Announcements

Cross-Cultural Mental Health Conference 2010 Information

DAY 1 SCHEDULE

08:00 - 08:30	Registration & Breakfast
08:30 - 09:00	Blessing/Opening Prayer
09:00 - 10:00	Consumer Panel (Chinese, Japanese, Afghan, Sudanese)
10:00 - 10:30	BREAK
10:30 - 12:00	Dr. Laurence Kirmayer / Cultural Psychiatry and the Politics of Alterity
12:00 - 13:00	LUNCH
13:00 - 13:15	Spirit of Hope Award
13:15 - 13:30	Sri Pendakur & Mark Rayter - Vancouver Community Mental Health Project Introducing the Capacity Building project - Training Staff To Work With Refugees, Parents & Children Who Have Been Impacted By Trauma
13:30 - 14:15	Debra Pressé / Healping Ensure Refugees are Safe and Sound
14:15 - 15:00	Dr. Karen Grant /The Complex Role of the Mental Health Interpreter in Trauma Therapy with Refugees

DAY 2 SCHEDULE

08:00 - 08:30	Registration & Breakfast
08:30 - 10:30	Dr. Steven Aung Gong with Aung - Physical Mental and Spiritual Alignment, Qi Gong Exercises & The Six Senses - The Way to Replenish and Enrich our Physical, Mental and Spiritual Well Being
10:30 - 11:00	BREAK
11:00 - 12:00	Dr. Ying Hoh - Challenges and Strategies in Working with a Large Number of Immigrant and Refugee Children and Families as the only School Psychologist in the Coquitlam School District
12:00 - 13:00	LUNCH
13:00 - 15:00	4 Interactive Workshops
	1. Step Ahead: A Service Model for "High Needs" Refugees and Immigrants
	2. Capacity Building & Mental Health Literacy with a group of Afghan women (VCMHS - CCMHP program)
	3. Safe & Sound (Documentary film - "Lessons Learned")
	4. Youth (Title TBA)
15:00 - 15:30	BREAK
15:30 - 16:15	GP's Forum
16:15 - 16:30	Wrap Up

Presenter Biographies & Discussions

Dr. Laurence Kirmayer, MD FRCPC

Laurence J. Kirmayer, MD, FRCPC is James McGill Professor and Director, Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry, McGill University. He is Editor-in-Chief of Transcultural Psychiatry and directs the Culture & Mental Health Research Unit at the Jewish General Hospital in Montreal where he conducts research on mental health services for immigrants and refugees, psychiatry in primary care, the mental health of indigenous peoples, and the anthropology or psychiatry. He founded and directs the annual Summer Program and Advanced Study Institute in Cultural Psychiatry at McGill and co-directs the National Network for Aboriginal Mental Health Research. He co-edited the volumes,

Current Concepts of Somatization (American Psychiatric Press)
Understanding Trauma: Integrating Biological, Clinical, and Cultural Perspectives (Cambridge University Press)
Healing Traditions: The Mental Health of Aboriginal Peoples in Canada (University of British Columbia Press)
Encountering the Other: The Practice of Cultural Consultation (Springer SBM)

Dr. Steven KH Aung, MD., O.M.D., PhD., FAAFP., C.M.

Dr. Steven KH Aung is a geriatric and family physician and a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner (TCM) and teacher. At the University of Alberta, Dr. Aung is an associate clinical professor in the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry and an adjunct professor in the Faculty of Extension and the Faculty of Rehabilitation Medicine. He is a World Health Organization advisor on TCM. Dr. Aung was awarded a Professional Excellency from the Academie Diplomatique de la Paix in 1986, the Alberta Order of Excellence in 2002, the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal in 2003, the Physician of the Century Award in 2005 and he was awarded the Order of Canada in 2006. He always promotes the integration of TCM and Eastern biomedicine in the spirit of a natural and compassionate approach to health care.

Clinical Associate Professor, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, University of Alberta
Adjunct Professor of Extension, Rehabilitation Medicine, Public Health and Pharmacy & Pharmaceutial Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Associate Clinical Professor, College of Dentistry, New York University, N.Y.C., U.S.A

Gong with Aung: Early Morning Physical, Mental and Spiritual Medical Qi Gong Exercises

This early morning exercise program aims to energize congress participants and help them attain a good start to their day. TCM encompasses several major therapeutic modalities, but the therapy that most directly applies not only to patients but also to health care practitioners themselves is Qi Gong. (1-2) Qi Gong has always been part of the basic training of TCM - as a therapy for patients and as a preventive and self care strategy for both patients and physicians. The basic building blocks of Qi Gong are breathing, concentration and posture/movement exercises. Breathing exercises are important because the breath is a major source of Qi. Focusing on breathing facilitates one's awareness of and control over the flow of Qi. The aim is to keep Qi circulating smoothly and harmoniously throughout the body, mind and spirit. Such vital energetic equilibrium is the TCM definition of good health. Concentration exercises are a moredisciplined form of breathing in order to gain more precise control the flow of Qi. Posture/movement exercises are a more dynamic and elaborate expression of breathing and concentration. Spirituality is an important aspect of Qi Gong, which is why exercises such as the Innter Smile are practiced in conjunction with the offering of blessings to all sentient beings and appreciation of nature. Qi Gong enhances awareness of vital energy and stimulates a sense of compassion. It facilitates the transfer of positive energy from the practitioner to the patient and helps transform medical technicians into genuine healers.

Six Senses: The Way to Replenish Well-being

There are many ways to replenish well-being. Some use medical acupuncture and herbal medicine, some use medical Qi Gong to cultivate and balance the body. One of the best and fastest ways to replenish our well-being is through the Six Senses. The Six Senses uses the autonomic nervous system which can go directly into the organ systems of the body. Perhaps this is the most effective way to take care of ourselves - through this kind of well-being exercise. The Six Senses of our body are: visual (eyes), auditory (ears), taste (tongue), olfactory (nose), special feelings (lips), and Samadha consciousness (intuition). All these six senses are connected to the internal organ systems, for example, eyes connected with the liver, ears connected with the kidneys, nose connected with the lungs, lips connected with the spleen, tongue connected with the heart, and Third Eye intuition connected with inner consciousness. We can exercise various things through these six senses and keep our organ systems healthy by balancing and harmonizing the physiological functions of the organ systems. From each and every Six Senses we can also go through the other Zeng/Fu organ specifically through certain exercises. For example visual sense while directly connected with the liver and gall bladder, different coloration is still associated with different organ systems. A specific colour is associated with a specific organ system, which can enhance balance and harmonize the parrticular organ. Since these are the Six Senses they are very sensitive to stimulation or cultivation of the Zeng/Fu organ systems. Perhaps this is the best technique to cultivate our body, mind and spirit in complete harmony and balance. In this way we can have optimum well-being.

Debra Pressé

Debra is the Director of Refugee Resettlement at Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) with responsibility for policy and program development in the selection and resettlement for the overseas refugee program.

As Director of the Resettlement Division, Debra works with colleagues within CIC, as well as with Canadian and international partners to design policies and programs that facilitate the identification, selection and resettlement of refugees from abroad, in accordance with federal immigration levels, international commitments and provincial agreements. In addition, the division assists in the development of services and programs that help ease refugees' integration into Canadian society. As such, the director is responsible for defining the research priorities and directs the division's policy development work.

Debra has been working in the immigration and citizenship field since 1984 and during the course of her career, has interviewed over 20,000 persons, most of whom came to Canada as refugees. She has been with Refugees Branch since 2001.

Debra resides in rural Ontario with her husband and spends as many days as possible visiting Alberta where her two sons live with their families.

Helping Ensure Refugees are Safe and Sound

This presentation provides some background to the interactive workshops "Step Ahead" and "Safe and Sound". Since the beginning of this century, the profile of government-assisted refugees has changed significantly. Practitioners have told CIC that today's refugees are more likely to arrive with serious health issues including more mental health concerns. This presentation will provide an overview of Canada's current refugee resettlement program, where practitioners in the mental health field can expect to see refugees coming from over the next 2-3 years and what steps are being taken to assist settlement workers in gaining an earlier understanding of refugees' settlement needs.

Dr. Karen Grant, PhD., RCC

Dr. Grant currently provides PTSD/trauma therapy for refugees at Bridge Clinic in Vancouver, B.C. Over the past 18 years, she has been extensively involved in providing therapy to immigrants and refugees, teaching and developing diversity training curricula for the helping professionals, and consulting in the areas of multicultural/diversity counselling, anti-racism, and social justice in psychology. Her work in this area has also included research on mental health interpreters. Currently, her research interests include refugee access to health-care, interpreter training/practice standards for mental health services; trauma and culture, and cross-linguistic therapy.

The Complex Role of the Mental Health Interpreter in Trauma Therapy with Refugees

Come and get the "inside view" of the challenges, advantages, and pivotal nature of the mental health interpreter in trauma work with refugees. This presentation will offer insight and tips for mental health practitioners on how to better understand and maximize the presence of an interpreter as well as provide interpreters with the opportunity to explore the potential of invluding mental health interpreting in their range of services.

Mark Rayter, MSW., RSW

Mark Rayter is the Manager of Child and Youth Mental Health Services in Vancouver. He holds a Master's degree in Social Work from UBC and has served in the field of children's mental health for more than 20 years. Mark strives to increase accessibility of mental health services for children, youth and families. He serves as a member of the Refugee Trauma Project Steering Committee and is humbled by the experiences of refugees

Sri Pendakur

Sri Pendakur is the Professional Practice Lead for Adult mental health in Vancouver. He has worked for more than 20 years in Adult mental health and one of the programs he manages is the Cross Cultural Mental Health program in Vancouver. He is also on the Refugee Trauma Project Sterring committee and through this project he hopes to enhance the skills of front line workers in adult programs.

Refugee Trauma Project

The Refugee Trauma Project is a 3 year project that will build capacity through training Child and Youth Mental Health and Adult Mental Health clinicians in Fraser and Vancouver Coastal Regions to provide trauma counseling to Refugees in identified communities as well as to strengthen the linkages with refugee serving agencies. The purpose of the Refugee Trauma Project is for Refugee children and youth together with their families receive required trauma counselling in order to maximize their opportunities for health and development as they settle and integrate into their new communities. The project is funded by Immigration and Welcome BC Branch for 3 years to build the capacity and enhance the skills of front line staff so that they are equipped to provide counselling to Government Assisted Refugees who have experienced trauma.

Dr. Ying Hoh, PhD

Dr. Ying Hoh is a Registered Psychologist who received her doctorate degree from the University of Manitoba. Between 1981 and 1998, Dr. Hoh was a member of the multi-disciplinary team in the Child Guidance Clinic of Greater Winnipeg. In 1989 she functioned as the Project Manager for the Winnipeg School Division NO.1 Task Force on Race Relationships. Between 1990 and 1992, she served as the Coordinator for the highly successful Youth Entry Program which was co-sponsored by the Winnipeg School Division No.1 and the Core Area Initiative. Since 1998, Dr. Hoh has been working as a school psychologist with the English Second Language students and their families in the Coquitlam School District #43.

Challenges and Strategies in Working with a Large Number of Immigrant and Refugee Children and Families as the only School Psychologist in the Coquitlam School District

Working with the newcomer students and their families: the dynamic interplay between emotional wellness and positive adaptation processes within the school setting. Adverse life circumstances are a double-edged sword in the hand of a particular individual student and/or a family. To a degree, the individual's personal resourcefulness and the availability of circumstantial supports are the limiting factors in one's ability to thrive in adversity. To understand the acculturation processes, the acquisition of English language proficiency and academic attainment is to witness the individual's triump. This presentation will cite individual students' and their families' journeys to demonstrate the merit of time-sensitive, systematic, multi-disciplinary collaboration to enhance psychological wellness and positive acculturation outcome for school-ages children and adolescents.

WORKSHOPS

Step Ahead: A Service Model for "High Needs" Refugees and Immigrants

Since the adoption of the Immigrant and Refugee Protection ACt in 2002, the profile of government-assisted refugees has changed significantly. In the subsequent years more and more refugees have arrived to Canada from refugee camps and from exile with histories of acute trauma borne from armed conflict and displacement. Unlike refugees from earlier periods, these refugees are more likely to have serious health concerns or had been deprived a basic education in their countries of origin. Against this backdrop Step Ahead was formed as a pilot project to address this new reality and to assist these newcomers settle in Canada amidst difficult obstacles.

This workshop will present an overview of the design and approach of the project to help clients move along the continuum of settlement and integration. Workshop participants will be invited to form small group discussions about their experience or concerns serving this population and then will enter into a dialogue with a panel of Step Ahead staff to collectively seek outnew understanding.

Presented By:

Marc Larrivee, MSW, RSW, Manager of Step Ahead

Marc Larrivee, Manager for Step Ahead is an immigrant from the United States who came to Vancouver in 2006 on a Canada-US Fulbright grant to research the Canadian approach to the settlement of immigrants and refugees in the Lower Mainland. He has 15 years experience serving refugees and immigrants in the US and Canada for Catholic Charities, the Maine Department of Health and Human Services and as a consultant.

Ronnie Law, BSW, Step Ahead Coordinator

Ronnie Law, Step Ahead Coordinator, was an immigrant from Hong Kong some fifteen years ago. He has a Bachelor's degree in social work and in social sciences, diplomas in Management Studies, Employment Counselling and Training for Trainers, certificates in Multiculturalism and Settlement and Immigration Practitioner etc. SInce 1996 he has worked in the areas of settlement services, langague instruction management, employement counselling, community participation, multiculturalism and anti-racism. Ronnie had been the Program Manager for Langley Community Services for over ten years. He also works as a free lance consultant in the settlement field.

Peal Jok and Jeanne Nzeyimana are Step Ahead Settlement Enhancement Counsellors, who provide first-language case management services to clients from various countries.

The Experience of Capacity Building and Mental Health Promotion with a Group of Women from Afghanistan

This workshop will describe a Change ways Group facilitated in Dari. According to the participants, the main objectives accomplished by this group were:

Increased mental health literacy
Decreased stigma about mental illnesses, specifically anxiety and depression
Creation of a social network and decrease in isolation
Connection with their cultural roots and cultural pride

This workshop will:

Demonstrate how a mainstream program was adapted to meet the cultural and language needs of immigrant/refugee women
Discuss outcomes of the adaptation to build capacity
Share lessons learned
Provide discussion opportunity for participants to explore how this approach can be adapted to their context

Presented by:

Anna Karla Maranhao MSc, RCC

Anna Maranhao holds a Bachelors and Masters in Clinical Psychology and was a lisensed Children and Family Therapist in California, USA. She currently works as a therapist and educator at Vancouver Coastal Health in the Cross Cultural Mental Health Program. Anna comes to us with 15 years of experience working with refugees and immigrants both in the USA and Canada. Along with that, Anna herself has 20 years of experience as an immigrant.

Safe and Sound

This 31min documentary film was created by 2 family doctors and a film maker in conjunction with VCH. "Lessons Learned" and how this information can be used from a health perspective will be discussed amongst workshop participants. The film has won 2 awards, one from the Canadian College of Family Physicians and one from the UBC Family Medicine Research Group. The purpose of the film is to highlight the human element in the stories of 5 refugees. The target audience of the film are: GP's, other health care workers, teachers and the general public. The film highlights the challenges refugees face and faced before migration and the strength and determination these people possess to tolerate difficulties and to succeed in their new lives. Five refugees are interviewed from different countreis and at different times during adaptation.

"Two family physicians gear up with a filmmaker to take a closer look at how five government assisted refugees move on from their varied pasts and adapt to their new lives in Canada. Set in Vancouver, B.C., the documentary film explores the transition challenges of these five unique individuals who were forced to leave their homelands of Burma, Iran, Iraq, Uganda and Uzbekistan. Special attention is paid to their experiences with primary health care in Vancouver, an area among many that is not without obstacles for the newcomers."

A short 2 minute trailer is available at: http://vimeo.com/12923738

(password is: safeandsoundtrailer)

Presented by: