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The American Islamic Association of Mental Health Professionals (AIAMHP) held its first conference in August in Washington, D.C.
The purpose of the association is to eliminate ignorance and prejudices, promote educational and research activities, and to introduce Islamic perspective in therapeutic approaches, according to association President Abdul Basit, M.D.
The AIAMHP approach to mental illness places a great emphasis on programs to destigmatize mental illness, to promote and initiate new research activities and therapeutic approaches, and to disseminate this knowledge. In addition, the organization wants to introduce the Islamic perspective on mental health issues.
"We must introduce the Islamic perspective on mental health issues and reach out and support the families, friends, and caregivers of persons with mental illness," said Basit. "Since modern psychiatry is a product of the West, it is absolutely necessary to incorporate Islamic beliefs and values into mental health services."
AIAMHP wants to carry out "vigorous educational programs to enlighten Muslim communities about mental illness and its effects on individuals and their families," he said. He urged all Muslim mental health professionals to become active members of the association.
The keynote speakers at the conference were Herbert Sacks, M.D., immediate past president of APA, and John J. Tuskan, senior public health advisor in the Department of Health and Human Services.
Basit is on the faculty of the department of psychiatry at the University of Chicago. Other officers are Jamshid Bakhtiar, M.D., vice president; Mary Bakhtiar, M.D., secretary; and Mohammad Yunus, treasurer.
Omar Nasib, M.D., a psychiatrist in the Illinois Department of Human Services, was recently appointed to the association's advisory committee.