Dr. Sophia Banu’s continuous efforts to support refugees has led to her and her students’ to participate in FAM Houston, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that works to empower women who are mainly refugees and immigrants in Houston.

While most of the women are originally from Congo, the FAM welcomes immigrants, refugees and asylum seekers of all backgrounds.

Banu, an associate professor in the Menninger Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Baylor College of Medicine, first learned about FAM through women she knew from working in the refugee community: Shirin Herman and Rev. Hannah R. Terry, both of whom are on the organization’s Board of Directors.

After a severe earthquake hit Turkey and Syria in early February, immediate aid was necessary. The 7.8 magnitude earthquake caused extreme devastation and destruction, killing more than 57,000 people and injuring more than 125,000 others.

When a Baylor College of Medicine psychiatrist learned that help was needed fast, she and third-year psychiatry resident Dr. Dania Albaba traveled with MedGlobal to offer support to those affected, as well as to the doctors working to save lives. They were joined by another resident Dr. Nora Abdullah from UT Southwestern.

Published in: International Journal of Social Psychiatry, 2015

Summary: This paper explores key challenges clinicians face in delivering psychiatric care to refugee populations, particularly around language barriers, stigma, and system-level gaps in continuity of care.