Gihan M. ELNahas (Egypt)
Ain Shams Medical School
Psychiatry
I am currently Professor of Psychiatry, Head of Consultation-Liaison Psychiatry and Women Mental Health Program at the Institute of Psychiatry-WPA Collaborate Center-Faculty of Medicine -Ain Shams University; based in Cairo, Egypt. I have a 30 years’ experience in Mental Health, specialized in Women Mental Health, and a 10 years’ experience in program management for public health projects As founder of The Women Mental Health Program (WMHP) at the Institute of Psychiatry since 2014, I have led, promoted and advanced the practice in the field of Women Mental Health and Reproductive Psychiatry through developing and updating evidence-based guidelines of practice and service protocols, established a Women Mental health forum in every international annual conference of the Institute for the past 15 years and incorporated WMH within the curriculum of postgraduate continuous medical education (CME). I successfully established links with Obstetrics Gynecology Departments working on joint educational trainings and clinical programs. I serve as Mental Health Advisor to the National Initiative “Safe Women Units” created to protect women surviving all forms of gender-based violence in Egypt. I am an international member of the American Psychiatric Association since 2014. I am an active member of the International Association for Women Mental Health and its Educational Committee for 8 years. I am also member of Int. Marcé Society for Perinatal Mental Health-acting as its Focal Contact of its emerging Regional Group of Middle East and North Africa which I have initiated. At the international level, I have been engaged with the World Health Organization-WHO , then the International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease-The Union; serving as their Regional Director for the Middle East Office in Cairo till 2013, I have been engaged with the process of development of several national public health projects and programs in Lebanon, Kyrgyzstan, Brazil, Guam-Pacific Islands, Kenya, Rwanda-just to mention some. I still serve as an independent international faculty for the International Management Development Programme (IMDP) at The Union.

Moderator of 2 Sessions

 Conference Calendar
COURSES

COURSE 03: TREATMENT IN PREGNANCY

Session Type
COURSES
Date
Wed, 03.08.2022
Session Time
08:30 - 12:30
Room
AMBER 1 - LIVE STREAMED
Chair(s)
ACCEPTED SYMPOSIUM

STRESS AMONG WOMEN AND ITS MENTAL HEALTH IMPACT

Session Type
ACCEPTED SYMPOSIUM
Date
Thu, 04.08.2022
Session Time
09:50 - 10:50
Room
ONLINE HALL C
Session Description
Excessive stress is becoming a significant challenge to public health. Close to 40 years ago, the Office of the US Surgeon General declared that when stress reaches excessive proportions, psychological changes can be so dramatic as to have serious implications for both mental health and physical health. Women are exposed to a significant number of stressors in different forms just by virtue of their gender. Their immune system could be affected by psychosocial factors such as prenatal or early life stress in a long-lasting manner including transgenerational transmission of trauma. Moreover, maternal negative emotional states expose the offspring to prenatal stress and early life stress which have its repercussions extending into adulthood, notably on mental health. Maternal Stress during pregnancy and infancy, including negative life events or trauma, has been associated with increased risk of childhood behavioral and emotional problems. This indicates a strong role for psychosocial influence during those crucial periods of development. In this session, we will focus on women exposed to different forms of psychosocial stressors and its impact. We will discuss gender-based violence and its mental health impact in Latin America, the stressful impact of the COVID 19 pandemic on the mental health of pregnant women and young mothers and finally we will highlight the impact of maternal distress and how its adverse consequences are transmitted to the developing offspring.
Chair(s)
Session Icon
Pre-recorded & scheduled on demand

Presenter of 3 Presentations

 Conference Calendar

PANELIST

Date
Thu, 04.08.2022
Session Time
08:30 - 09:30
Session Type
PANEL DISCUSSIONS
Session Name
0770 - PANEL SESSION: PERINATAL CARE; AN AREA OF PRIORITY ATTENTION FOR THE 21ST CENTURY (ID 236)
Presenter
Lecture Time
08:30 - 08:30
Room
AMBER 1 - LIVE STREAMED

MANAGEMENT OF BIPOLAR DISORDER IN PREGNANCY

Date
Wed, 03.08.2022
Session Time
08:30 - 12:30
Session Type
COURSES
Session Name
0470 - COURSE 03: TREATMENT IN PREGNANCY (ID 200)
Presenter
Lecture Time
10:40 - 11:30
Room
AMBER 1 - LIVE STREAMED

Abstract

Abstract Body

This presentation is part of our precongress training course on "Treatment in Pregnancy".

Management of psychiatric disorders during the course of pregnancy is a specialized field of practice that entails prudent selection of treatment method to address critical reproductive events. Treatment of pregnant women essentially embraces strategies for pregnancy planning, and perinatal care, taking into consideration planning for the postpartum and breastfeeding period as well.

In this course we are sharing up to date and comprehensive knowledge on the topic in order to help you make rational collaborative and individualized treatment decisions.

The course will be facilitated by faculty from the International Association for Women Mental Health: Florence Thibaut Professor of Psychiatry and Addiction University of Paris France IAWMH President and Gihan ELNAHAS Professor of Psychiatry and Head of Women Mental Health Program Ain Shams University Cairo Egypt and member of IAWMH Educational Committee.

The course is structured to include a combination of short didactic presentations, group practice and discussions of two case-based scenarios on Substance use disorder (Prof Thibaut) and Bipolar disorder (Prof ELNahas) and exercise injects for course participants.

Hide

MATERNAL DISTRESS AND ITS ADVERSE CONSEQUENCES THE DEVELOPING OFFSPRING

Date
Thu, 04.08.2022
Session Time
09:50 - 10:50
Session Type
ACCEPTED SYMPOSIUM
Session Name
0940 - STRESS AMONG WOMEN AND ITS MENTAL HEALTH IMPACT (ID 155)
Presenter
Lecture Time
10:10 - 10:30
Room
ONLINE HALL C
Session Icon
Pre-recorded & scheduled on demand

Abstract

Abstract Body

For decades has the teratogenic effect of psychiatric treatments been a topic prime interest and an appealing field of study. Recently, a considerable amount of interest is being directed towards revealing the impact of maternal distress and exposure to adverse life events on offsprings. Evidence is now available to reveal such a relationship and to address an important inquiry; Can maternal distress affect an offspring intrauterine life and beyond? The science of stress have provided evidence delineating the effects of acute and chronic stress on the developing fetal brain; impacting brain structures involved in cognition and mental health. This presentation will shed light on the proposed link between fetal exposure to maternal distress and adverse experiences and its impact on the different phases of brain development at crucial timepoints.

Hide