Mental Health and Missions

Person in a brown sweater resting hands on a wooden railing, facing a blurred forested landscape.

What is MHM?

What are the unique issues that are facing mental health professionals who serve in the world of missions? How can we learn from each other so that we can serve cross-cultural workers more effectively? These questions and more are at the heart of the Mental Health and Missions (MHM) community.

MHM is an annual conference, held in the United States, of Christian mental health professionals who serve Christian missionaries. The attendees gather together for fellowship, networking, and professional development with a focus on the mental health of Christian missionaries and their families.

While MHM is intended for mental health professionals, member care personnel and leaders from mission agencies are welcome and encouraged to attend! This conference is relationally rich and intellectually invigorating , providing encouragement and professional development.

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Conference Details

Save the Date: MHM 2025 will be held November 20-23 at the Hurst Conference Center, in the DFW area of Texas.

2025 Conference Theme: With Grace and Truth: Pathways for Humble and Effective Service/Care

Submit a Proposal to lead a workshop (75 minutes) or Plenary (50 minutes) at MHM 2025 by using the proposal submission form by January 24, 2025

Questions: email mhm@mti.org

  • Thank you to the 215 people who attended MHM 2024 November 21-24, 2024 at the Hurst Conference Center in Hurst, Texas!

    • Theme: Listening and Learning: Caring Humbly for Missionary Mental Health Needs

    • Cost: $475 (includes lunches, dinners, and conference fees - breakfast included at the conference hotel). A $100 late registration fee applied starting November 11th.

    • CE Hours: Mental Health and Missions Conference 2024 – Select Sessions has been approved by NBCC for NBCC credit. Sessions approved for NBCC credit are clearly identified (see 2024 MHM Schedule and Program Information, below). Mission Training International is solely responsible for all aspects of the program. NBCC Approval No. SP-4687. Up to 8 CE hours are available to MHM 2024 participants.

  • Listening and Learning: Caring Humbly for Missionary Mental Health Needs

    Listening well is the foundation for caring well. The most competent caregivers are those who never stop learning and who humbly listen to the perspectives of other caregivers and to those they serve. Our 2024 conference will be a time to listen and learn from the many voices in the mental health and missions community. While all proposals are welcome, we will give priority to those that explore the role of humility in:

    • Collaboration

    • Clinical care of missionaries

    • Professional development

  • Thursday Evening, November 21, 6:30-7:30pm

    Our Troubled History with  Humility: Scott Shaum

    • Why is humility so hard? When I think I’m humble, I’m actually probably not. But I’m told to be so. What’s the catch? What’s the way forward?

    Friday Morning, November 22, 9:00-10:30am

    Humility in Missionary Mental Health Care: Lessons Learned through Exploration, Collaboration and Transformation: Susan Stocksdale, Nancy Crawford, Roger Brown (CE 1.0)

    • Lessons are often learned through hardship and mistakes, and Africa Inland Mission is no exception as we have practiced member care and various avenues of mental health care for missionaries through trial and error over the past 40 years. We will address the importance of building trust with leaders and members, creating policies and procedures that enable trust, caring well for self and one another, and methods of fostering emotional health and resiliency.

     

    Saturday Morning, November 23, 9:00 – 10:30am

    Keys to Good Clinical Care for Historically Marginalized Communities: Alex Galloway, Christin Fort, Esther Yao, Jackie Boone (CE 1.0)

    • It is difficult to "Listen and Learn" from people who are not present. We will address problematic stereotypes, common prejudices and unintended mistakes in the care of historically marginalized communities through research, stories, role play and panel discussion from three different ethnic backgrounds (African/American, Asian/American and Latin/American) and apply this to the clinical care of missionaries.

     

    Saturday Evening, November 23, 7:30 – 9:00pm

    Cultivating Cultural Humility in a Diverse Caring Environment: Amy Kellog, Allison (CE 1.0)

    • Using lessons learned from the culturally diverse context of Dubai, we will examine the concept of “cultural humility” as it relates to providing mental health care in our cross-cultural communities. We will also reflect on how cultural paradigms impact our ability to care for others as Jesus did, and discuss how we can cultivate cultural humility through collaboration.

     

    Sunday Morning, November 24, 9:00-10:15am

    Self-Giving: Caring for Others as an Expression of Lived Humility: Scott Shaum

    • Receiving others’ stories day by day is our joy and it is taxing. God has called us to give our lives to this vocation of caring for others. Doing so is following God’s example of self-giving sacrifice. This is humility in action. It is fraught with challenges. Naming this tension is an important step toward longevity in this work. Navigating it is a lifelong learning curve.

    • Download the MHM 2024 Conference Schedule here

    • Download the MHM 2024 Program Information here

2024 Conference

  • MHM is meant for counselors, social workers, psychologists, psychiatrists and any other mental health providers. Such individuals will find this conference relationally rich and professionally invigorating. Although member care personnel and leaders from mission agencies are welcome, please recognize that presenters will be targeting mental health practitioners.

  • MHM is also meant for students working towards becoming counselors, social workers, psychologists, psychiatrists and any other mental health providers with an interest in serving the missions community. Students will find this conference relationally rich and professionally invigorating. There is a separate luncheon (included) just for students on the Friday of the conference.

  • The Research & Resource Fair is an interactive venue for sharing relevant research and ministry resources. Held Friday night, the fair showcases 20-30 organizational resources, literary reviews, and presentations of research. Share your valuable knowledge and organizational connections with the MHM community! The cutoff for R&R Fair table requests is one month before the conference, after that any remaining tables will assigned on a first-come, first-served basis but without the table host’s information published in the conference handouts.

  • The conference vision and direction rests on the shoulders of an independent team of program coordinators from various organizations. As a part of their volunteer role, these coordinators choose each year’s theme and presentations. Mission Training International serves as conference host, providing administrative and logistical support.

    The program coordinators are:

    • Andrew Brown, M.A. (co-chair)

    • Karen Carr, Ph.D. (co-chair)

    • Elizabeth Loewer, Psy.D.

    • Nicole Park, M.A.

    • Charlie Schaefer, Ph.D.

    • Suzanne Stocksdale, M.S.

  • Transfers and Cancellations:

    • All deposits are non-refundable.

    • Any refunds or transfers will result in processing charges.

    Regarding all MTI events:

    • Any cancellation of your registration for an MTI event will result in the loss of the deposit. If no deposit was made, a charge of $50 per adult will be assessed.

    • No refunds will be issued for cancellations within 30 days of the starting date of the event.

    • Transfers are not available for MTI events.

General Information

  • MHM is held at the Hurst Conference Center in Hurst, TX. The address is:

    Hurst Conference Center - 1601 Campus Dr, Hurst, TX 76054

    This is a suburban location 15 minutes from the DFW airport and 25 minutes from DAL airport.

  • Please note that all conference attendees are responsible for their own housing accommodations.

    The Conference Hotel is the Hilton Garden Inn, adjacent to the Hurst Conference Center (with indoor access to the conference center, this is ideal for participants with mobility constraints). Three other hotels are in easy walking distance to the conference center (see below) .

    • Hilton Garden Inn - 1615 Campus Drive, Hurst, Texas 76054

    • 817-281-5800

    • https://www.hilton.com/en/hotels/dfwhcgi-hilton-garden-inn-dallas-at-hurst-conference-center/

    RATE: $124.00 plus applicable taxes. This rate includes hot continental breakfast daily.

    BOOKING: Reservations can be made using the Direct Booking Link below. Guests can also call the hotel directly at 817-281-5800, give their stay dates, and ask for the “Mental Health and Missions” block to receive the group rate.

    (conference rate expired, rooms may still be available if some attendees cancel at the last minute)

    Guests can cancel their reservation 48 hours prior to day of arrival. After this time, one night’s room and tax may be applicable. Rooms will be held until October 29th 2024. After this date, the group rate will no longer be guaranteed.

    ADDITIONAL HOTEL INFORMATON:

    • Complimentary covered parking with access to all guest room floors

    • Complimentary wired and wireless WI-FI in all guest rooms

    • Garden Grill Restaurant serving breakfast (included)

    • Fitness center featuring upgraded Precor equipment – open 24 hours

    • Indoor swimming pool/hot tub – open 24 hours

    • Large outdoor patio with a gas fire pit

    • Microwaves, mini-fridge, and Keurig’s in all rooms

    There are three other hotels within easy walking distance of the Conference Center:

    1. Hyatt Place Fort Worth - Hurst (2 blocks away, 3 min walk to the Conference Center)

    • 1601 Hurst Town Center Dr., Hurst, TX 76054

    2. Hampton Inn and Suites DFW Airport W-SH 183 Hurst (2 ½ blocks away, 4-5 min walk to the Conference Center)

    • 1600 Hurst Town Center Dr., Hurst, TX 76054

    3. Holiday Inn Express & Suites – DFW West (3 blocks away, 7-8 min walk to the Conference Center)

    • 820 Thousand Oaks Dr., Hurst, TX 76054

  • For those participants staying in the Hilton Garden Inn (Conference Hotel), transportation to and from the DFW airport only (NOT Dallas Love Field) and the Hilton Garden Inn is provided by the hotel. All other participants must arrange their own transportation from the airport. DFW is approximately 15 minutes away from the Hurst Conference Center, DAL (Dallas Love Field) is approximately 25 minutes away.

    Arrival on Thursday, November 21st between 8:30am and 10:30pm:

    • Upon arrival, please head to the Hotel Shuttle pick-up area in Terminal C – located on the lower level.

    • The hotel shuttle has signs for Hilton Garden Inn – Hurst Conference Center and Fairfield Inn & Suites Northeast.

    • The shuttle will pick up approximately every hour on the half hour.

    • The shuttle holds 9 people with luggage. If the shuttle is full, the driver will drop off the guests in the van and come back on the next half hour mark. Please note that this is a courtesy shuttle with limited capacity – you may take a taxi or rideshare if you do not want to wait.

    • You can call the hotel front desk at 817-281-5800 with any questions.

    Arrivals Monday-Wednesday:

    • Call hotel prior to arrival at 817-281-5800 or email at hgihurstfd@gmail.com and give them your name, phone number, and full flight information including day, time, airline, gate, and terminal number.

    • Upon arrival, head to the Hotel Shuttle pick-up area in the lower level of your terminal.

    • The hotel shuttle has signs for Hilton Garden Inn – Hurst Conference Center and Fairfield Inn & Suites Northeast.

    • The shuttle will pick up approximately every hour on the half hour when prearrangements are made.

    Departure:

    • For your departure shuttle, please visit the front desk to put your name on the Shuttle Drop-Off list. You will be able to select your departure time there. This must be done at least 24 hours before your hotel departure.

Housing & Transportation