Burmese Mental Health Project
About Burmese Mental Health Project
Through my work experience, I have come to recognize that the Burmese community in the San Francisco Bay Area (and I believe this is also true for most part of the United States) have very little resources available for them with regard to culturally-competent mental health services. Thus, being a Burmese psychotherapist, I am doing my part to contribute to my community by building a database of professionals and agencies that serve the personal and family wellness needs of the Burmese community. Along with this database, I am also creating a mental health education, outreach and accessibility project through my involvement with other community-based agencies, so that Burmese people dealing with psychological distress and family problems will be empowered to seek the help that they need. In addition, many of the mental health needs of the Burmese population are closely tied into the case management needs that they have, so a collaborative approach with other services is highly recommended, and is integrated into the project.
If you are a professional or agency that would like to get involved, or a Burmese person who needs help in mental health issues, alcohol and drug use problems, and/or family problems, you can contact me and/or check out the resources below for more information. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to contact me at ssmaung.ma[at]gmail[dot]com.
Personal and Family Wellness Resources for Burmese Community
Brochures in Burmese and Karen available. Contact me to obtain them. They will be available for download soon. Other resources will be posted in near future. Please check back later.
Bay Area Resource List for Burmese Mental Health and Social Services:
Case Management and Counseling Center
Asian Community Mental Health Services: http://www.acmhs.org ; (510) 451-6729/(510) 970-9750
Case Management, Counseling, and Education around issues of Family Support, Mental Health and Developmental Disability for Asian & Pacific Islanders. (Alameda and Contra Costa counties) **Burmese language capable, ask for Maha See, Quality Assurance Coordinator and San San Myint, Case Manager.
Refugee Services
Refugee Transitions. http://www.reftrans.org ; 415-939-2151/ 510-834-6000
Case management and English language tutoring for refugee that are resettled. (San Francisco and East Bay)
** Burmese language capable, ask for Zarni Maung, Family Advocate.
Vocational and Case Management Services
Lao Family Community Development, Inc. http://laofamilynet.org ; 510-533-8850
Case management and housing and vocational services, and many programs for refugee, immigrants, and victims of crime. (Oakland) **Burmese language capable, ask for Su Dung, Employment Counselor, GCDF.
Cultural and Support Services
Burmese Youth Assocation, http://burmeseyouthassociation.org; 415-452-9809
Event coordination and social networking to promote welfare of Burmese community, unite all Burmese youth regardless of their ethnicity and belief, help all Burmese refugees, orphanages and poor in the country and around the world, and promote and maintain Burmese Culture and Customs. **All members are Burmese language capable.
