Featured Publications
An “Oasis Within a Desert,” But the Desert Remains: Clubhouse Members’ Experiences of Social Belonging and Societal Oppression
Desai MU, Manning R, Pavlo AJ, Blackman K, Ocasio L, Crespo M, Flanagan E. An “Oasis Within a Desert,” But the Desert Remains: Clubhouse Members’ Experiences of Social Belonging and Societal Oppression. American Journal Of Orthopsychiatry 2021, 91: 294-301. PMID: 33983776, PMCID: PMC9585918, DOI: 10.1037/ort0000539.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsSocial belongingPsychosocial clubhousePhenomenological qualitative methodRisk of stigmaSocial exclusionSocietal oppressionCommunity lifeCommunity engagementProfound deprivationMental health challengesPower imbalanceWider worldHumane spaceQualitative methodsSocial determinantsBelongingMembers' experiencesMember participationAlternative worldsMental health practiceSocial isolationOutside worldClubhouse modelMental healthHealth practices
2015
“I Want to Come Home”: Vietnam-Era Veterans’ Presenting for Mental Health Care, Roughly 40 Years After Vietnam
Desai MU, Pavlo AJ, Davidson L, Harpaz-Rotem I, Rosenheck R. “I Want to Come Home”: Vietnam-Era Veterans’ Presenting for Mental Health Care, Roughly 40 Years After Vietnam. Psychiatric Quarterly 2015, 87: 229-239. PMID: 26156261, DOI: 10.1007/s11126-015-9382-2.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchConceptsPhenomenological qualitative methodMental health clinicsExperiences of rejectionEveryday waysGovernmental institutionsPervasive stigmatizationVietnam-era veteransHealth clinicsQualitative methodsLongstanding experienceStrong bridgesSocial rejectionVeterans Health AdministrationVA Medical CenterMental health careOwn preferencesProblematic patternsExperienceVietnamMeaningLong processDiagnosis of PTSDCare seekingMedical CenterVeterans Home