Patient-Centered Care Course Engages Mental Health Clinicians Across the Field
Sessions are now available on demand for free
September 24, 2025
Mental health professionals transform lives through care that puts patients first. Patient-centered approaches ensure that patients’ own values and needs guide the care they receive.
On September 12, 2025, Deconstructing Stigma offered the professional development course, Beyond the Diagnosis: Mastering Patient-Centered Care.
The virtual event took place live and was attended by more than 700 participants from 70 countries across the globe.
In the course—now available to watch anytime on demand—speakers share their expertise on elements of patient-centered care, such as the importance of using non-stigmatizing language, the role of culture and identity in mental health care, and how gender influences a person’s mental health experiences.
In addition, the course features a talk by a physician and participant in Deconstructing Stigma’s anti-stigma campaign, who describes her own mental health journey and how it changed her professional approach.
“When someone’s mental health care doesn’t consider what makes them unique, we’re adding just one more barrier to effective treatment. Most providers know this, but often lack a reliable source to help refine and strengthen their skills,” says Scott J. O’Brien, director of Education Outreach at McLean Hospital and co-founder of Deconstructing Stigma.
“With this course, we’re encouraging professionals to promote person-focused mental health care in their work with patients, aiming to improve the lives of people who are struggling, as well as eliminating outdated and stigmatizing practices.”
Access the Course for FREE!
Discover practical tools for patient-centered mental health care—designed to help providers build stronger connections, improve outcomes, and deliver compassionate, effective care.
The course is available to watch at any time for free.
Language Matters in Mental Health
In the first discussion, A Positive Evolution: Language in Mental Health Care, Christine Tebaldi, DNP, MPH, describes how a provider’s language can make or break the therapeutic alliance.
“When we use something called person-first language, where we say it’s ‘a person with depression’ or ‘a patient with schizophrenia,’ we’re actually starting with the whole person and setting the stage to say that there’s a lot more to this individual than just their diagnosis or their illness,” Tebaldi says.
Tebaldi points out that it’s important for clinicians to use a consistent, respectful tone whether speaking directly to a patient, writing chart notes, or reviewing a case with colleagues.
She urges the audience to consider their own language and to respectfully hold peers accountable when a patient’s humanity is not placed front and center in a discussion.
Just as stigmatizing language leads to disconnection, stigma around race, culture, and identity contributes to mental health symptoms and difficulties accessing care.
Helping Patients Feel Seen and Heard
In Culture and Identity in the Clinic, Lisa W. Coyne, PhD, and Christine M. Crawford, MD, MPH, help clinicians understand the unique stressors faced by members of marginalized populations. They provide guidance on how to notice extra stress patients may be carrying, and how to help patients feel seen and heard.
According to Crawford, her process in understanding the whole patient involves keeping an open mind, regardless of the patient’s background. “I try to create an environment that allows the patient to be as open and honest about what it’s like to navigate the world as themselves,” she says.
She and Coyne describe how clinicians can ensure patients are comfortable with the care they receive and that treatment plans feel right to them.
A key to this, according to Coyne, involves bringing humility to such interactions, making room for feedback, “and welcoming that feedback and implementing it so that you can be a better clinician yourself with whoever is sitting in front of you.”
Inclusive Care Across Genders
Gender is another important aspect of identity. In The Full Picture: Gender’s Role in Modern Mental Health Treatment, Roberto Olivardia, PhD, outlines how symptoms may present differently depending on gender, such as when men internalize stereotypes around masculinity and toughness.
“For men, it’s often shaming just to acknowledge there’s a problem they need to work with,” he states.
Olivardia explains that gender also influences diagnoses—about one in four people with eating disorders is male, a significant shift from 30 years ago.
Gender-diverse individuals often face barriers to care. Olivardia emphasizes that clinicians can help by checking their biases, asking about their pronouns, creating LGBTQ+ friendly spaces, and remaining open to patients’ experiences—ensuring safe, affirming care across the gender spectrum.
A Doctor’s Unique Perspective
Neurologist Lena Liu, MD, rounds off the course in the conversation, Provider and Patient: A Doctor’s Mental Health Journey. Liu describes how feeling like an impostor during her medical residency developed into depression, generalized anxiety, and OCD (obsessive compulsive disorder).
Liu’s mental health challenges led her to seek treatment during her training. Through her healing process, she learned strategies that helped her cope with workplace stress, connect with colleagues over shared challenges, and bring more understanding and compassion to her work with patients.
Her description of using curiosity in patient care encapsulates the objective of the course:
“It means approaching each patient encounter with an open mind, not being anchored down to one diagnosis, and being able to gather a comprehensive story and know how it’s affecting the patient’s life.”
