Conversation 25 - Listen to Lived Experiences

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In this episode, we sit down with Brooks Collins-Gaines,  the director of behavioral health at the iPromise Health Quarters in Akron, Ohio, who brings a wealth of experience from her extensive career in community mental health. She shares her passion for reducing the deep-seated mistrust that Black individuals often feel toward healthcare systems and explores how historic and ongoing racial trauma impacts mental health. We dive into the transformative work being done at iPromise Health Quarters, focusing on strategies to create safe, accessible spaces for marginalized populations to receive care and support.

Throughout the conversation, our guest sheds light on the importance of acknowledging racial trauma in clinical settings, the role of mental health professionals in dismantling systemic racism, and the crucial steps needed to build trust within communities of color. This episode offers valuable insights for mental health practitioners and advocates working to bridge gaps in care and create more equitable systems of support.

Resources Mentioned:

• Bad Blood: The Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment, New and Expanded Edition - James H. Jones
• Caste: The Origins of our Discontents - Isabel Wilkerson
• Medical Apartheid:  The Dark History of Medical Experimentation on Black American from Colonial Times to the Present - Harriet Washington
• The  New Jim Crow: Mass Incarceration in the Age of Colorblindness - Michelle Alexander

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If you’re a counselor in Ohio and would like to get involved as part of production or as a guest, or know someone who might be interested, please email us at [e-mail]!

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Created by the OCA's Media, Public Relations, and Membership (MPRM) Committee & its Podcast Subcommittee

·Hosted by Marisa Cargill

·Pre-Production & Coordination by Marisa Cargill,  Kendra Thornton, and Victoria Frazier

·Editing by Leah Wood

·Original music selections by Elijah Satoru Wood

·Closing song: Accretion Discotheque by Who AD