Public Health

I am committed to community-engaged research in underrepresented and underserved communities. I am an active member of the Community Health Board Coalition (CHBC), a group of 15 ethnic health boards that work to decolonize research by applying community-based participatory research (CBPR) approaches to understanding health disparities in BIPOC, refugee, and immigrant communities. This research guides our advocacy for mental health services, language access, safe open spaces for recreation, economic stability, and improved food systems. Community-engaged research, organizing, and advocacy plays an important role in decolonizing research while acknowledging and expanding systems of knowledge for action.

COVID-19 Response

In response to COVID-19, we are advocating for health systems to collect disaggregated racial, ethnic, and linguistic data on patients, adopt anti-racist protocols, and create opportunities for participatory decision-making in lieu of project-based engagement.

Mental well-being
The Vietnamese Health Board and community members come together to assess mental well-being in the community.

Each health board used CBPR principles to learn about mental-being in their respective community. I was on the research team for the Vietnamese Health Board to collect stories and insights from community members. The results from this work lead to the development of the Social and Mental Wellness Toolkit for the Vietnamese American Community. Our research also led to a Coalition-wide report titled, Everything is Medicine. Watch a video about CHBC’s mental health systems and policy work here.

Related publications

Dang, K., Ho, K., Hoang, D.H., Le, N., Lundgreen, K., Miyagawa, L.A., Nguyen, D., Nguyen, L.T., Nguyen-Wichman, M., and Wilson Owens, C. [Alphabetical order] (2019). Mental Health Assessment Project in the Vietnamese Community, King County, Washington. Seattle Foundation. Seattle, WA.