Healing While Harmed
Dismantling racism in mental health systems and healthcare
About the Conference
The intersection of healthcare and racial justice has never been more critical. Recent research reveals that structural racism in healthcare systems continues to create profound disparities in access, quality, and outcomes for communities of color. From the persistent effects of medical apartheid to contemporary manifestations of physician bias, healthcare institutions, including mental health systems, remain sites where racism inflicts both overt and insidious harm.
Join us for the third annual Psychologists for Racial Justice Virtual Conference as we explore the complex intersections of racism, healthcare, and mental health. This year's conference will provide a critical platform for understanding how systemic racism operates within healthcare delivery, perpetuates health disparities, and undermines the therapeutic process itself.
More importantly, we will explore strategies, innovative interventions, and community-centered approaches that psychologists can employ to transform these systems from within.
Background
Why This Conference Matters
Recent empirical evidence underscores the devastating impact of racism on health outcomes, with direct implications for psychologists and behavioral health providers. The COVID-19 pandemic shattered the long-observed "mental health paradox," where Communities of Color reported lower rates of mental health disorders despite experiencing greater stressors, revealing how acute systemic crises can overwhelm even the most resilient communities.
Structural racism manifests through multiple pathways: bias among providers leading to differential pain management and treatment recommendations; race-based clinical guidelines that perpetuate biological determinism; exclusionary medical education curricula that frame race as biology rather than addressing racism as a social determinant; and institutional policies that systematically disadvantage communities of color.
Healthcare systems have the power to either perpetuate harm or catalyze healing. As psychologists, we possess unique expertise in understanding trauma, resilience, and systems change that positions us to lead transformation within these institutions.
Eight pillars of
transformative learning
Racism and Clinical Practice
Developing skills to identify and address structural determinants of health disparities within therapy relationships and treatment planning
Decolonizing Mental Health Diagnosis
Examining how diagnostic frameworks, assessment tools, and therapeutic modalities may perpetuate racial bias and exploring racially conscious alternatives
Mental Health Impacts of Medical Racism
Addressing trauma, medical mistrust, and psychological sequelae experienced by communities of color within healthcare settings
Healthcare Provider Bias
Understanding research on implicit and explicit bias among medical professionals and implementing evidence-based interventions
Healthcare Training & Education Reform
Integrating race-conscious education, health equity curricula, and structural competency training into psychology and medical programs
Community-Centered Healing Models
Highlighting innovative approaches that center community wisdom, traditional healing practices, and liberation psychology frameworks
Policy Advocacy for Healthcare Equity
Developing strategies to influence institutional policies, healthcare regulations, and funding structures
Increasing Racial Diversity
Examining barriers to entry and advancement for professionals of Color and implementing structural changes
Speaker Lineup
Learn from leading experts
Candice Hargons, PhD
Derek M. Griffith, PhD
David McIntosh, PhD
Panelist
Briana Spivey, PhD
Panelist
Grace Chen, PhD
Panelist
Alison Cerezo, PhD
Panelist
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Adiaha Spinks-Franklin, MD, MPH, FAAP
Panelist
Who Should Attend
This conference is for you
Whether you are a clinician working directly with patients affected by medical racism, a researcher investigating health disparities, an educator training the next generation of healthcare providers, or an advocate working for policy change, this conference will provide you with cutting-edge research, practical tools, and collaborative networks essential for this critical work.