by Dr. Sandra T. Chang, ARDI Division — Cultural Competency Unit Manager
April is “Celebrate Diversity Month”. Some of us would call this “destiny”, some “coincidence”, others “pure luck”… regardless, it happened as if intentionally planned: the LACDMH Speakers Bureau celebrates its anniversary of implementation in the month of April. A special anniversary celebration was hosted on April 7th by Dr. Jorge Partida Del Toro and Dr. Sandra Chang, Speakers Bureau co-directors, to recognize the membership and honor all Speaker Bureau accomplishments over its two years of operation. Members received awards of recognition for their sustained and selfless commitment to serving our underserved communities. In-person and virtual event participants had the opportunity to hear from two dynamic panels featuring Speakers Bureau members sharing their experiences as media experts representing our Department and the internal support that expert members of the Chinese culture created within the Speakers Bureau.
Many are the accomplishments of the Speaker Bureau, which operates under LACDMH’s Antiracism, Diversity and Inclusion (ARDI) Division. Over the last two years, multiple Los Angeles County Board Offices, K-12 schools and institutions of higher learning, community and faith-based organizations, professional associations, and other governmental agencies across all eight Service Areas, the State and the country have benefited from the expertise of the Speakers Bureau. Members of the Speakers Bureau engage in a variety of internal and public-facing speaking engagements that address the clinical, cultural and linguistic mental health needs of L.A. County communities where they live and serve.
Furthermore, various LACDMH programs, inclusive of the Public Information Office, rely on the Speakers Bureau to deliver high quality, culturally sensitive, language-specific presentations, trainings, and multi-language media interviews. Another significant achievement of the Speakers Bureau to highlight with great pride is its first community-focused multicultural mental health conference held in December 2021. The conference brought together over 700 consumers, family members, parent advocates, and community members from all sectors of Los Angeles County. It included 41 virtual workshops delivered in Amharic, Armenian, Cambodian, Cantonese, English, Farsi, Korean, Mandarin, and Spanish. The participants provided overwhelming positive feedback about it and requested that it become an on-going annual conference.
At the very core of the Speakers Bureau are approximately 80 highly talented licensed psychologists and social workers who find the time and energy to develop and deliver presentations, media products, translated educational materials, and more to our underserved communities above and beyond the demands of their usual work responsibilities. Members of the United Mental Health Promoters Program are invaluable partners of the Speakers Bureau. Together, they represent multiple cultural and linguistic backgrounds, and over 200 areas of clinical expertise.
Community feedback regarding Speaker Bureau services describe it as follows:
- The Speakers Bureau is an awesome source.
- Exceptional speakers.
- We have been quite impressed with the presentations its various speakers have provided.
- We feel privileged to be able to utilize the LACDMH Speakers Bureau service. We consider it and invaluable weapon in the unending battle to stamp out ignorance and misconceptions regarding mental illness, eradicate related stigma and forge new more promising roles to recovery for those living with mental illness.
- Thanks to the Speakers Bureau, we have been able to successfully implement several educational forums dealing with issues impacting community mental health and education.
- Very accommodating.
- The Speakers Bureau presenter taught us what to watch for in ourselves, staff, coworkers and families as we cope with the pandemic and civil unrest.
- Perfect timing and focus on well-being, just what we were looking for to help our members cope and balance life’s challenges.
- A great resource for the larger community.
- The Speakers Bureau offers very important and valuable services.
Happy Second Anniversary LACDMH Speakers Bureau!!
To request Speakers Bureau services, please fill out this form.
For additional information about Speakers Bureau, please email DMHSpeakersBureau@dmh.lacounty.gov