On Friday, November 13, FMHO held a homeless mental health panel from 5-6:30 p.m. They featured professionals in various fields, including psychologists, nurses, and program officers, to help inform viewers about how the homeless population in our community is struggling during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The speakers and their professions:
Matt Tierney, NP, CNS — UCSF Clinical Director of Substance Use Treatment and Education, Office of Population Health
Emily Kruger, PsyD — Clinical Psychologist in Private Practice
Martin Pacheco — ACBH Housing Support Coordinator
Kawal Ulanday — ACBH Behavioral Health Clinician / Senior Program Specialist
Schalon Woods — Senior Program Coordinator
Jovan Yglecias — BACS Chief Program Officer
Astrid Scott — BACS Program Supervisor
Jose Perez — Samaritan House Behavioral Health Care Clinician
Rob Mabe — Samaritan House Associate Director of Clinic Operations
With 30 attendees, this speaker panel has been FMHO's largest event to date. The speakers first introduced themselves and explained their experience with mental health, including the work they have done. They then went on to discuss the repercussions of the multitude of stigmas weighing down homeless people struggling with their mental health before addressing ways people in our community could help. In the last 15 minutes, during the live Q&A portion of the event, panelists stressed the importance of working in the medical field, especially when dealing with social reform. Overall, the panel was highly informative and insightful, hopefully inspiring attendees to take action to help those in their community.
If you would like to view a video of the full panel, click this link
Stay tuned for more events coming soon! Remember to take care of yourself, and stay safe and healthy!
Written By: Kruthi Gollapudi, Publicist of FMHO