Mentally Healthy Nation

Mentally Healthy Nation is the voice of the American Psychiatric Association Foundation. Each episode focuses on educating the public and providing tangible solutions to our mental health crisis. Subscribe to listen to candid conversations with experts about various aspects of mental health that impact where you live, learn, work, and worship. This podcast is subject to the Terms of Use at www.psychiatry.org. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the individual speakers in their personal capacity only and do not necessarily represent the views of the American Psychiatric Association Foundation, its officers, directors, or members or the views, official policy, or position of the institutions and organizations with which the speakers are affiliated. The content of this podcast is provided for general informational purposes only and is not intended as, and shall not be understood or construed as, medical or any other type of professional advice nor does it represent any statement of the standard of care. We strongly recommend that any listener follow the advice of physicians directly involved in their care and contact their local emergency response number for any medical emergency. The information within this podcast is provided as-is and is not guaranteed to be correct, complete or accurate.

23: A New Year 01/11/2023

22: Reflecting on Building a Mentally Healthy Nation 12/21/2022

21: Indigenous/Native American Mental Health 11/23/2022

21: Indigenous/Native American Mental Health November is Native American Heritage Month. Today, two psychiatrists who have worked with Indigenous peoples join us to talk about the struggles and protective factors associated with Indigenous mental health and how mental health professionals and others can become better advocates for Indigenous/Native American communities. Resources for this episode: and For a transcript of this episode, visit: Mary Hasbah Roessel, MD is a Navajo (Diné) psychiatrist from Round Rock, Arizona on the Navajo nation. She is a distinguished life fellow of the American Psychiatric Association and current APA Area 7 Trustee and works in Santa Fe, New Mexico at the Santa Fe Indian Health Center. She received her medical degree at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis and returned to the southwest to complete her residency in psychiatry at the University of New Mexico. She received an APA/ NIMH Fellowship during her residency and has since worked for 30 years with Indigenous peoples of the southwest, Alaska, and British Columbia. She has special expertise in cultural psychiatry. She grew up on the Navajo reservation with her family and extended Navajo family. Her grandfather Ashihii, was a revered Navajo medicine man. She was the lead facilitator to the Indigenous Cultural competency course working with the American Psychiatric Association’s Division of Diversity and Health Equity. She is a member of the Climate Psychiatry Alliance and APA Caucus on Climate Change and Mental Health. She presented on a panel discussing Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women at the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women in March 2016. She has provided presentations on Indigenous knowledge and climate change and wrote a chapter in the book:Groundswell- Indigenous knowledge and a call to action for climate change, edited by her husband, Joe Neidhardt, M.D., and daughter/artist, Nicole Neidhardt. Her chapter is on Essential Elements of Change, focused on living within two worlds—Indigenous and Western cultures in this climate crisis. She presented at COP26 in Glasgow, in November 2021 with her husband and daughter. The title of their presentation was: Walk In Beauty: Future Dreaming Through Indigenous Knowledges and Western Science. She enjoys spending time with her family hiking and participating in Navajo ceremonies in New Mexico and Arizona. Monica Taylor-Desir, MD, MPH is a Consultant with the Department of Psychiatry and Psychology at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN, where she serves as a community psychiatrist for the Olmsted County Assertive Community Treatment Team and as the co-chair for the Diversity and Inclusion Committee for the Mayo Midwest Department of Psychiatry and Psychology. Prior to joining Mayo Clinic, Dr. Taylor-Desir served as a community psychiatrist for tribal communities for 16 years. Dr. Taylor-Desir graduated from the University Of Cincinnati College Of Medicine. After completing her psychiatry residency and a fellowship in community psychiatry at Emory University, Dr. Taylor-Desir began her career with the Winslow Indian Health Care Center in Winslow, AZ working with a predominantly Navajo population. This work was through her commitment to the National Health Service Corps as a Scholarship recipient. Dr. Taylor-Desir then moved to Phoenix, Arizona to serve the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community for eight years. She was the first tribally hired psychiatrist and provided outpatient psychiatric care to community members, worked with the crisis team, the Salt River Department of Corrections and the community residential treatment center. She also worked to secure psychiatric care between state and tribal jurisdictions. Dr. Taylor-Desir then moved to New Town, North Dakota to serve the Mandan, Hidatsa, Arikara Nation for three years as their Chief Medical Officer and psychiatrist for the Elbowoods Memorial Health Care Center. She was instrumental in securing SAMHSA grants addressing mental health and substance use in tribal communities. One of her proudest honors is receiving the American Psychiatric Association 2019 Award for Excellence in Service and Advocacy from the Women of the Assembly. Dr. Taylor-Desir also serves as a member of the National Advisory Committee to the National Health Service Corps, where she continues advocacy for and service to tribal and rural communities. /episode/index/show/mentallyhealthynation/id/25109511

20: Opioid and Other Substance Use Disorders 10/12/2022

19: Youth Mental Health On Our Minds 09/28/2022

18: What You Should Know About the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline 08/17/2022

18: What You Should Know About the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline 988 (previously 1-800-273-TALK) is the new, easier-to-remember national suicide & crisis hotline that provides 24/7 confidential support via call, text, and chat to people experiencing a mental or behavioral health crisis. The hotline officially launched on July 16, 2022, but were states prepared for the rollout? Is 988 really the mental health version of 911? Today, two psychiatrists, Dr. John Palmieri and Dr. Eric Rafla-Yuan, join us to answer these questions and talk about the future of 988. John Palmieri, MD, MHA, is a Senior Medical Advisor at SAMHSA and currently serving as the Acting Director for the 988 and Behavioral Health Crisis Coordinating Office. Prior to his arrival at SAMHSA, Dr. Palmieri was the Division Chief for Behavioral Healthcare at the Arlington County, Virginia, Department of Human Services. Dr. Palmieri is a licensed physician in the Commonwealth of Virginia and is Board Certified in Adult Psychiatry. He graduated from Brown University Medical School and completed his Adult Psychiatry Residency at Massachusetts General Hospital. Eric Rafla-Yuan, MD is the 2021 American Psychiatric Association (APA) Jeanne Spurlock Congressional Fellow, and a voluntary assistant clinical professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of California San Diego, where he founded and led the psychiatry residency diversity committee. He graduated medical school and completed additional training in bioethics at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, and completed residency training at the UC San Diego Community Psychiatry Program. He currently serves on the APA Council of Advocacy and Government Relations, and previously served as the legislative director for the San Diego Psychiatric Society, and as a board trustee for the California State Association of Psychiatrists. His research focuses on policy and structural drivers of health outcomes and his work on clinical crisis services has been published in the New England Journal of Medicine and Health Affairs. For a transcript of this episode, visit: Resources Check out the rest of our podcast family at /episode/index/show/mentallyhealthynation/id/24081246

17: Advancing Mental Health Equity 07/27/2022

16: Language Matters 06/15/2022

15: How Are College Students Doing? 05/25/2022

15: How Are College Students Doing? While college is often reflected on as a great time in people's lives, that experience was never without stress and anxiety. However, over the past two years, issues that college students normally face have been exacerbated by the uncertainty and grief associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, societal reckonings, and racial and political tensions. So, how are college students doing these days? Joining us today are two psychiatrists working on college campuses, Dr. Ludmila De Faria and Dr. Meera Menon. They give us insight into college mental health, how the pandemic and other issues have impacted students' experiences and access to services, and provide tips for families and loved ones to better support their students' mental health. Ludmila De Faria, MD is an Associate Professor at the University of Florida where she also sees patients. Dr. De Faria has been a psychiatrist in Florida for over 15 years and is especially interested in increasing access and decreasing mental health disparities among minorities and providing a culturally sensitive environment for patients. She is a distinguished fellow of the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and an active member of the APA's Council on Children, Adolescents, and Their Families. Dr. De Faria was born in Brazil where she earned her medical degree from the Universidade de Brasilia and moved to the United States in 1991 to complete medical training at Jackson Memorial Hospital/University of Miami. Meera Menon, MD is a psychiatrist at Ohio State University’s Counseling and Consultation Service. At Ohio State, Dr. Menon is involved in the Eating Concerns Consultation Team, the Transgender Advocacy Team, and the Training Committee. In addition to also being an active member of the APA's Council on Children, Adolescents, and Their Families, she serves as Chair of the APA Caucus on College Mental Health and Secretary of the Association for College Psychiatry. Dr. Menon earned her medical degree from Wright State University where she also completed her psychiatry residency. Resources for this episode: , featuring Dr. De Faria and edited by Dr. Menon and Michelle Riba MD. to support policy decisions on college mental health APA Foundation and Check out the rest of our podcast family at For a transcript of this episode, visit: /episode/index/show/mentallyhealthynation/id/23222360