This project has hosted webinars since 2012 to promote learning, information sharing and to stimulate conversation on topics that we hope are relevant to your practice. Many of the archived webinars are part of the former project, the Refugee Mental Health Project. Since September 2017, webinars have encompassed the expanded scope of newly-arrived immigrants and/or refugees.
Our webinars are one-hour sessions that include a 30-minute presentation by professionals in the settlement, social or health services sectors followed by a 30-minute question and answer session where we encourage you to ask questions, pose scenarios and to generally discuss your practice with these experts in the field.
Upcoming Webinars
Human Trafficking - The Newcomer Lens
with Geraldine Ankrah, Project Lead, SEA Project
Wednesday, October 25th 2023; 1:30 p.m. – 2:45 p.m. EST
This webinar will focus on human trafficking of newcomers to Canada. It will discuss the needs, gaps and guidelines for intervention through the lens of the Support, Empower, Access (SEA) Project from the Association for New Canadians (ANC) in Newfoundland and Labrador.
Geraldine Ankrah is the Project Lead of the SEA Project - ANC’s newcomer-focused anti-human trafficking project. She holds a Doctor of Medicine in Dentistry from Russia and an MBA in Social Enterprise and Entrepreneurship from Memorial University of Newfoundland. She is passionate about women’s issues and has provided health and social assistance to many survivors of gender-based violence. Her work in the anti-human trafficking field in Newfoundland includes capacity building via training sessions and assisting immigrants facing various forms of exploitation.
Experiences and Impacts of Family Violence: The Journeys of Racialized Immigrant Youth
with Dr. Purnima George, Archana Medhekar, Dr. Bethany Osborne and Dr. Ferzana Chaze
December 6, 2023 1:30 - 2:45 EST
This webinar will share the findings of a Phenomenological research study that sheds light on the experiences and agency of twelve racialized immigrant youths as they navigated family violence in their childhood. By bringing together theoretical frameworks, such as Anti-Colonialism, Critical Race Theory, A rights Based approach to children and Anti-Oppressive practice, with concepts of the Best Interest of the Child and Coercive Control, the findings provide an insight into the impacts of family violence and how these experiences are complicated by systemic violence in case of racialized immigrant children. A unique contribution will be the participants’ recommendations that call for transforming practices of sectors that address family violence along with work with communities and individuals.
Dr. Purnima George is an Associate Professor in the School of Social Work at the Toronto Metropolitan University whose research focuses on issues of racialized immigrant communities in Toronto.
Archana Medhekar, B. Sc., LL.B., LL.M. (DR), ACC.FM, CPMed is a Certified Family Law Specialist, Lawyer and Family Mediator-Arbitrator with over 20 years of international experience in the field of family dispute resolution.
Dr. Bethany Osborne is the Program Coordinator and a Professor of the Bachelor of Social and Community Development and is an innovative educator and researcher with over 25 years of experience building and engaging diverse communities.
Dr. Ferzana Chaze is a Professor in the Faculty of Applied Health and Community Studies at Sheridan College. She has a PhD in Social Work from York University and a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Toronto and the University of Mumbai.
Recorded Webinars
Now online:
Trauma and resilience in refugees – a clinical approach
With Dr. Clare Pain, MD, MSc., FRCPC., D.Sc (Hons) Addis Ababa University (AAU), Professor in the Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto (UofT)
Description:
Most refugees experience difficult and traumatic events in their pre migration context and their response to these trauma may vary. However, as service providers we often assume that any and all distress a refugee faces in Canada stems from the trauma that led them to flee their home country. In fact, most refugees report that settling and building a new life here is even more difficult and stressful than past events. Learning to recognize and decode these complex communications of suffering, capacity and need, is especially difficult when we have no understanding of the refugee’s geopolitical and culture context. This talk will think beyond post traumatic stress disorder to address the need to more accurately understand the causes and mitigation of individual refugee’s distress. Underpinning these ideas is the recognition that refugees are extraordinarily resilient. We will explore how to recognize this clinically and optimize and enhance service delivery as a result, noting the importance of cultural competence and cultural humility, on an individual and systemic level.
Archive:
Note that webinar recordings contain the presentation of the topic only; the question and answer session is not recorded.
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Specific populations and issues
These webinars highlight strategies for supporting particular immigrant and refugee groups, or highlight specific issues in supporting immigrant and refugee mental health. -
Support and treatment considerations
These webinars will focus on specific considerations for providing effective treatment to recent immigrants and refugees. -
Successful or promising practices
These webinars outline innovative and unique approaches/programs for supporting the mental health of newly-arrived immigrants and refugees.
