The Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) Global Center for Child and Adolescent Mental Health at the Child Mind Institute and International Association for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Allied Professions (IACAPAP) Announces Inaugural Cohort of Clinical Fellows at IACAPAP World Congress

New Program Expands Access to Clinical Care Training to Treat Child and Adolescent Mental Health Disorders in Low- and Middle-Income Countries

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil —  The Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) Global Center for Child and Adolescent Mental Health at the Child Mind Institute and International Association for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Allied Professions (IACAPAP) announced the inaugural cohort of the SNF Global Center Clinical Fellows at the IACAPAP 26th World Congress in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.  

In April, the fellows — a psychiatrist, a psychologist, and an occupational therapist, all from Maputo, Mozambique — started their specialized training in child and adolescent mental health (CAMH) at the Universidade Federal de Río Grande do Sul and its affiliate Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre in Porto Alegre, Brazil.

The gap between CAMH needs and available care is substantial in low- and middle-income countries. At the same time, the number of programs providing specialized accredited training for clinicians in these countries remains limited.  At present in Mozambique, there is only one child psychiatrist for 16 million children.

“Children who have mental health disorders are stigmatized,” says Carmen Catherine Tomás Rungo Nhandamo, a clinical fellow. “In Mozambique, children with mental health issues are isolated without proper care because they don’t know what to do with them. By the time I get back to Mozambique, I will be able to help improve the health of children in my country.”

The Clinical Fellowship program is an innovative two-year program that includes education and practical training in clinical and academic aspects of child and adolescent mental health, and global mental health and leadership, tailored to the fellow’s professional background. Fellows are being supported by clinical coordinators and supervisors, in both Mozambique and Brazil, who will provide advice and support for their professional development. During the second year, fellows will provide CAMH clinical services, build local capacity, and disseminate their expertise in Mozambique in collaboration with public health care systems.

The Clinical Fellowship program was made possible by partnerships between the SNF Global Center at the Child Mind Institute with IACAPAP, the Mozambique Ministry of Health (MISAU) and their business partner the Mozambique Institute for Health Education and Research (MIHER), and the Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre (HCPA) and their business partner FundMed.

“The SNF Global Center Clinical Fellows Program is providing our clinicians with invaluable training and exposure to the latest evidence-based trainings in child and adolescent mental health.  Our partnership with SNF Global Center will contribute to our mission to build a robust national healthcare system that leads to positive health outcomes for the children and adolescents of Mozambique,” said Dr. Wilza Fumo, Director of the Department of Mental Health, MISAU.

The Clinical Fellowship program forms part of one of the six core initiatives of the SNF Global Center for Child and Adolescent Mental Health at the Child Mind Institute, which harnesses the Child Mind Institute’s commitment to transforming the lives of children struggling with mental health and learning disorders. The SNF Global Center was established with support from the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) through its Global Health Initiative (GHI).

The SNF Global Center formally announced the inaugural cohort of fellows during the SNF Global Center second Expert Gathering, “Improving Mental Health Outcomes for Brazil’s Youth through Local and Global Perspectives and Partnerships,” produced in partnership with IACAPAP and Instituto de Educação para Políticas de Saúde (IEPS). The event brought together distinguished panels of speakers from the Brazilian Ministry of Health, MISAU, the World Health Organization, Plan International Brasil, IEPS, the Child Mind Institute, and Shamiri Institute, amongst others. Youth Representatives from Rio de Janeiro, ages 14-17, also participated in session planning and shared their perspectives. The discussions highlighted the importance of local and global cooperation in addressing youth mental health challenges; strategies for improving access to mental health services for children and adolescents in Brazil and farther afield; the role of research, policy, and advocacy in promoting youth mental health; and the goals of the SNF Global Center for championing progress in this critical field. 

The application cycle for the second cohort of fellows from Mozambique will open in the summer of 2024. More information on Global Fellowships at the SNF Global Center at the Child Mind Institute can be found here.

About the SNF Global Center at the Child Mind Institute

The SNF Global Center brings together the Child Mind Institute’s expertise as a leading

independent nonprofit in children’s mental health and SNF’s deep commitment to supporting collaborative projects to improve access to quality health care worldwide. The center is building partnerships to drive advances in under-researched areas of children’s and adolescents’ mental health and expand access to culturally appropriate trainings, resources, and treatment in low- and middle-income countries. SNF’s founding support is part of its ongoing Global Health Initiative (GHI).

About the Child Mind Institute

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The Child Mind Institute is dedicated to transforming the lives of children and families struggling with mental health and learning disorders by giving them the help they need. We’ve become the leading independent nonprofit in children’s mental health by providing gold-standard evidence-based care, delivering educational resources to millions of families each year, training educators in underserved communities, and developing tomorrow’s breakthrough treatments. Learn more at childmind.org.

For press questions, contact our press team at childmindinstitute@ssmandl.com or our media officer at mediaoffice@childmind.org.