Fort Worth Medical Students Raise Awareness on Inequities in Mental Health


TCU and UNTHSC School of Medicine Students Help Raise Money to Support Mental Health and Celebrate Bebe Moore Campbell.

By Prescotte Stokes III

FORT WORTH – A group of medical students at TCU and UNTHSC School of Medicine pounded the pavement around TCU’s campus to celebrate the inaugural Moore Equity in Mental Health 5K walk, run or roll event.

“I think it really just spoke to the fact that we really need to raise awareness about the inequities in mental health especially with our youth,” said Aya Al-Adli, MS-2 and vice president of the psychiatry student interest group at TCU and UNTHSC School of Medicine.

The virtual event was held all across the U.S. on Saturday, July 10, by the American Psychiatric Association was done to celebrate Bebe Moore Campbell who was an American author, journalist, teacher and mental health advocate whose work helped shed light on the mental health needs of the Black community and other underrepresented communities across the country.

The event began with a livestream on the APA’s Youtube page with guest speakers Vivian Pender, M.D., APA President, Saul Levin, M.D., M.P.A., APA CEO and Medical Director and NFL veteran and broadcaster Brandon Marshall.

Marshall, who publicly struggled with mental health issues during his playing career, spoke about his personal struggles and how more needs to be to combat the stigma around mental health.

“When someone of that stature is suffering from it and he’s putting it on display in front of everybody it makes it a little bit easier for the next to me to say maybe I’m dealing with some things that are mental health issues and I want to seek help,” said second-year medical student Antonio Igbokidi.

The 5k initiative that is co-organized by the APA’s Division of Diversity and Health Equity and the APA Foundation challenged participants to also raise money for the APA Foundation’s Moore Equity in Mental Health Community Grants Initiative. The money will help provide education about the mental health needs of young people of color and support individuals and organizations that develop and provide culturally sensitive mental health services, according to the APA.

The medical school’s Psychiatric SIG raised $1,000 during the event to donate to the APA’s foundation.

“It’s all going back to grassroots organizations which is wonderful,” said Emma Difiore, MS-2. “I think mental health is on everyone’s radar and I think we really need to bring equity into the conversation.”