Description
617: Back to the Basics: Cultural Humility in Practice amid an Ever-changing Cultural Climate
Sh’nai Simmons, Ph.D., LMHC
Community Victory Family Services, Inc.
15438 N. Florida Ave., Suite 106
Tampa, FL 33613
Summary
Ambushed with an ever-changing cultural climate, the psychologist and licensed mental health professional have been thrust into an intensely polarizing environment. In sync with Green-Morton and Minkler (2020), this presentation will embrace the model of “both/and” relating to cultural competence and cultural humility toward resolving the experience of diminished safety amongst psychologists and licensed mental health professionals and those we serve. At this time, consciously practicing cultural humility is not only reasonable but necessary and allows engagement with the constructs of cultural safety, cultural opportunities, and cultural comforts through dialoguing as recommended by Abbott, Pelc, and Mercier (2019). Participants will be invited to have a conscientious cultural discussion while the facilitator employs the guidance offered by Upshaw, Lewis, and Nelson (2019) by injecting experiential activities to establish salient cultural identities and their interplay in the participants personal and professional lives. Our foundational helping skills and ethics will serve as a guide toward healing for ourselves and others.
Learning Objectives
Participants will:
• Identify common cultural conflicts, cultural opportunities, and cultural comforts in daily practice for a psychologist and licensed mental health professional
• Apply practical strategies for employing cultural humility
• Evaluate cross-cultural examples of safety and strategy to preserve or rebuild it
