Living Through a Pandemic: Understanding, Coping, and Finding Meaning

Wed, April 29, 7:00-8:15pm EDT

In this webinar, professionals with experience in education and cross-cultural mental health will provide an overview of common stressors affecting high school and college students and their families during the COVID-19 pandemic, especially Asian American and international students. They will also share helpful coping strategies that can be utilized by students, parents, educators, and institutions to promote mental health and resilience.

Speakers

• Justin Chen, MD, MPH; Executive Director, MGH Center for Cross-Cultural Student Emotional Wellness and Assistant Professor, Harvard Medical School

• Ying Wang, MD; Owner, Bucks Psychiatry, an integrative psychiatric care clinic in Pennsylvania; Columnist, Letters To Strangers

• Nora Yasumura, MSW; Class Dean at the Hotchkiss School, Diversity Consultant, and former Pan Asian Advisor at Dartmouth College

The following information was shared at the webinar:

Asian Americans Advancing Justice in collaboration with Hollaback! is hosting a number of bystander intervention workshops. Find out more.
The MGH Center for Cross-Cultural Student Emotional Wellness has a repository of resources related to COVID-19 with translations in other languages.  Access the information. 

How are international and East and Southeast Asian young people reacting to perhaps their first experience with anti-Asian racism?

Justin spoke about this a bit immediately after the question was posed. We have another workshop specifically focused on international students and how schools can support them.. 

What advice and suggestions do you have for those who support Asian and Asian American students (beyond sending links to resource pages online)?

At MGH IHP DEI, we are collaborating with colleagues to record a video for how faculty can be supportive of students. Acknowledgment of students' lived experiences may be helpful as well as making space to have conversations about the challenges these students are encountering. You may wish to invite the diversity, equity, and inclusion officer(s) at your institution as well as mental health providers to be present and supportive during these conversations. 

How are schools responding to a racism against Asians that has been often overlooked?  

Different schools are responding in different ways. Some schools, including the MGH Institute of Health Professions, have made public statements acknowledging the existence of anti-Asian racism and inviting members of the school community to engage in allyship. Other schools have not responded to anti-Asian racism.

Are mental health providers in particular discussing this?

Some mental health providers have addressed issues related to coping and responding to trauma related to racism-related stress among Asians and Asian Americans. MGH Institute of Health Professions students have access to EAP and SAP and they can refer students to mental health providers who can support students with these issues.

Are there collective efforts in addressing/healing the trauma from "the majority" which motivates the current anti-Asian attacks?

Showing Up for Racial Justice developed a toolkit recently, related to supporting Asians experiencing trauma. In addition, Asian Americans Advancing Justice in collaboration with Hollaback! is hosting a number of bystander intervention workshops. Find out more.
 
Why future sessions only in Mandarin Chinese?  Will other programs for other Asian language groups be offered?

We have two webinars focused on parenting. One of them will be in English and the other will be in Mandarin Chinese for how parents can support their children. It is scheduled on a date and time that would engage parents internationally. At this time, we do not have webinars scheduled in other Asian languages.