January 2020
IAWMH Membership Renewal

We are pleased to offer reduced membership fees in 2020! 

IAWMH Membership runs from January 1 to December 31.  To renew your membership please click on the link below.  Please note that you will need to create a new record with your details since there is a new registration system starting in January 2020.

Florence Thibaut
IAWMH President
President's Letter

Dear Friends and colleagues,
 
Several months have elapsed since our very successful World Congress in Paris.

During our last EC in Paris we decided to reduce the membership fees and to offer reduced fees to developing countries. We are also particularly keen on supporting our early career colleagues and we provide reduced membership fees for them.

In the meantime, Ecuadorian colleagues organized a very successful meeting in Guayaquil in November 2019 on intrafamilial violence and the role of drugs of abuse. You will find below some pictures of the meeting.

We are planning to develop educational courses which will be available soon via our website and you are more than welcome to prepare some educational courses in your field of interest. The first two which are ready to be launched are on our new guidelines on alcohol use disorders during pregnancy (F Thibaut, Paris University France) and about women and addictive disorders (M Potenza, Yale University USA).

We are also pleased to announce our next World Congress which will be held in Melbourne, Australia, from 14 to 17th March 2021. The call for symposia and workshop proposals will open soon (www.iawmh2021.org).

Finally I would like to share with you the pleasure I had when I was admitted as a knight in the order of the Legion of honour, the highest French decoration, by the French Minister of gender equality and fight against discriminations Marlene Schiappa, in recognition of my work in the field of Womens' Mental Health.

I wish you all a very successful and peaceful new year.
 
Best regards

Prof. Florence Thibaut
IAWMH President
Click here to view IAWMH Leadership!
Florence Thibaut, IAWMH President, Admitted as a Knight in the Order of the Legion of Honor.

In July, Florence Thibaut, President of IAWMH, has been admitted as a knight in the order of the Legion of Honour, the highest French decoration in recognition of her work.

She received the decoration from the Minister of gender equality and fight against discriminations Marlene Schiappa in a warm ceremony with her colleagues, family and friends held at the Hotel du petit Monaco Paris.

Congratulations, Florence.
Save the Date!
Don't miss the 9th World Congress on Women's Mental Health in Melbourne, Australia in March 2021!

We invite you to join us in Melbourne Australia from 14-17 March 2021 for the 9th World Congress of Women's Mental Health.We hope you will join your colleagues from across the globe in Melbourne Australia from 14-17 March 2021 for the 9th World Congress of Women's Mental Health.
This is a great opportunity to join leading specialists from across the world to discuss the latest in advances in women's mental health. Clinicians, researchers, psychiatrists, doctors, nurses and com munity groups are invited to contribute to the dialogue by participating in keynote presentations, symposia, workshops, free communications and poster sessions. The Congress offers a unique networking and learning opportunity for professionals to meet and discuss best practice and innovative developments to improve women's mental health.

The Congress will be held at the spectacular Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre, which is centrally located in the city centre and surrounded by a wide range of accommodation options within easy walking distance. So you will have the chance to enjoy and experience Melbourne first hand, rated as one of the world's most liveable cities. It is a culturally diverse city that is recognised for its cosmopolitan appeal and from the contrast of its historical city laneways and modern architecture, exceptional dining, vibrant art galleries, shopping and its sporting culture, Melbourne has it all. On the door step of the city, you can explore some spectacular sights and natural beauty on offer.

And of course we encourage you to take a little extra time to explore the land of contrast Australia truly is - from the lush tropical rainforests and breathtaking beaches of Queensland, the excitement and splendour of Sydney's Harbour to the spectacular wine regions of Adelaide - the options are endless.

Planning is well underway to ensure you have a memorable experience and we will keep IAWMH members informed to help in your planning. Be sure to visit the website www.iawmh2021.org and register your interest to receive further information. We look forward to seeing you in Melbourne - mark 14-17 March 2021 in your diary now - you won't want to miss it!

 
Abstract submission extended to 
February 10!

Click here for their newsletter!

The Catalan Research Workgroup on Women's Mental Health is organizing the III European Meeting on Women's Mental Health, Psychosis and Gender which will be held in Barcelona on May 14th and 15th, 2020.

In the last decades, the topic of gender differences in psychosis has generated a high amount of interest and research in the scientific community. The ways in which women and men express psychosis are probably modulated through a variety of factors related to genes, hormones and the environment. This is probably why women experience the same disease differently, and why women and men show a different response to medications and non-pharmacological treatments.

The main goal of this Meeting is to update the knowledge about several issues related to the topic of gender, women and psychosis. 

There will be three main conferences:
  • Prof. Sivana Galderisi. "Recovery in psychosis from a gender perspective"
  • Prof. Ana Gonzalez-Pinto Arrillaga. "Cannabis use in women with psychosis and its clinical effects"
  • Prof. Prabha Chandra. "The Psychopathology of Postpartum Psychosis"
And there also will be 5 Symposia and oral and poster Communications.

We encourage you and your colleagues/team to present a symposia, and/or oral communications in order to share the knowledge of your research.

For more information -  https://www.wmhbarcelona.com/
The Ecuadorian Society of Biological Psychiatry together with IAWMH  organized a meeting with the following subjects: 
Drug Abuse and Gender Violence in November.

An outgrowth of the meeting was that Samborondon city will probably develop a gender violence shelter. This is crucial since there are not any facilities for women in risky situations.  This was part of our meeting goals, community needs academic information in order to develop mental health programs.

For more information, email Vicky Valdez at   [email protected] . 
 

(From left) Dr Marta Rondon, past IAWMH President, Dr Victoria Valdez, IAWMH Secretary and Dr Armando Camino, Vice President Ecuadorian Society of Biological Psychiatry
Dr Victoria Valdez, IAWMH Secretary and 
Dr Juan Montenegro, President Ecuadorian Society of Biological Psychiatry
Collaborative Interorganizational Symposium at WPA Lisbon

On 22nd August 2019 session, a Collaborative Interorganizational Symposium:
Perinatal Care: A Top Priority for Mental Health Care Programs was presented.  The symposium was organized in collaboration with The International Association of Women's Mental Health and International Marcé Society for Perinatal Mental Health.   

Chairs:- Prabha Chandra and Charlotte Hanlon
Speakers: Jane Fisher, Charlotte Hanlon and Olayinka Omigbodun

For more information on WPA Lisbon, click here. 
Indian Psychiatric Society's 3rd National Symposium on Women's Mental Health















The scientific program for the symposium carried a wide spectrum of topics ranging from clinical disorders with focus on the female patient, to laws that surround providing mental health services to female patients in the light of India's new mental health act. The program raised a discussions on women's sexual health; breaking the silence on mental health issues surrounding safety, trauma & violence; mental health at workplace where women often face glass ceilings & carry out balancing acts; as well as a storytelling session by service users. Pre-symposium workshops, including a hands-on workshop on brain stimulation
 as well as a yoga workshop with demonstration of practices that benefit mental health, with focus on Women's Health were conducted. A panel discussion on the theme and a debate on "Does WMH gets the attention it deserves (research, practice, promotion)" saw enthusiastic audience participation too. The symposium saw a robust participation from mental health service providers, including psychiatrists, psychologists, psychiatric social workers, nurses, medical students, as well as lawyers, public policy makers, service users and caregivers.

With the aegis of the India Psychiatric Society's specialty section on Women's Mental Health, this symposium was shaped and conducted under the leadership of Dr Rajni Chatterji (Chairperson), Dr Sarmishtha Chakrabarti (co-Chairperson), Dr Ruksheda Syeda (Convenor) and Dr Shobhana Mittal (Organising Secretary), and was supported by Delhi Psychiatric Society and CIMBS. The symposium strived to enrich the knowledgebase of all in attendance, and hoped to bring much needed attention to National Issues surrounding Women's Mental Health.
IAWMH Member News

IAWMH Vice President Prabha Chandra presented a TED talk on "How Our Behavior Can Impact People."

Looking for news from our members!
As we are preparing IAWMH Newsletters we want to highlight our members' activities, awards and news. Let us know what's happening that would be of interest to other IAWMH members. Send your news to Debby Tucker at [email protected]  to be included in the next newsletter.

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