Associate Professor Shameran Slewa-Younan

Position

Associate Professor in Mental Health

Biography

Shameran Slewa-Younan is an Associate Professor in Mental Health at the School of Medicine, Western Sydney University and Honorary Senior Research Fellow, Centre for Mental Health, University of Melbourne.  She also holds a position as an Adjunct Fellow, at The Chicago School of Professional Psychology, United States of America.

Associate Professor Slewa-Younan has been practicing as a cross-cultural bilingual psychologist since 2001 when she joined the NSW Transcultural Mental Health Service and currently practices in Fairfield, Sydney, an area of high need with significant  numbers of refugees. Her focus has always been on providing optimal psychological care for resettling refugees, Her clinical practice utilises a Cognitive Behavioural approach that is informed from a bilingual and bicultural perspective. Additionally, Associate Professor Slewa-Younan is well known within the South Western Sydney community and is frequently called upon to provide psycho-education to community members, leaders and treatment providers. She has provided talks on mental health topics at community forums and initiatives.

Since 2014, she has gained a reputation as one of the leading scholars on the mental health literacy of refugees and other cross-cultural populations, evidenced by her significant research output and collaborations with multiple institutions both domestic and international. She has published over 60 peer-reviewed publications including several invited articles and has appeared on ABC news regarding the mental health outcomes of Iraqi refugees in Australia and was awarded significant contribution prize by Australian Psychological Society for her teaching, research and clinical cross-cultural work (2017).

In 2017 she completed the Global Mental Health and Recovery Certificate through the School of Medicine, Harvard University.  Associate Professor Slewa-Younan’s academic, clinical and research expertise is driven by the goal of improving the wellbeing of refugees.

Shameran served as a Board Member of South Western Sydney Local Health District, NSW Health from 2015 to 2022, and is currently on the South Western Sydney Primary Health Network Mental Health Advisory Committee (2022-).

Research Interests

• Refugee Mental Health
• Mental Health Literacy
• Mental Health Promotion for Refugee Populations
• Mental Health Promotion for Refugee Populations
• Psychotherapies in Refugee Mental Health

Memberships

• Member of Psychology Board of Australia, Australian Health Professional Registration Association (1998)
• Member of Australian Psychological Society (M.A.P s) (2007)

Committees

• South Western Sydney Primary Health Network Mental Health Advisory Committee (2022-)

Qualifications

• 2017 Certificate in Global Mental Health and Recovery, Harvard University, Boston, USA
• 2003 PhD in Psychological Medicine University of Sydney
• 1994, Bachelor of Psychology (Honours) University of Wollongong
• 1993 Bachelor of Arts (Psychology), University of Sydney

Awards and Recognition

• 2017 Australian Psychological Society: Significant Contribution to Division of General Psychological Practice, for work in Cross Cultural Psychology Practice and Research
• 2017 Mental Health Matters and WayAhead, NSW Health: Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Communities Research Award
• 2015 Ingham Institute Applied Medical Research, South Western Sydney Local Health District, Ingham Institute Best Community Research Paper

Grants

Research and Publications

• For a full list of my publications please view my publications page (opens in a new window)
• View my ResearchGate profile (opens in a new window)

Contact Details