Linda Guzman is a doctoral fellow in the 2021-2022 class of the Minority Fellowship Program (MFP) with the Interdisciplinary Minority Fellowship Program (IMFP) with the American Psychological Association (APA). She received her B.A. in psychology from the University of North Carolina, Greensboro and her M.A. from the University of Arkansas Fayetteville, where she is a clinical psychology doctoral candidate. Currently, Linda is a behavioral medicine/health psychology resident at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University. She has professional experience working at various mental health clinics and facilities serving women, veterans, and Spanish-speaking individuals. She will be applying for post-doctoral training or other career opportunities this Fall.
Linda was initially drawn to the MFP because of the opportunities to be part of a network of individuals focused on the common goal of assisting communities of color. She shared, “The opportunity to join a network of scholars and practitioners invested in addressing health disparities work through a systematic lens was something I wanted to be a part of.”
When reflecting on how the MFP has enriched her academic career and built her professional network, Linda shared that it has allowed her to engage with professionals from different disciplines and shape her professional perspective. She stated, “I have met peers from different academic disciplines who share the value of doing community-centered work. Working within an interdisciplinary group broadens my knowledge and perspective of how we can all meet for a shared goal where learning is not siloed but shared collaboratively to create positive change. This type of collaboration makes for better science and practice.”
During her MFP fellowship, Linda was part of a team that worked with a community organization that specialized in providing physical and behavioral health services to immigrants acclimating to life in the United States. She explained, “In collaboration with a university, we partnered with a community organization that has expertise in supporting immigrants who have experienced significant trauma. Together, we strategized on creating a volunteer coalition of students from fields such as nursing, mental health, etc., interested in receiving training on cultural humility and working with vulnerable populations. These trainings equip volunteers with the tools and competencies needed to support the community organization in their efforts to increase the use of clinical services and access to comprehensive health services. Our main goal was to build a sustainable partnership between the two entities while also striving to meet the changing health needs exacerbated by the pandemic.”
Linda plans to apply the knowledge and skills acquired from the MFP to her work as a clinician, researcher, and trainer. She states, “I have a deeper appreciation of the various roles mental health professionals can play to collaboratively increase access to and engagement with mental health services among diverse patient populations.” She explained that after completing her Ph.D., “I ultimately aspire to work in an academic medical center with multicultural populations, completing program evaluations and supporting the next generation of behavioral medicine clinicians interested in research on culturally competent care.”
When asked what advice she had for anyone thinking about applying to the MFP, Linda said, “Being a part of MFP has been both professionally and personally rewarding! You will join a community of people who share the value of addressing disparities in access to care, mindful of the systemic structure set in place and challenging those structures through practice and advocacy.”