The Department of Psychiatry is delighted to welcome Ruth Shim, MD, MPH as our special guest for the Distinguished Scientist Lecture Series on January 28, 2022  Dr. Shim is the Luke & Grace Kim Professor in Cultural Psychiatry and Professor of Clinical Psychiatry in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the University of California, Davis. She also serves as Associate Dean of Diverse and Inclusive Education at the University of California, Davis School of Medicine.

Dr. Shim received a Master of Public Health degree in health policy from the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University and earned her medical degree from the Emory University School of Medicine.. Her research focuses on mental health disparities and inequities, and she provides clinical psychiatric care in the UC Davis Early Diagnosis and Preventative Treatment (EDAPT) Clinic. Dr. Shim is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the American Association for Community Psychiatry. She also serves on the Research and Evaluation Committee of the California Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission. Additionally, Dr. Shim serves on the editorial boards of JAMA Psychiatry, Psychiatric Services, Community Mental Health Journal, and American Psychiatric Publishing. Dr. Shim is a former fellow of the Executive Leadership in Academic Medicine (ELAM) Program, and an at-large member of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine Forum on Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders.

In her lecture Dr. Shim will discuss the relationship between social justice and mental health is multi-faceted, complex, and has significant implications – not only for individual patients, but also for society. Certain segments of our population (especially people with serious mental illnesses) disproportionately experience striking inequities and disparities in health outcomes. Furthermore, people who have serious mental illness have an increased vulnerability to the deep-rooted inequities in major systems such as housing, criminal justice, and healthcare. This presentation aims to introduce mental health practitioners to important concepts related to social justice and to the role of social injustice in perpetuating these inequities.

Our lectures will take place via Zoom due to current COVID19 safety guidelines. 

Participate via Zoom. Click on this Zoom link; Meeting ID: 931 3696 7224; Passcode: 566242.

For More Information. Please contact Frances Patrick at patrickfm@upmc.edu. 

CONTINUING EDUCATION CREDITS. The entirety of this program will be a lecture by the speaker(s). All individuals able to control the content of this educational activity are required to disclose all relevant financial relationships with any proprietary entity producing, marketing, re-selling, or distributing health care goods or services, used on, or consumed by, patients. Registration is not required for this event. This event is free and there will be no refunds. The University of Pittsburgh is an affirmative action, equal opportunity institution. The University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education for physicians. The University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine designates this educational activity for a maximum of 1.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits^TM. Each physician should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity. Other health care professionals are awarded .15 continuing education units (CEUs), which are equal to 1.5 contact hours. In accordance with Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education requirements on disclosure, information about relationships of presenters with commercial interests (if any) will be included in materials which will be distributed at the time of the conference. WPH is approved by the American Psychological Association to offer continuing education for psychologists. WPH maintains responsibility for this program and its contents. This program is being offered for 1.5 continuing education credits. The indicated number of clock hours of continuing education is provided through UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital’s Office of Educational Resources and Planning, a PA-approved provider of social work continuing education in accordance with all the applicable educational and professional standards of the Pennsylvania State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapist. These clock hours satisfy requirements for LSW/LCSW, LPC and LMFT renewal. For more information, call (412) 204-9085.