This video was recorded on March 25, 2021 as a part of the South Southwest Mental Health Technology Transfer Center Regional Advisory Board.
Structural racism is the main driver of mental health inequities and poor mental health outcomes, and yet, few understand the outsized role that structural racism places in the identification, diagnosis, and management of mental illnesses and substance use disorders. This presentation will examine key concepts associated with structural racism, will provide clear examples of how structural racism manifests in our mental health care system, and will discuss strategies for dismantling structural racism in our communities and institutions.
Ruth Shim, MD, MPH is 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. She also serves as Associate Dean of Diverse and Inclusive Education at the University of California, Davis School of Medicine.
She serves on the Editorial Boards of JAMA Psychiatry, Psychiatric Services, Community Mental Health Journal, and American Psychiatric Publishing. She is the co-editor of the books The Social Determinants of Mental Health, and the recently published Social (In)Justice and Mental Health.
She is a former fellow of the Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine (ELAM) Program and an at-large member of the National Academics of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Forum on Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders.
Dr. Shim's research focuses on mental health disparities and inequities, and she provides clinical psychiatric care in the UC Davis Early Diagnosis and Preventative Treatment (EDAPT) Clinic.
