships, explores the ways in which communication can positively impact relationship dynamics, and answers audience questions about the importance of working through challenges together.

Disordered Eating, Body Image & Community Mental Health in Malaysia
Hosted by the HSPH Population Mental Health Forum Series: Social Justice, Co-Sponsored with HSPH STRIPED
Wednesday, April 7, 2021 9:00 am – 10:00 am EDT

A recent population based online study in Malaysia estimated about half of the population engage in disordered eating. However, mental health resources are low with only 1 psychiatrist and 1 clinical psychologist per 100,000 population, and help-seeking is low due to the stigma associated with mental illness. Dr. Chua, founder of Relate Malaysia, a nonprofit mental health organization, will discuss recent research findings, the challenges Relate Malaysia faces, and new directions for community mental health in Malaysia.

South to South Collaboration to Strengthen Child and Adolescent Mental Health in SSA: Lessons Learned from SMART Africa Center
Hosted by the International Center for Child Health and Development (ICHAD), Washington University in St. Louis
April 20-21, 2021 at 11:00am ET
5th Annual Conference on Child Behavioral Health in Sub-Saharan Africa! This year’s capstone conference will bring together SMART Africa study teams and other researchers from the continent to discuss ongoing projects related to scaling up evidence-based child mental health interventions, sustaining high-quality mental health care in resource-limited settings, lessons learned, and informing policies and programs in partner countries.

Abstracts are welcome for submission by March 12, 2021. See call for abstracts for additional details.

Public Health Student Forum
April 30th-May 1st, 2021 at 11:00am ET
The Boston University SPH Student Senate in partnership with the HPL org, Harvard SPH, Brown SPH, and Northeastern University are putting on the Public Health Student Forum on April 30th and May 1st. The Forum is designed to bring together public health students from the New England Area to share ideas, discuss urgent public health issues, and network so that we can be a stronger, interdisciplinary public health work force when we leave school.
Register here

Mental Health Track
Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health students: Cindy Chwa and Rachel Plummer lead the Mental Health Track.
The Mental Health Track aims to bring together public health students who are interested in discussing mental health, mental health inequities, the physical and mental health consequences of stigma, and psychosocial well-being through a population health perspective. The track will include student presentations, case-study discussions, career panels, and a getting to know you networking event. The goal of this track is to provide attendees with an understanding of the mental health discipline and how it relates to public and population health, how the field of public health can address mental health concerns at the population level from both a treatment and prevention standpoint, and to bridge connections between students from diverse backgrounds and interests.

17th Annual International INEBRIA Conference
Setting New Directions For Brief Interventions
September 22-24 2021
We are delighted to invite you to the 17th Annual INEBRIA Conference in Goa, India. Due to the global COVID-19 pandemic, the INEBRIA conference will be held in the form of a Hybrid Conference on September 22-24 of 2021. For the first time, the conference will combine an in-person event in Goa with virtual sessions for remote attendees. Brief interventions can play an integral role in addressing the burden, harms, and societal costs associated with alcohol use. However, there is limited uptake of brief interventions in culturally diverse and low resource settings. This necessitates a critical appraisal of what we have achieved until now as a field and debate and discussion on the next steps for brief interventions in specific cultural contexts. We anticipate that the conference will provide an opportunity for practitioners, implementers, academics, policy-makers, and various other state actors to influence the agenda for brief interventions. Our ultimate goal is to change the way we conceptualize addictions care particularly in low resource settings.

Opportunities

Jobs/Internships:

Post-Doctoral Fellow: The Developmental Risk and Cultural Resilience Lab
The DRCR lab is seeking a postdoctoral fellow to take part in a Harvard Medical School research fellowship program (T32), with mentorship provided by the Director, Dr. Cindy Liu. The position would start between June – September 2021 and continue for 2 years (contingent on good standing in the first year). This is a 100% research position that would take place at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston: https://www.drcrlab.com/. The ideal postdoc will have training in clinical research within the fields of psychology, mental health, and developmental science, and have an interest in disparities. The fellow will have access to data across a variety of different projects across the lifespan (perinatal, youth and college) as well as recent longitudinal studies taking place during the COVID-19 pandemic. They will work closely with Dr. Liu and her research team, as well as collaborators across the U.S. Responsibilities include data processing, analysis, and writing (manuscripts and grants), and the supervision of trainees. U.S. citizens, non-citizen U.S. nationals, or those lawfully admitted for permanent residence are eligible for T32 Institutional Training Programs. Those interested should email Dr. Liu directly at chliu@bwh.harvard.edu to obtain more information about the application process.

Research Consultant:
United for Global Mental Health is campaigning for the Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria to increase investments in mental health support for those living with HIV and TB, and to reduce the spread of these diseases. We are searching for a consultant with extensive research experience to calculate and articulate the value of incorporating mental health services into HIV and TB programmes (i.e. the effect of investing in mental health on global HIV and TB targets, and the savings that will likely come from increased uptake or retention in services and/ or adherence to treatment etc). This is part of an advocacy project aiming to make a clear case that integrating mental health and psychosocial services results in improved health outcomes and concomitant short and long term savings will be achieved.

Research Program on Children and Adversity
For more details, please see the detailed descriptions at the links below or contact RPCA’s Administrative Manager, Tesla Abrego (abregot@bc.edu).

Research Scientist (Boston): Ph.D. or equivalent in Implementation Science, Psychology, Public Health, or related fields required; Expert knowledge of implementation science, intervention research, randomized controlled trials, cluster-randomized trials, and mixed methods preferred.

Research Associate (Rwanda): Ph.D. or equivalent in Implementation Science, Psychology, Social Work, or related fields required; advanced statistical and computational programming skills required; five-plus years of experience conducting research in low-to-middle-income countries required.

Postdoctoral Fellow (Boston): Ph.D. or equivalent required, experience with implementation science to include hybrid design, cluster randomized controlled trials, longitudinal studies. Experience conducting research in culturally diverse contexts, preferably with refugee or immigrant communities. To apply, please submit a CV and cover letter to abregot@bc.edu

Data Manager (Boston): Ph.D. in Epidemiology, Biostatistics, Econometrics, Public Health, or other relevant fields preferred. Highly-qualified MA considered. Experience with mixed methods, data imputation, multilevel modeling, psychometric analysis, and item-response theory. To apply, please submit a CV and cover letter to abregot@bc.edu
Administrative Assistant (Boston): BA/BS degree in Public Health, Psychology, Political Science, International Studies, or related fields preferred. Experience with administration, operations, and communications. Seeking highly organized self-starter capable of working in a fast-paced environment. To apply, please send resume and cover letter to abregot@bc.edu.

Sangath, India (multiple positions available, see details at the link for the below positions):

Communications Manager: Location: Goa Headquarters (preferred); New Delhi location may also be considered.
Multiple roles for the project: Enhancing Mental Wellbeing In Ashramshala; Location: Maharashtra
Youth Coordinator; Location: New Delhi
Field Researcher; Location: Goa
Project Secretary; Location: Goa

Brain and Mind Institute - Aga Khan University (multiple positions available, see below. 3 year appointments in Pakistan or Kenya):

Participant Recruitment / Abstracts/ Submissions / Invitations / Funding Opportunities:

Harvard T.H. Chan Lee Kum Sheung Center for Health and Happiness:
Inaugural summer short course, “Exploring the Linkages between Mental Well-Being and Physical Health Outcomes”

Harvard T.H. Chan Lee Kum Sheung Center for Health and Happiness:
2021 Innovations in Positive Health Seed Grant Funding: Awards will be granted for amounts between $5,000 and $20,000. Funding can be used to cover research-related expenses, such as: supporting a research assistant, access to existing data, data collection activities, conference presentations, and travel (with prior approval). Applications for 2021 grant funding are due on April 16, 2021. This is a competitive grant program. It is open to all Harvard University faculty, research scientists, and post-doctoral research scholars. Hospital-affiliated Harvard faculty should reach out to the Center to confirm eligibility. Students are not eligible to apply for these funds. If you are unsure about your eligibility, please contact Jaime Mchunu.

Twitter

Website

Instagram

Do you have something to share with the Global Mental Health community? Send an email to Juliana_restivo@hms.harvard.edu and we will consider your submission for our next weekly newsletter.

GlobalMentalHealth@Harvard is a cross-Harvard Initiative aspiring to elevate the profile of mental health as a global public good and a universal human right.

Views and opinions expressed in the newsletter do not necessarily reflect those of Harvard University. Any postings, including jobs, events, news articles and others, are meant for informational purposes only and do not represent endorsement by GMH@Harvard or any Harvard affiliated Schools or Hospitals. Projects and events sponsored specifically by the GMH@Harvard Initiative are always indicated as so.

The newsletter is compiled by Juliana Lynn Restivo MPH, Program Coordinator for the GlobalMentalHealth@Harvard Initiative. Follow us on Twitter at @GMHatHarvard