On May 26th, 2022, from 6-7 PM CST, SAAPRI hosted a community health panel led by health professionals, professors, and public health advocates, Dr. Ammara Khalid, Dr. Anne Saw, Dr. Jordan Stalker, and Kiran Kaur Gill and moderated by the University of Illinois at Chicago’s South Asian Medical Student Association (SAMSA).
This event catered towards South Asian American mental health in Chicagoland, especially as May was Mental Health Awareness Month. We discussed how the pressures on our mental wellbeing have increased in recent years and how the recent COVID-19 crisis has resulted in a spike in mental health issues as a direct result of increased uncertainty, financial pressures, and social isolation, further exacerbated by anti-Asian hate crimes and xenophobia. We also discussed the specific prevalence of mental health problems in South Asian American adults as well as the barriers to treatment services.
This community forum is a part of SAAPRI’s efforts to advance health equity after being selected as the Regional Community Based Partner in the Asian Engagement and Recruitment Core (ARC) by the Asian Health Coalition as part of the National Institute of Health’s All of Us research program. The goal of ARC is to engage diverse populations of Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians, and Pacific Islanders (AANHPIs) to accelerate research and improve health outcomes in the communities we serve.
Thank you to all those who attended our event! If you were not able to attend, you can access the recording here.
- Access the Facebook event page here