UCLA Psychiatry Residency Program
Community Psychiatry and Global Mental Health
UCLA Psychiatry Residency Program
Community Psychiatry and Global Mental Health
The Community and Global Psychiatry (CGP) resident-faculty group was founded by our residents in 2017 to promote careers in public service, locally and globally, and to further educational experiences focused on health equity, structural competency, and social responsibility. Our group has grown to involve CGP chief residents, more than one-third of our residents, and over 30 faculty. CGP oversees over 40 hours of didactics in the core curriculum (for all residents), a faculty-resident mentorship program, and numerous ongoing educational seminars. And our work has involved partnerships with 20 community-based organizations and local public agencies.
We are excited for you to learn more about our work. For more information, please visit our UCLA CGP website: www.uclacgp.com
Contacts: CGP Chief Residents Janice Cho, Jennifer Tu, and Ragda Izar and CGP Faculty Lead Enrico Castillo
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COMMUNITY PSYCHIATRY CLINICAL ELECTIVES
PGY1 Harbor-UCLA Psychiatric Emergency Room (required rotation, all resident tracks)
Harbor-UCLA Track resident spends entire PGY-1 year at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center
PGY2 The People Concern (homeless services) - Skid Row mental health clinic (elective)
Olive View-UCLA Medical Center - Los Angeles County Department of Mental Urgent Care Center (elective)
Integrated Dual Diagnosis Outreach Clinic - VA
PGY3 and 4: Residents have the opportunity to spend nearly the entirety of these years in community psychiatry and global mental health electives, below:
County Edelman Westside Mental Health Center (Department of Mental Health)
Twin Towers Correctional Mental Health Services (Department of Health Services)
Mental Health Diversion Court (Department of Health Services Office of Diversion and Reentry)
VA Integrated Dual Diagnosis Outreach Clinic
HPACT (multidisciplinary team, co-location model for homeless veterans)
UCLA Spanish-speaking Psychosocial Clinic
Los Angeles Human Rights Initiative - Immigration Asylum Clinic
Community Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services
TAY-FSP (providing intensive wraparound services to patients ages 16-25)
AB-109 (providing re-entry services for individuals on probation)
The People Concern
Supportive housing services
Field-based services for individuals experiencing homelessness
Asian Pacific Counseling and Treatment Center
Venice Family Clinic
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GLOBAL MENTAL HEALTH CLINICAL ELECTIVES
UCLA has a vibrant global health community across multiple residency programs and the David Geffen School of Medicine and a Global Health - Social Medicine Grand Rounds series with speakers who are renowned leaders in the field www.worldhealth.med.ucla.edu
Clinical and Teaching Elective in Tintswalo, South Africa: Residents spend four weeks in Tintswalo, South Africa that includes inpatient and outpatient clinical experiences in general and forensic psychiatry. Residents also help train local nurse practitioners in mental health topics and treatment approaches, giving our residents experiences in education, mutual partnership, and sustainable capacity building.
Los Angeles Human Rights Initiative - Immigration Asylum Clinic: on-campus asylum clinic that is offered as a PGY 3 and 4 clinical elective https://lahumanrights.org/
Independent Elective (with approval from Drs. Castillo and DeBonis): opportunity to design your own global mental health elective. Researchers in our Department have ongoing partnerships in many countries including South Africa, Uganda, Vietnam, Thailand, Egypt. Residents can also connect with the UCLA School of Medicine’s Global Health Program, which includes Seed Grant and Travel Grant programs and partnerships in 27 countries.
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Career Development and Mentorship
Since 2017, CGP has organized a mentor match to pair interested residents with mentors who have expertise in a broad array of topics (everything from homelessness to justice-involved populations to community-academic partnerships to healthcare policy). Our Career in Community and Global Psychiatry Lunch Talks feature public psychiatrists, mental health services and policy researchers, and leaders and clinicians from LA County health agencies and other community organizations. Speakers talk about their career paths, current work, and opportunities for residents to work in public service.
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Advocacy and Structural Action
In CGP, we view advocacy as intrinsic to our role as physicians and as a tool to improve the health and lives of our patients and to combat burnout; it empowers us to address the broader social injustices that underpin our patients’ suffering. Via our CGP curriculum, residents gain structural competency--a foundational understanding of how laws, institutional policies, and social forces perpetuate health inequities--and then build specific advocacy skills to dismantle these injustices. Additionally, CGP organizes the Policy and Change event series that brings together residents, faculty, community members, and policy leaders, for panel discussions of health-related current events, culminating in immediate (in the room), short-term, and long-term advocacy action in partnership with community leaders. Past events include: "Family Separations at the Border," "Gun Violence as a Public Health Issue," "The Dangers for People with Mental Illness and Other Disabilities at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center," "Ending Jail Expansion in Los Angeles County," and "Reproductive Health, Rights, and Justice Post-Roe v Wade."
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Concentrations in Community Psychiatry & Global Mental Health
Since AY 2018, we have offered these concentrations as career enrichment pathways to train future leaders in community psychiatry and global mental health. Concentrations are available to all residents--categorical, Harbor, or research track--and offer educational and clinical experiences, mentorship, and scholarly projects that are designed to help facilitate successful careers contributing to the future of public and global mental health systems, services, and the people they serve.
Requirements
Community Concentration only: Complete at least one additional clinical elective in community psychiatry (with approval of Dr. Castillo)
Global Concentration only: Complete at least one global mental health elective, typically four weeks in length (with approval of Drs. Castillo and DeBonis)
Participate in the CGP mentorship program, which matches residents with faculty based on mutual interests and preferred areas of mentorship
Complete and write up a scholarly project (not necessarily peer-reviewed research) under the guidance of mentor
Present a Social Determinants Case Conference, working with a faculty discussant
Organize a community site visit or other community psychiatry or global mental health event
Attend at least two relevant national conferences/meetings (ideally beginning in PGY-2, with approval of Dr. DeBonis)
When available, attend (and help organize!) CGP career lunch talks, case conferences, journal clubs, seminars, site visits, QI projects, and resident-faculty networking events
Highly encouraged, with the support and mentorship of CGP core faculty:
Apply to relevant fellowships/awards
Submit scholarly project(s) for publication
Submit presentations/posters to relevant conferences
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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Why should I consider a concentration?
The concentrations are an opportunity to develop a personal specialization in either community psychiatry or global mental health. It signals to the outside world that you have dedicated time to become a leader in one of these areas. The concentrations provide mentorship, scholarly projects, and exposure to community and global psychiatry, while connecting you to a community of passionate, like-minded trainees and mentors (both locally and nationally).
What is the difference between the Community and Global Psychiatry (CGP) faculty-resident group and the Harbor Track?
Our Harbor Track (NRMP 3030400C2) has 1 spot for a UCLA psychiatry resident per year. That resident will spend their PGY-1 year at Harbor-UCLA medical center, one of 3 county hospitals in Los Angeles County, giving them an immersive experience in public mental health care and systems. That resident then joins their general and research track peers for PGY 2-4 years at UCLA. Please note that the Harbor Track has a separate NRMP number than the UCLA psychiatry residency program’s general/categorical and research tracks.
UCLA CGP is an energized group of faculty and residents who are dedicated to health equity, structural competency, and social responsibility. Residents can participate in any track (general, research, or Harbor) and simultaneously participate in CGP offerings, including our 2 residency concentrations in global mental health and public psychiatry.
You can find more information about the Harbor Track and Community and Global Psychiatry group here:
Do I have to do research to participate in the concentration?
No. The “scholarly project” requirement is intended to give you the chance to pursue a topic of interest in depth; this may take the form of a research project, but there are a number of other options as well.
Do I have to publish in order to fulfill the scholarly project requirement?
No, but it is important to work closely with your CGP mentors to formulate a strong scholarly project that, most importantly, meets your career goals.