{"id":120007,"date":"2020-06-04T11:23:24","date_gmt":"2020-06-04T21:23:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/?p=120007"},"modified":"2020-07-02T08:42:59","modified_gmt":"2020-07-02T18:42:59","slug":"mental-health-uh-community","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hawaii.edu\/news\/2020\/06\/04\/mental-health-uh-community\/","title":{"rendered":"Public health professor makes mental health of 糖心视频<\/abbr> community priority"},"content":{"rendered":"Reading time: <\/span> 3<\/span> minutes<\/span><\/span>

\"signs<\/p>\n

University of Hawaiʻi<\/span> at Mānoa students and faculty may face new challenges to their mental health during the COVID-19<\/abbr> pandemic. Jeanelle Sugimoto-Matsuda<\/strong>, an associate professor with the Office of Public Health Studies<\/a> of the Myron B. Thompson School of Social Work<\/a> and an expert on mental health and suicide prevention, is providing resources to help keep the 糖心视频<\/abbr> Mānoa campus community safe.<\/p>\n

Students who are worried about a fellow classmate, or those in distress themselves, need to know what support is available on campus and in the community. Faculty members also need to care for themselves, and because of their close relationships with students, they may need to provide guidance for students who disclose personal challenges and need support.<\/p>\n

“I think about mental health and suicide prevention from a public health perspective,” said Sugimoto-Matsuda, a co-chair of the Prevent Suicide Hawaiʻi<\/span> Task Force. “Public health is all about prevention, and I want to prevent mental health problems from developing, or catch them as early as possible.”<\/p>\n

Helping faculty support students<\/h2>\n

Sugimoto-Matsuda worked with Professor Deborah Goebert<\/strong>, of the John A. Burns School of Medicine Department of Psychiatry<\/a>, to create a guide for faculty to support students as well as themselves<\/a> (PDF<\/abbr><\/span>). The guide was distributed campus-wide, and the two are now working on promoting mental well-being among faculty members and other campus employees.<\/p>\n

“Some students have been very impacted by the pandemic,” Sugimoto-Matsuda said. “For example, they may have had to take on roles as caregivers, or may be living alone and isolated from the social connections that typically help them to stay healthy. Faculty members need training on what to do if they encounter someone in distress, how to acknowledge all of the stressors that everyone is under right now, and how to create accommodations for impacted students.”<\/p>\n

The guide for faculty includes a list of tips on validating student reactions, providing honest reassurance and becoming trauma-informed teachers. The guide also includes links to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention\u2019s guidelines for managing stress and anxiety, resources from Mental Health America of Hawaiʻi<\/span><\/a>, information from the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention<\/a> and more.<\/p>\n