Experience exchange in the USA for mental health professionals

Between October 19-30, 2022, a delegation of specialists in the field of mental health from the Republic of Moldova, including two representatives of the Department of Mental Health, Medical Psychology and Psychotherapy and a resident doctor in Psychiatry specialty from Nicolae Testemitanu State University of Medicine and Pharmacy benefited from the Open World/COIL - Open World Leadership Center (Congress Office for International Leadership) experience exchange program in the United States of America.

The program included a visit to Washington, DC, where the delegates participated in a joint workshop with experts from Poland, Romania, as well as from American University and Georgetown University. Later, they undertook a series of visits to New York City, to specialized institutions such as Mercy College &Lehman College, where mental health professionals are trained, to the Counseling Department at Clarkstown North High School, to Rockland Psychiatric Hospital, to Jawonio Community Center, and to Change & Hope NGO that provides support services for victims of violence and abuse. At the same time, they had meetings with psychotherapists specializing in ADHD - Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder and with the Commissioner of the New York State Office of Mental Health.

In the context of meetings, the representatives of our university presented the progress of the reform in the field of mental health in the Republic of Moldova, addressed the subject of providing psycho-emotional support services to refugees from Ukraine by specialists in the country, took over best practices and accumulated information about the institutional structure, resources and the involvement of specialists in the management of the reference domain.

It should be noted that the delegates also benefited from cultural exchange, being hosted by American families and had the opportunity to promote and share national culture and culinary traditions.  Moldovan specialists managed to establish relations with the network of American professionals, thus contributing to the strengthening of cooperative relations between the USA and the Republic of Moldova through the exchange of bilateral experience in the field of mental health.

The Open World Program is funded by the US Congress and provides opportunities for beneficiaries to interact with their American counterparts.