Global Mental Health Fellowship

Stevan M. Weine, MD
Program Director

The overall purpose of the fellowship is to train psychiatrists as leaders in clinical practice, public health, capacity building, education, and research concerning mental health and psychosocial problems in low-resource contexts globally and in the United States.

A growing number of entering psychiatry residents are interested in global mental health and would like the opportunity to develop expertise in this area.

Beginning in 2011, the UIC COM established a Center for Global Health, and recently appointed Dr. Stevan Weine as its new Director and the first ever Director of Global Medicine of the UIC COM. Through the CGH, Dr. Weine is establishing a global mental health program in order to further develop global mental health research, education, training, and service at the UIC COM. This fellowship will be a key component of that program.

Academic medical centers in the U.S. are increasingly developing global health initiatives for students, residents, and faculty. This includes global mental health initiatives and fellowships for global mental health. UIC has an opportunity to further distinguish itself by building on the expertise of Dr. Weine and his collaborators to create this fellowship. This includes multiple ongoing research projects in global mental health, both internationally and domestically, which fellows can become involved in.

Chicago is one of the world’s great global cities and has a large number of refugees and migrants and service organizations that work with them, such as Heartland Alliance. They also have a track record of education and training. This presents an opportunity for partnership.

The fellowship is designed to develop a set of core competencies described below.

• Describe the cultural expressions of mental illness and implement culturally appropriate prevention and treatment.
• Utilize locally available resources, including limited/essential medications, to provide high-quality clinical care to address the local burden of mental illness.
• Collaborate on an interdisciplinary team to strengthen and expand access to mental health services.
• Develop effective teaching skills to build the capacity of local health workers to care for the mentally ill using evidence-based protocols.
• Develop research skills in health services and implementation science and community based participatory research to strengthen health systems.
• Obtain clinical competence in managing common mental health conditions within immigrant, refugee, and asylum-seeking populations.
• Adhere to principles of ethical and equitable clinical practice.
• Develop a career plan that incorporates global mental health work after completion of the fellowship.