Outreach Award: Minds Matter: Tackling Major Issues Affecting Black Women's Mental Health

Black Girl Health Foundation (BGHF)’s “Minds Matter: Tackling major issues affecting black women's mental health” is a program in partnership with The Dauphin County Library System that is designed to reach out to women of color in the Harrisburg, Pennsylvania area and educate them about mental health and mental health resources. The goal of the project is to eliminate the healthcare stigma surrounding mental health, promote mental health literacy, and increase information and awareness about NLM’s MedlinePlus resources and NNLM’s “Caring for The Mind” course amongst an underserved population — Harrisburg, PA’s African American women. Black Girl Health Foundation (BGHF) brings extensive experience from having hosted successful Minds Matter events in the following cities in the past: Harrisburg, New Orleans, Washington D.C., and Houston. During Black History Month (February 2022), Black Girl Health Foundation will return to Washington D.C. and pilot in St Louis, MO, to host “Minds Matter: Eliminating Healthcare Stigma.” In the wake of (i) the COVID-19 Pandemic, (ii) a lack of certainty about quarantines and social distancing requirements, and (iii) recent civil unrest, offering mental health literacy couldn’t be more timely and crucial. To maximize impact, BGHF will leverage its current College Ambassadors Program and engage two (2) College Ambassadors (CAs) within the community to collaborate with certified health experts to host the Minds Matter workshop events. This project will be an expansion of the BGHF College Ambassador Program and will leverage all established health literacy program strategies. The proposed project will comprise a hybrid series of digital and in-person workshops presented by certified medical professionals from BGHF’s vetted panel of presenters. While our preference is to host in-person events, this depends on COVID restrictions; BGHF is prepared to present Minds Matter Harrisburg as a hybrid event, consisting of a series of digital workshops (live-streaming events) combined with in-person sessions (to the extent allowed under the COVID restrictions). The video/streaming events will air live on social media via a special Black Girl Health (BGH) ‘Minds Matter Harrisburg’ Facebook Group and on The Dauphin County Library System of Pennsylvania's Facebook page. The event will also be recorded and will be shared thereafter. The benefits of this program are multifaceted - both the BGHF College Ambassadors and workshop participants will learn how the NLM resource “MedlinePlus” is a powerful tool for learning about and managing mental health. Additionally, while the campaign and workshops increase access to mental health information, the evaluations obtained at the close of the workshops may provide valuable biomedical information pertaining to the mental health beliefs and concerns of a historically underserved demographic.