LEARNING PROGRAMS
For the better part of three decades, PEARL Institute's founding President, Dr. Yuhwa Eva Lu, has been providing annual professional training for social workers and mental health workers. This began in Taiwan, and eventually was expanded into China and the United States. When PEARL Institute was founded, these trainings became part of the organization's core focus: improving the efficacy of services for AAPI populations by acknowledging and incorporating cultural differences into the design of social and mental health programs to create a more holistic approach.
Today, PEARL Institute collaborates with organizations in Asian-Pacific countries to develop original training material that is specific to the population's needs. This could include combining and integrating western social work practice (theory and methodology) with eastern approaches, such as mindfulness practice and yoga, Yin-Yang theory, traditional Chinese medicine (herbal medicine and acupuncture), Qi Gong (wellness practice exercises), and other Eastern transcendental healing practices.
This collaboration occurs at universities, hospitals, training institutes, corporations, conferences, or with groups of experts. The focus of collaboration can range from direct practice to general policy and from local communities to governmental programs.
If you believe that your organization might benefit from PEARL Institute’s training, please contact us for more information.
Working alongside first the Taiwan Fund for Children and Families and later adding the Chinese Children's Fund, Dr. Lu began providing training to Social Workers in 1991.
Since 2016, PEARL Institute has been providing professional training services to mental health workers and Clinical Social Workers at organizations such as Shenzhen Kangning Hospital and the Shenzhen Mental Health Center. Topics have included the melding of Eastern and Western techniques and their practical applications.
In order to better meet the actual needs of Chinese patients with mental illness through this training in 2017, first-line mental health workers in China learned how to integrate Chinese medicine and traditional Chinese therapy with more widely-spread Western bio-psycho-social techniques.