Maternal Health: What’s Changed And What The Future Holds

by | Jun 27, 2024 | KPFA, Podcasts, Radio Shows

Listen now to About Health (7/8/24) on KPFA.org 94.1FM

https://archives.kpfa.org/data/20240708-Mon1400.mp3

We discussed the many major issues people face related to pre-natal care, pregnancy, abortion, mental health, birth, c-sections, and postpartum complications. Racial disparities exist and Black women are three times more likely to die from a pregnancy-related cause than White women. There are many factors that contribute to these disparities, such as the quality in healthcare, any underlying chronic conditions, racism, and implicit bias. We will talk about some of the social determinants of health, and what can be done to reduce infant and maternal illness and death.

Guest:

Amanda P. Williams, MD, MPH, FACOG is the Clinical Innovation Advisor with the California Maternal Quality Care Collaborative (CMQCC) based at Stanford University School of Medicine where she also is an adjunct faculty member in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. In Spring 2024, Dr. Williams founded Poplar Lane Advisors LLC to create a platform to support startup companies and non profit organizations navigating the world of maternal health equity.

Dr. Williams previously served as Medical Director at Mahmee, a tech-enabled maternal health company dedicated to improving health equity and empowering families with wraparound care during the pregnancy and postpartum period. In this role she oversaw the company’s clinical programming, while fostering institutional partnerships, developing new business opportunities and supporting investor outreach.

Prior to joining Mahmee, Dr. Williams was a practicing OBGYN at Kaiser Permanente Oakland Medical Center where she served as Director of Maternity Services. Additionally, she oversaw the maternity continuum across Kaiser’s 15 medical centers in Northern California. She has also served on several state and national committees, such as the California Pregnancy-Associated Mortality Review, the California Surgeon General’s perinatal redesign stakeholder group, and the National Quality Forum Maternal Morbidity and Mortality work group.

Dr. Williams is a Magna Cum Laude graduate of Harvard University. She completed her medical degree at Emory University School of Medicine where she also received a master’s degree in public health. She completed her graduate medical training in Obstetrics and Gynecology at The University of California, San Francisco. Dr. Williams is a prominent voice on maternal health and health equity.

 

American Madness

by | May 20, 2024 | KPFA, Podcasts, Radio Shows

Listen here to About Health 5/27/24 KPFA.org—94.1FM https://kpfa.org/player/?audio=423094

Our mental health care system is broken, and has been for a long time. There aren’t enough psychiatric hospital beds, or psychiatrists, or therapists, or safe out patient facilities, or good follow up care, or housing, or retraining programs for people with mental illness who are leaving prison. Care often isn’t coordinated, and so many mentally ill people wind up on the streets or in prison. There are about 113,000 people in California at any time who are homeless, and about 25% of the homeless adults studied in Los Angeles County suffer from a severe mental illness. 

Please be aware that severe mental illness and suicide will be mentioned during this show, so if that might be triggering for you, you may want to skip this episode. For anyone who is needing help, please know that you can call the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988. It’s available 24 hours a day, and it’s free and confidential support for people in distress–that’s 988.

Guest:

Alice Feller is a clinical psychiatrist with a subspecialty in the treatment of substance use disorder. Many of her patients suffer from severe mental illness, and often live on the streets or behind bars.  She has worked in hospital emergency rooms, psychiatric wards, outpatient clinics, chemical dependency treatment programs and in private practice. Her approach includes psychotherapy tailored to the needs of the patient and medication where appropriate. She has taught classes on the treatment of substance use disorder and consulted to the California Medical Board on physicians impaired by chemical dependence.  She served two terms on the Berkeley Homeless Commission.  For the past two years she has been a member of FASMI (Family Advocates for Severe Mental Illness), an advocacy group campaigning for changes in the law and better mental health care.  Her recently published book is “American Madness” Fighting for Patients in a broken mental health system. She lives in Berkeley with her husband and daughter.

Climate Mental Health

by | Mar 2, 2024 | KPFA, Podcasts, Radio Shows

About Health on KPFA.org 94.1FM 3/11/24

According to a survey conducted by the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication and the George Mason University Center for Climate Change Communication, one in 10 Americans reports experiencing anxiety because of global warming. We will discuss why we need to talk about Climate and Mental Health and how to talk to young people about climate emotions.

Listen now!

https://kpfa.org/player/?audio=417050

GUESTS:

Anya Kamenetz speaks, writes, and thinks about generational justice; about thriving, and raising thriving kids, on a changing planet. Her newsletter on these topics is The Golden Hour. 

She covered education for many years including for NPR, where she co-created the podcast Life Kit: Parenting. Her newest book is The Stolen Year: How Covid Changed Children’s Lives, And Where We Go Now. Kamenetz is currently an advisor to the Aspen Institute and the Climate Mental Health Network, working on new initiatives at the intersection of children and climate change. Anya grew up in Baton Rouge and New Orleans, Louisiana, in a family of writers and mystics, and graduated from Yale University.

 

Matt Renner is Vice President of Seneca Environmental, where leads strategic development for Seneca Environmental with the goal of creating unprecedented collaboration to accelerate climate action. Previously he worked as a nonprofit executive in clean energy policy, climate organizing, and journalism for over a decade, focusing on the near-term social and economic impacts of climate change.

Matt began his career as an investigative reporter and later became the Executive Director of the World Business Academy to focus on the future of business in a climate-constrained world. He has a BA in Political Science and Government from the University of California, Berkeley. 

 

 

Building Resilience When Anxious, Worried, or Sad

by | Jan 18, 2023 | KPFA, Podcasts, Radio Shows

Join me and my guest Dr. Michael A. Tompkins to discuss the current mental health crisis that teens and adults are facing, and ways to build resilience and experience greater well being.  

**Listen now: https://kpfa.org/player/?audio=393133 **

KPFA.org—94.1FM 1/23/23

During these last few years stressors such as isolation, fear of infection, poor sleep, grief, change in routine, and financial worries have all been factors in increased anxiety and depression. Before the pandemic there were many people who weren’t being treated for their mental health challenges, and now even larger numbers of people across the country remain unable to get the care they need for both pre-existing and newly developed mental health concerns.

If you are experiencing depression and anxiety you are certainly not alone!

Research from Boston University School of Public Health revealed that the elevated rate of depression (in 2021) climbed to 32.8% affecting 1 in every 3 American adults.

Guest:

Michael A. Tompkins, PhD, ABPP is a licensed psychologist and board certified in Behavioral and Cognitive Psychology by the American Board of Professional Psychology. He is the co-director of the San Francisco Bay Area Center for Cognitive Therapy and a faculty member for theBeck Institute for Cognitive Behavior Therapy.He is the author of numerous articles and chapters on cognitive-behavior therapy and related topics, as well as 15 books, including his best-selling book for teens, My Anxious Mind: A Teen’s Guide to Managing Anxiety and Panic (Magination Press, 2010), which is included in the Reading Well for Young People initiative sponsored by the Wellcome Trust, London, United Kingdom. His newest books for teens are, The Anxiety and Depression Workbook for Teens: Simple CBT Skills to Help You to Deal with Anxiety, Worry, and Sadness (New Harbinger Publications, and Stress Less: A Teen’s Guide to Live a Calm Chill Life. (Magination Press, 2023).

Need Support Now? If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, help is available. Call or text 988 

Culture, Care, and Covid

by | Jul 29, 2021 | KPFA, Podcasts, Radio Shows

How can we address the ills of people who have been, and continue to be, struggling with the emotional and physical distress in this time of Covid?

There is a shortage of mental health professionals, especially in immigrant communities and communities of color. There is also suspicion of the Covid vaccine, sometimes based on medical racism and mistrust.

Join us to hear of some of the innovative programs that are being developed with community health workers, known as Promotores. The grassroots approach to building community capacity engages Promotores, strengthening their leadership skills as they connect people to needed services, and resources.

**Listen now to the show on August 2, 2021 on KPFA.org radio, 94.1FM**

https://kpfa.org/player/?audio=361359

Guest: 

Dr. Jorge Partida PsyD, is a clinical and research psychologist, specializing in addiction and trauma. He is an author, consultant, and national speaker integrating Native Ancestral Teachings with traditional Western psychotherapy. Born in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico, Dr. Partida immigrated to Chicago at nine years of age and there, obtained his Bachelors Degree in Clinical Psychology from Loyola University and his PsyD from The Illinois School of Professional’ Psychology. Dr. Jorge has been a consultant on many national and international projects designing and implementing clinical programs to address addiction, education, health, community building, diversity and spirituality. He has worked with local and national governments to coordinate services for those most impacted by poverty, war, and displacement. He has worked in Liberia, Africa in the repatriation of boy soldiers, forming “intentional communities” in war and poverty-impacted countries such as Colombia, Peru, and Mexico. Dr. Jorge has served as Director of Substance Abuse and Deputy Director of Behavioral Health for San Francisco’s Department of Public Health. He was also Director of the PsyD Program at John F. Kennedy University. Most recently Dr. Jorge served as Clinical Director and Director of Family Treatment for Alo Recovery Centers in Malibu, CA. Dr. Jorge is the author of “The Promise of The Fifth Sun” and “A Week of Awakening.” (Both titles are also written in Spanish) His writing integrates psychology with native healing traditions creating a client centered, participatory approach to health and wellness. For more than 20 years, Dr. Jorge has presented mental health segments on television and radio with networks, including Univision, Telemundo, HITN-TV in Spanish and CBS, UPN, NBC and PBS in English.