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Overview
Founded in 1989, the NY Coalition for Asian American Mental Health is an organization that strives to improve the quality of mental health care services available to Asian American communities in the New York City metropolitan area.

Our Mission
As reported in the 2000 Census, Asian Americans constitute more than 10% of the total NYC population. Although Los Angeles and San Francisco are generally perceived as Asian American strongholds, New York City claims the highest proportion of Asians relative to its total population, and yet New York continues to lag behind California and Hawaii in providing sufficient mental health care services that accommodate the unique needs of its Asian American population.

The stereotype that portrays Asian Americans as "model minorities” has underplayed the many psychosocial problems in the Asian communities in New York City. According to the 2000 Census, immigrants constituted 76% of the Asian population in New York City - a majority of whom migrated to the U.S. in the last 20 years as adults. Most of these immigrants struggle with the stressors of language, cultural, and economic barriers and the lack of a supportive social network. As a result, many suffer from mental health problems, and yet they are unable to take advantage of existing mental health resources due to the aforementioned barriers.

The New York Coalition for Asian American Mental Health (hereafter referred to as the Coalition) was founded in 1989 by a group of concerned clinicians under the leadership of Dr. James Chou as President. Its mission is to address the unmet mental health care needs of the Asian American community identified above. Membership is open to anyone who identifies with the mission of the Coalition and wishes to become involved in the Coalition’s activities.

What We Do
NYCAAMH endeavors to address the unmet mental health care needs of the Asian American community in the NYC metropolitan area.

NYCAAMH engages in the following activities:

  • Lobbies for the improvement and expansion of culturally and linguistically competent mental health care services for Asian Americans inpatient and outpatient services in New York City.
  • Supports the advance of knowledge on cultural competent mental health care and treatment as well as unaddressed mental health issues in the Asian communities through solicitation for research funding and sponsorship of research.
  • Develops multi-lingual mental health information and resource guides for distribution in the Asian communities and conducts community educational workshops to promote public awareness on mental illness and related services.
  • Coordinates and sponsors educational workshops and conferences for mental health professionals, social and health services providers, educators, and caregivers on culturally relevant assessment and treatment of mental health symptoms and disorders among Asian Americans.
  • Supports mental health interns and service providers in their commitment and professional development in serving the Asian American communities.
  • Supports and promotes the sharing of knowledge and information among mental health and social service agencies to facilitate referral and coordination of services for Asian American mental health consumers.
Officers and Members of Executive Committee 2010 - 2012

President: Irene Chung, PhD, Hunter College School of Social Work
Vice President: Kin Wah Lee, MPS, New York State Psychiatric Institute
Treasurer: Tracy Luo, MSW, Mental Health Association of New York City
Secretary: Yenling Chong, MD, Lutheran Medical Center

Executive Committee members:
Teddy Chen, PhD, Charles B. Wang Community Health Center
Winnie Kung, PhD, Fordham University Graduate School of Social Services
Stuart Linder, MBA, New York State Psychiatric Institute
Pamela Yew Schwartz, PhD, Visiting Nurse Service of New York
Tazuko Shibusawa, PhD, New York University Silver School of Social Work
Haein Son, LCSW, Creedmore Psychiatric Center
Steven Zhou, LCSW, Elmhurst Hospital Center

History of the Coalition

Coalition’s Development and Leadership

  • Bylaws of the Coalition were established and adopted in October 1990.
  • The following members were elected as first-time officers in November 1990: Dr. James Chou, President; Dr. Angela Shen Ryan, Vice President; Siu Ping Ma, Treasurer; Pamela Yew Schwartz, Secretary and Joanna Law, Assistant Secretary.
  • In 1993, the NY Coalition for Asian American Mental Health, Inc. received its Certificate of Incorporation under Section 402, 503 (C) of the New York State Not-For-Profit Corporate Laws.
  • The Coalition held its first annual Dinner on October 19, 1995. Dr. James Chou was recognized for his commitment to the organization and received a service award from the Coalition for his outstanding contribution to the Asian American community.
  • The Coalition’s official website www.asianmentalhealth.com was launched in 2001 with features of employment opportunities, special events, and an online behavioral services directory.
  • At the Coalition’s annual dinner in April 2001, a special service award was given to the Asian Bridger Program at South Beach Psychiatric Center and to Susan Chan, Associate Executive Director at Hamilton Madison House, for their dedication and contribution to the Asian American community.

Advocacy

  • In 1990, the Coalition lobbied for the expansion of mental health services to accommodate the needs of Asian Americans at Elmhurst Hospital in Queens.
  • In 1993, the Coalition actively lobbied for the funding and establishment of an Asian psychiatric unit at Bellevue Hospital.
  • In 1994, the Coalition lobbied for the passage of a legislative proposal -- Bill No. S. 2565 A, which would require the State's Office of Mental Health and other state agencies to design and draft regulations to address the mental health care needs of non-English speakers in New York State.
  • In February 1996, Dr. James Chou submitted a letter to Governor George Pataki emphasizing the need for health care services that addressed the special needs of Asian Americans at City and State hospitals. After ongoing correspondence with the NYS Office of Mental Health, NYCAAMH successfully advocated for the opening of two Asian inpatient units, one at South Beach and one at Creedmoor Psychiatric Center in November 1997. At the Coalition’s March 19, 1998 annual dinner meeting, the opening of these two inpatient Asian units was announced by Linda Rosenberg, Deputy Commissioner of the NYS Office of Mental Health.
  • On October 8, 2002, Kin Wah Lee, representing the Coalition, gave a testimony entitled "Culturally Competent Care for People with Mental Illness in New York City" before the Council of the City of New York Committee on Mental Health, Mental Retardation, Alcoholism, Drug Abuse, and Disability Services, at City Hall.
  • In November 2005, Kin Wah Lee delivered a presentation on “Suicide Contagion – Chinatown, NYC” at the New York State Summit on Suicide Prevention. This Summit was the first of its kind in New York State, bringing together more than 250 individuals who represented suicide prevention stakeholder organizations, survivors, and governmental officials to discuss suicide prevention strategies and share helpful materials and guidance for implementation of these strategies.
  • On May 4, 2006, the Commissioner of the NYS Office of Mental Health, Sharon E. Carpinello, RN, PH.D, unveiled a Chinese language version of New York’s suicide prevention, education, and awareness campaign (SPEAK) at a ceremony and press conference hosted by the Coalition at Hamilton Madison House. Governor George E. Pataki also proclaimed May 4, 2006 to be Asian American Mental Health Day in New York State.
  • On December 7, 2006, several members of the Coalition were invited by the NYS OMH Commissioner to testify in a public hearing on the high suicide rate of Asian American elderly women chaired by Hon. M. Rivera, Assembly Mental Health Committee Chair.

Community Education and Training

  • On March 31 to April 1, 2000, the Coalition, NYU Shirley M. Ehrenkranz School of Social Work, and the Asian Pacific American Studies Institute of the New York University sponsored a two-day educational symposium on "Effective Clinical Practice with Asians and Asian Americans" at the Farkas Hall Auditorium of New York University School of Medicine.
  • Immediately following the attack on the WTC on Sept. 11, 2001, members of the Coalition translated educational materials regarding stress and PTSD into Chinese and Korean for distribution in the Asian communities. Many members of the Coalition also volunteered to provide counseling services at the various help centers.
  • Commissioned the inclusion of a segment addressing mental health related concerns in the production of "Tributes and Remembrance", a documentary on 9/11 produced by Renata Huang on behalf of the Asian American Federation of New York.
  • Published an Asian American Behavioral Service Directory for Metropolitan New York in Oct. 2001.
  • Kin Wah Lee, representing the Coalition, presented a workshop on cultural competence mental health services at the NAMI-NYS Annual Conference in Tarrytown, NY, on November 3, 2001.
  • Sponsored an educational workshop for mental health professionals on "Bipolar Disorder and Psychiatric Issues in Treating Asian Patients" on May 14, 2002 in Chinatown. Speakers included Blanca Vasquez, M.D., Assistant Professor of Neurology and Director of Clinical Trials, New York University Comprehensive Epilepsy Center. And James C-Y Chou, M.D., Director of Bipolar Research at Bellevue Hospital.
  • In 2002, Dr. Foo Chu, one of the Coalition’s cofounders, dedicated $20,000 from his estate to the Coalition. A scholarship program named after Dr. Chu was established to support graduate students conducting research to benefit and enhance the understanding of mental health issues faced by Asian Americans.
  • In 2007, the Coalition produced a film entitled “Shame and Silence”. Funded in part by educational grants from Janseen Pharmaceuticals and Eli Company, this video was offered to the mental health community as a training aid and discussion tool to examine the correlation between social stigmas and mental illness. The video consists of five vignettes, each focusing on a different Asian ethnic group that included Chinese, Filipino, Asian Indian, Vietnamese and Korean.
  • In 2007, the Coalition received funding from the Chinese American Planning Council Mental Health Project to develop mental health screening and senior wellness curriculum for Chinese elders as well as mental health training program for front line workers.
  • In 2009, the Coalition received funding from the New York Office of Mental Health to conduct three suicide prevention and awareness workshops in the Chinese, Japanese and Korean community.
  • In 2009, the Coalition, in partnership with Hamilton Madison House, received funding from the New York Office of Mental Health to design and implement a statewide suicide awareness and education campaign targeting Asian elderly women. Initiatives included a video production, media campaign, outreach to primary care physicians, training for providers as well as educational workshops in the various Asian communities.
  • In Nov. 2010, the Coalition and the offices of Councilman Peter Koo and Assemblywoman Grace Meng co-sponsored a mental health education workshop in Flushing, Queens. Several members of the Coalition participated in the presentation and provided private consultation in various Chinese dialects.

Conferences

  • In 1991, several members of the Coalition gave a presentation at a Multi-Cultural Mental Health Conference at Teacher's College, Columbia University.
  • On June 27, 2001, the Coalition cosponsored a program, "Managing Stress in The Chinese Immigrant Community" at the Chinese Consolidated Benevolent Association Auditorium in Manhattan’s Chinatown.
  • On October 18 - 19, 2001, the Coalition cosponsored a conference on "Barriers and Opportunities: Expanding Culturally Competent Mental Health Services for Asian Americans" with South Beach Psychiatric Center and Saint Vincent Catholic Medical Center at the Covenant House. The conference was funded by a grant from the NYS Office of Mental Health.
  • On March 21, 2002, the Coalition cosponsored the Community Health Forum with the City Hall Senior Center.
  • On July 25, 2002, the Coalition held a "Therapy for Therapists" Day to support mental health professionals in the Asian community.
  • On October 22, 2002, the Coalition co-sponsored the Mayoral Conference on Alzheimer's Disease held at the Brooklyn Marriott.
  • On October 20, 2003, the Coalition and the Student Alliance for Multicultural and Mental Health Issues (SAMMI) sponsored an all-day conference entitled “Beyond Cultural Competence: Challenges and Opportunities for Asian American Mental Health” at the Fordham University Law School.
  • On October 1 & 2, 2004, the Coalition held its first national conference, “Overcoming Stigma in Asian American Health”, with the support of Hamilton-Madison House and the Department of Psychiatry, New York University School of Medicine. Nearly 300 people from all over the country attended the event.
  • On October 21 & 22, 2005, the Coalition held another national conference, “Break the Silence: Assessment and Prevention of Suicide Among Asian Americans”, to address the alarming high suicide rate and the lack of suicide prevention initiatives in the Asian American community. The conference was co-sponsored by the National Asian American Pacific Islander Mental Health Association (NAAPIMHA), and was held at the New York University School of Medicine with more than 330 participants.
  • On October 26, 2007, the Coalition, Hamilton-Madison House, NYU Center for the Study of Asian American Health, St. Vincent’s Hospital Behavioral Health Services, and NYS Psychological Association: Division of Culture, Race & Ethnicity co-sponsored the "Assessment & Treatment of Compulsive Gambling Among Asian Americans" conference at the NYU School of Medicine with over 150 in attendance.
  • On October 22, 2010, the Coalition co-sponsored a conference on “Cultural Aspects of Grief: Coping with Bereavement and Loss among Asian Americans” with the NYU Center for the Study of Asian American Health at the NYU School of Medicine and with over 140 participants in attendance.

Research

Through the Foo Chu Scholarship Fund, the Coalition has awarded scholarships to graduate students conducting research that would further the understanding and knowledge regarding Asian Americans and mental health:

Teddy Chen (2003),"A Study of Chinese American Family Caregivers of a Mentally Ill Relative: A Look at Predictors of Caregiving Outcomes." 

Lina Sueyoshi (2004), "The Relationship of Acculturation, Gender, Self-efficacy and Religious Orientation to Risky Sexual Behaviors among Heterosexual Asian American Young Adults". 

Lin Fang (2005),"Complimentary of Alternative? A Cross-Sectional Study of Socio-Cultural and Health Determinants of Unconventional Medicine Use by Chinese Patients with Mental Health Needs in an Urban Primary Care Setting." 

  • In 2005 and 2006, the Coalition actively participated in the OMH/SAMHSA project to evaluate the implementation of the adapted Family Psycho-Education (FPE) toolkit in working with families and training for clinical staff in three communities—African American, Chinese, and Latino. 

  • In 2007, the Coalition received funding from NYSOMH to support a sociocultural study conducted by an Executive Committee member, Irene Chung (PhD, LCSW) on suicide attempters among Chinese immigrants in NYC. On April 11, 2009, the research findings were presented at a community debriefing event attended by over 200 people at Hunter College School of Social Work.
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