JOIN US AT THE CONFERENCE! COCKTAIL HOUR WITH THE FOUNDER OF MONA
WHEN: 6:30pm Central Time on Thursday, October 21st
Submit your questions: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/WBD3QM5
Introducing the MONA member of the Month –Karlene Cunningham, PhD
We are expanding our monthly newsletter to feature our members. This month we are learning about MONA Member and new board member Karlene Cunningham, PhD
If you would like to nominate yourself or a fellow member for the Member of the Month, contact Deepika.goyal@sjsu.edu for more information!
We also would enjoy hearing your ideas for the newsletter or any other aspect of our Marcé of North America organization! Please send your ideas to Deepika.goyal@sjsu.edu
MEMBER OF THE MONTH QUESTIONS
1. What is your current professional role?
I am a Clinical Assistant Professor in the department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine at Brody School of Medicine. Clinically, I am an inpatient consultation and liaison psychologist at Vidant Medical Center. Administratively, I am the Director of Research and Vice-Chair of Diversity and Inclusion in my department.
2. What drew you to the field of Perinatal Mental Health
I often joke that I like to play in the intersection. What I mean is, that my interest in perinatal mental health grew out of my research on measuring sexual satisfaction, my desire to improve women’s health, and my training as a clinical psychologist. There are many factors that contribute to changes in rating sexual satisfaction, but a common complaint is a change in sexual behavior after the transition to parenthood. When working with patients or research participants, it was clear that this transition marked an increase in mood and anxiety symptoms that impacted all aspects of their life including their sexual relationships. I was also surprised about the lack of information available at the time aimed at supporting birthing people recovering from PMAD and wanting to enhance their sexual relationships. This led me on a journey to seek out additional training in perinatal mental health and join it with my research interest in sexual behavior. After seeing the impact of comprehensive perinatal mental health care while on internship at the Women and Infant’s Day Hospital, I was hooked.
3. What is your current research involvement?
My research has evolved over time. I am currently focused on two projects 1) examining Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion practices in perinatal mental health and 2) educational strategies for teaching sexual and reproductive health in undergraduate medical education. As the director of research, I also spend time mentoring and developing educational interventions to improve scholarly productivity among psychiatry residents.
4. What does a typical workday look like for you - including before and after work?
My day usually starts around 6 am. My 6-year-old has gotten into the habit of getting himself ready for school and will join me for morning snuggles. He gets to watch 30 mins of video game play throughs for waking up on time and getting ready. During that time, I get breakfasts and lunches packed and get myself ready for work. I do morning drop off, so we run out the door to get him to school once he is done with breakfast. My workday changes depending on the day. When I am on the CL service, I do morning table rounds with my residents and then I see patients across the hospital including our Children’s hospital where our L&D and antepartum units are located. I have a half day clinic once a week where I see many of my perinatal and sexual health patients. Admin days are spent in meetings with leadership, residents, and students helping to contribute to institutional research and DEI goals. I love my research time where I get some time to think about new problems and ideas. My husband is in charge of child pick up, so when I get home, we are usually ready to start dinner and family time. Each day of the week has a theme (e.g., movie night, board game night, candy day etc.), so we are able to jump into being together. Once my kiddo is asleep, I usually catch up on emails while watching shows with my husband or listen to an audiobook (I’m addicted to books).
5. What are you most excited about in your current work?
I get really energized about learning, teaching, and building community. Eastern North Carolina is made up of mostly rural counties and the mission of my school is to create a medical work force that wants to serve in our region. So, seeing my learners get excited about our mission and our patients really helps to maintain me. I am also excited about getting to a critical mass of interest in perinatal mental health and DEI at my institution. We are starting to launch some larger community collaborations that will benefit so many.
6. What’s one of the most important things you’ve learned from a mentor or role model?
One of the most important things that I have learned from a peer mentor is that I can’t be everything for everybody. She told me this because she saw me as someone that invested a lot of effort into other people’s dreams, but spent less time on my own. Her words helped me to clarify how much time was for others and how much time I needed to keep for myself to feel fulfilled. It has helped me feel more harmony among my different roles in life.
7. What are your favorite things to do outside of work?
I love listening to audiobooks, specifically paranormal romances, but also the full gambit of fiction and nonfiction literature. I also play video games and do a lot of cooking. My kiddo has several food allergies so, while I have always loved cooking, I had to learn new ways of making things to accommodate his diet.
8. What is the most interesting book, podcast, TV series, or movie you’ve encountered in the past year?
Oh, there are so many! I really enjoyed the book Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents. There was so much in this book that helped me reconceptualize how power is wielded in different spaces. It also gave me language and stories to use to illustrate these dynamics that often go unseen. The Sum of Us is another great book highlighting the economic and social costs that racism has on all of us.
MONA trainee is awarded Fulbright-Hays fellowship
Biniyam Melesse (MONA trainee and Sandraluz Lara-Cinisomo’s doctoral student) has been awarded the Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad Fellowship. The fellowship supports graduate students conducting research abroad. Biniyam will engage in full-time dissertation research in Ethiopia for one year. His dissertation topic is on the associations between neighborhood-level characteristics and the mental health of pregnant women and mothers of children under the age of five. Biniyam’s study will be in the Sub-Saharan African country of Ethiopia, in the city of Addis Ababa. The project aims to address the contextual factors affecting reproductive women’s mental health in the region.
Northwestern Perinatal and Womens Mental Health Fellowship 2022-2023
Fellows will receive in-depth exposure to and training in:
• Menstrual-related mood or anxiety symptoms
• Preconception medication counseling
• Management of psychotropic medications during infertility treatments
• Treating Depression, Bipolar Disorder, and Anxiety in Pregnancy, Postpartum and Perimenopause
• Medication Management During Breastfeeding
• Traumatic birth • Trauma-based disorders
• Mother and Infant Attachment
• Behavioral Activation Psychotherapy
• Light/therapy Circadian Rhythms Intervention
• Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Men and Fathers Clinic
Fellows also have the option to see patients in the comprehensive care clinic for men and fathers with mood and anxiety disorders related to the birth of a child or trauma related to childbirth of a partner. Clinical Training Sites - Fellows train in a women’s outpatient clinic in the Asher Center for the Study and Treatment of Depressive Disorders as well as a collaborative care obstetrical clinic which has an integrated outpatient psychiatry clinic in Prentice Hospital. Based at the Asher Center for the Study of Depressive Disorders and Northwestern Medicine The fellowship is housed within the Feinberg School of Medicine, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. Psychiatrists in the Asher Center work closely with Prentice Hospital –premier women’s hospital in the Midwest; the largest birthing center in Illinois; offering an extensive range of medical services and specialized care for women.
Application Eligibility & Requirements:
• Complete an ACGME-accredited psychiatry residency program prior to the anticipated start date of the fellowship program
• Candidate must be board-certified or board eligible in general psychiatry
• Candidate should have strong clinical background with experience in the diagnosis and treatment of acute and chronic mental disorders.
Please send a Personal Statement – (one page maximum) describing your interests in perinatal and women’s mental health, achievements, and career goals (optional – include interests/goals in research), curriculum vitae and two (2) letters of recommendation including (to be emailed directly by the writer). Admissions are rolling until the fellowship spots are filled.
Primary Northwestern Faculty: Dr. Crystal Clark, Dr. Sheehan Fisher and Dr. Katherine Wisner
Please send documents by email to: Barbara Sutcliffe, Program Assistant b-sutcliffe@northwestern.edu
NIH FUNDING OPPORTUNITY SEEKS PROPOSALS TO OPTIMIZE PERINATAL DEPRESSION PREVENTION METHODS
NIH Funding Opportunity Seeks Proposals to Optimize Perinatal Depression Prevention Methods
NIH recently released two funding opportunity announcements, RFA-MH-21-240 and RFA-MH-21-241, soliciting applications to refine and examine preliminary effectiveness of perinatal depression preventive interventions in settings where women receive perinatal care.
Perinatal depression is one of the most common complications of pregnancy and the postpartum period. It affects as many as 1 in 7 pregnant women and can result in negative short- and long-term consequences for mother and baby. Hybrid effectiveness-intervention trials are needed to understand better how these and other research-supported interventions may be implemented at scale in diverse health care and community settings by local providers who are trained to deliver interventions with fidelity.
The research scope of the funding opportunities includes:
- Refining and pilot testing strategies for identifying women at risk for perinatal depression
- Developing and testing tools for selecting those most likely to benefit from preventive interventions
- Refining and testing service-ready efficacious preventive interventions that are of appropriate intensity/dose and are scalable, such that they can be delivered with fidelity by setting providers
- Optimizing and testing strategies that can be used to train providers and to support delivery of evidence-based approaches with fidelity across diverse health care and community settings
Visit the respective funding opportunity announcement webpages for RFA-MH-21-240 or RFA-MH-21-241 to submit applications. All applications are due by October 9, 2021, at 5:00 p.m. local time.
Facebook: /NIHORWH Twitter: @NIH_ORWH Website: nih.gov/women E-Mail: orwhinfo@mail.nih.gov
Shades of You, Shades of Me Conference featuring Dr. Crystal Clark
Shades of You, Shades of Me, is a Maternal Mental Health Awareness & Advocacy agency that seeks to build a community of support for women of diverse cultural backgrounds. It is our honor to host the 3rd Annual Multicultural Maternal Mental Health Virtual Conference in recognition of Maternal Mental Health Awareness Month on October 6-8, 2021, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
This special event will offer interactive, community-centered opportunities to engage participants in discussions focused on the intersectionality of maternal mental health, diversity, and culture. Sponsored by Perigee Fund, The Bloom Foundation, Postpartum Support International Wisconsin (PSI-WI), our goal this year is to host a virtual conference of 300 participants. We have created this event to share lessons learned from mental health professionals, policymakers, healthcare providers, doulas, the valuable voices of consumers, community organizers, advocates, and religious leaders in order to promote collaboration and innovation toward the development of culturally responsive care and services to support mothers.
We would like to offer 15% off the general conference rate to our valuable partners. Please use the code PARTNERS15 to avail the discount. We look forward to seeing you at the conference.
Marce of North America
The Marcé Society of North America is committed to the advancement of Clinical Care, Research, Advocacy, and Education.
Email: marce@meetingachievements.com
Website: www.marcenortham.com
Phone: 219.465.1115
Twitter: @Marcenortham