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Just Concluded 2025 Mental Health and Gender-Based Violence Conference
THEME
The theme of the conference was Mental Health and Gender-Based Violence: Causes, Symptoms, Impact on Society and Culturally Competent Intervention. The carefully put together event was filled with practical valuable tips for recognizing and successfully addressing mental health issues by a team of globally acclaimed mental health experts who worked with local experts to achieve the set objectives.
OBJECTIVE
The objectives of the 2025 Mental Health and Gender-Based conference was to raise awareness, educate, train and share access to resources for successful, culturally competent interventions. It was planned to be an enriched combination of interactions, shared experiences, and strategic workshops for various groups.
FACILITATORS AND SPEAKERS
The conference was facilitated by Dr. Theddeus Iheanacho, a multi-award-winning clinical psychiatrist and Director of the Yale University Global Mental Health program, Dr. Sosunmolu Shoyinka, a top US clinical psychiatrist and author of the book, “Understanding Mental Health: A Guide for Faith Communities,” and Dr. Jean Wright, New York City Deputy Commissioner of Mental Health, among others.
With the alarming rise in mental health cases across the globe, everyone, including leaders and stakeholders, needed to understand the basics of handling Mental Health issues and addressing Gender-Based Violence, and be equipped to harness the strength that can be found in the community.
To draw attention and keep the interest of the event’s target population and further raise awareness on this very serious issue, we put together, a potentially impactful program of activities which included the following:
Musical concert and stage plays by Nollywood legends from Nigeria who are advocates of Mental Health and Gender-Based Violence.
General Conference
Targeted Workshops for various groups
Visit to existing mental health institutions in Namibia
Strategic Meetings in view of sustainability and collaborations
Our Mental Health Experts
Dr. Theddeus Iheanacho
Theddeus (Ted) Iheanacho MD (MBBS), DTM, completed medical school in Nigeria, postgraduate psychiatric training in Dublin, Ireland and New York, USA, as well as Addiction Fellowship training at Yale University. He is an Associate Professor of Psychiatry at Yale University School of Medicine; Director, Global Mental Health Promotion Program, Center for Methods in Implementation and Prevention Science, Yale University School of Public Health, New Haven, Connecticut and Associate Professor (Adjunct) Global Health, University of Maryland Graduate School. Dr. Iheanacho leads the HAPPINESS project which integrates mental health into primary care and non-psychiatric medical centers in Nigeria. He is board certified with the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, and board Certified in Addiction Psychiatry. His clinical practice, research and educational projects in the US and Nigeria focus on increasing access to evidence-based mental health interventions through community-based participatory methods, implementation research and advocacy. His self-care practice includes nature walks, reading historical fiction and watching comedy shows.
Dr. Sosunmolu Shoyinka
Dr. Sosunmolu Shoyinka is a Clinical Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania and a Fellow of the Philadelphia College of Physicians. He trained at Yale, Columbia, and NYU, is Triple Board certified and holds an MBA from the Kelley School of Business. He served as the Chief Medical Officer for the Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual
disAbility Services (DBHIDS), where he led the redesign of Philadelphia’s crisis system and the implementation of 988. Philadelphia’s work on Crisis Services and 988 implementation has been recognized by the Biden Administration. He has testified before Congress on access to mental health services. For his work, Dr Shoyinka was awarded a Special Presidential Commendation Award and the Jeanne Spurlock Minority Fellowship Achievement Award by the American Psychiatric Association. He serves on the Board of the American Association for Community Psychiatry, the Medical Director Institute of the National Council, and the Group for the Advancement of Psychiatry.
