The Social Determinants of Mental Health: From Awareness to Action

This conference will be the first in the United States to convene innovative thinkers from diverse disciplinary and professional backgrounds to address the Social Determinants of Mental Health (SDOMH).

The purpose of the conference is to:

• Increase awareness about how social conditions such as housing quality, land use, food security, employment opportunity, working conditions, the environment, public safety, and public service systems impact mental health and well-being;
• Encourage the development of mental health prevention and intervention strategies that are informed by the social determinants framework;
• Facilitate and support the establishment of multidisciplinary collaborations that can identify and address the social conditions that impact mental health; and
• Disseminate new knowledge and practice innovations.

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Keynote Speaker: David Satcher, MD, PhD - The 16th Surgeon General of the United States, the Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and a member of the World Health Organization Commission on the Social Determinants of Health. Currently, Dr. Satcher is the Director of the Satcher Health Leadership Institute, the Director of the Center of Excellence on Health Disparities, and the Poussaint-Satcher-Crosby Chair in Mental Health at the Morehouse School of Medicine.

Plenary Speaker: Sandro Galea, MD, MPH, DrPH - Gelman Professor and Chair of Epidemiology at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health. Dr. Galea's research program seeks to uncover how determinants at multiple levels of influence-including policies, features of the social environment, molecular and genetic factors-jointly produce the health of populations. His research areas include the social and economic determinants of population health, epidemiology of mental health and substance abuse, and the consequences of conflict and mass trauma.

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Pre-Conference Event -- Adler Institute on Public Safety and Social Justice Presents: "Violence as a Social Determinant of Mental Health"
One of the critical social determinants of mental health in disadvantaged communities is violence. This pre-conference aims to explore the ways in which violence impacts mental health and how it can be mitigated. Our keynote speaker is Carl Bell, MD, Director of Public and Community Psychiatry at the University of Illinois. Dr. Bell is a highly influential psychiatrist, scholar, and community activist. He has researched issues related to violence for over 30 years. To learn more about the pre-conference, click here.

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Adler School Continuing Education
Individuals who attend the full 2-day conference are eligible to receive up to 9 CE credits. The Adler School of Professional Psychology is approved by the American Psychological Association and the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation to sponsor Continuing Education for Psychologists. The Adler School maintains responsibility for this program and content. To register and for more information, click here.

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Call for Papers - The period for submitting papers is now closed. The deadline for submissions was December 31, 2009. To review the Call for Paper Requirements, click here.

Call for Posters & Artwork -  The period for submitting posters and artwork is now closed. The deadline for submissions was April 1, 2010. To review the Call for Posters and Artwork, click here.

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This conference is hosted and supported by the Adler Institute on Social Exclusion. For more information about the Adler School of Professional Psychology and the Institute on Social Exclusion, go to www.adler.edu or contact us at 312-201-5900 x311 or ise@adler.edu.

This conference is supported, in part, by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, The Kresge Foundation, and by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.