Global Mental Health ProgramCurrent Resident Projects

My clinical interests in cultural, child, and integrative psychiatry inform my involvement in global mental health. As a Thai and Puerto Rican-American, I seek to utilize my training to address mental health inequity in my community both domestically and abroad. I am particularly interested in the ways in which mental health service provision is provided abroad (such as addiction and recovery treatment), and how the exchange of ideas between Western and developing countries can help address mental health inequity. I am also interested in supporting youth-based programs geared towards destigmatizing mental health in minoritized populations, particularly through music and the arts. I am in the process of connecting with mentors who are working in Thailand to identify a global mental health project that is in alignment with these interests.

Francis Tongpalad, M.D.
PGY-3, General Psychiatry Residency Program
Medical school of graduation: Medical College of Wisconsin

My passion for global mental health and cultural psychiatry is deeply rooted in personal experiences. When my family immigrated to the United States in 2010, we encountered a multitude of challenges, with linguistic and cultural barriers standing out, particularly in the context of mental healthcare. Accessing effective treatment required us to find a Turkish-American psychiatrist who could provide a holistic approach, combining pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy. Through this journey, I witnessed the transformative impact that a culturally sensitive psychiatrist can have on a family like mine.

Currently I am working on combining my two passions in psychiatry including global mental health and forensic psychiatry. My global mental health project revolves around putting together a scoping review that looks cross-nationally at mental health assessment of prisoners at the time of incarceration. Another topic I am drawn to is the unhoused populations being diverted into the criminal justice system and how different countries are handling their unhoused populations with mental illness. I am grateful for the global mental health team at UC Davis allowing me to explore these topics while supporting my broad interests in global mental health and forensics.

Elif Sefika Duran, M.D.
PGY-2, General Psychiatry Residency Program
Medical school of graduation: University of Texas, Rio Grande Valley School of Medicine