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Chanté Meadows, Ph.D. is a 2023 graduate of the PHD Program in Leadership and Change at Antioch University.
Chanté Meadows at her Dissertation Defense.
From L-R: Dr. J. Beth Mabry, Committee Chair, Dr. Ameena Kemavor Committee Member, Dr. Fayth Parks, Committee Member.
Dissertation Committee
- J. Beth Mabry, Ph.D., Committee Chair
- Fayth Parks, Ph.D., Committee Member
- Ameena Kamavor, Ph.D., Committee Member
Keywords
mental health clinicians, pandemic, Black mental health, Black mental health clinicians, PTSD, vicarious trauma, shared trauma, collective trauma, racial trauma, race-based trauma, COVID-19, leadership, critical race theory, interviews, phenomenology, interpretive phenomenology
Document Type
Dissertation
Publication Date
2023
Abstract
This study explored the experiences of African American mental health clinicians’ during the intersecting crises of the Black mental health crisis, the highly publicized racial tension tied to extrajudicial violence and over-policing of Black Americans, and the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic started a global crisis that affected millions of people’s physical and mental health and overall well-being. Shared trauma explores the duality of mental health clinicians’ personal and professional experiences. Grounded in critical race theory and models of trauma, this study explores Black mental health clinicians’ lived experiences and lessons. This is an interpretive phenomenological study with narrative interviews of 10 mental health clinicians who provided services to at least 50% Black clientele before the advent of COVID-19. The study explored how Black mental health clinicians providing mental health care fared, personally and professionally, during COVID-19 and with racial upheaval: How did they adapt their lives and practices? What did they learn personally and professionally during these crises? Data were collected in individual qualitative interviews and analyzed using Saldaña’s first-cycle and second-cycle thematic coding model. Themes that emerged were (a) anxiety and fear regarding the unknown of COVID-19; (b) anger towards the continued racism and over-policing and killing of the Black community; (c) the importance physical activity and therapy as a clinician as means of self-care (d) connection to others to help with emotional support and the isolation of COVID-19; (e) transitioning to telehealth from in-office clinical services; (f) increase in demand of services, and (g) increase in demand for the expertise of Black clinicians, specifically. Understanding the lived experiences of Black mental health clinicians during these crises informs future practices of clinicians by teaching how to optimize health and well-being for self-care and not to burn out. The findings also encourage the development of more clinicians of color to serve the Black community and clients with trauma-informed and racially-informed care. This dissertation is available in open access at AURA (https://aura.antioch.edu/) and OhioLINK ETD Center (https://etd.ohiolink.edu).
Recommended Citation
Meadows, C. (2023). Black Mental Health Clinicians' Experiences and Lessons from the Intersecting Crises of Black Mental Health, COVID-19, and Racial Trauma: An Interpretive Phenomenological Study. https://aura.antioch.edu/etds/952
Included in
African American Studies Commons, Clinical Psychology Commons, Counseling Psychology Commons, Leadership Studies Commons, Other Psychology Commons, Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy Commons, Social Work Commons
Comments
Chanté Meadows
ORCID Scholar ID #: #0009-0007-1747-560X
Chanté Meadows is the Founder and CEO of Meadows Counseling Group. She is a licensed clinical social worker with an emphasis in mental health. She specializes in working with BIPOC, women’s issues, relationship issues, life transitions, college counseling, couples counseling, anxiety, and depression. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communication from the University of Maryland, College Park. She has her Master of Social Work from The Ohio State University where she is currently a Senior Lecturer. She holds certificates in sex therapy and EMDR (trauma therapy). Chanté is also heavily involved with the National Association of Social Work and is the 2023-2025 Ohio NASW Board of Directors President. Chanté is a speaker, trainer, educator, and has presented at TEDx regarding mental health in the Black Community. Her passion is spreading the word about mental health and defeating stigma.