JABSOM’s Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry, Dr. Helen K. (Nalani) Blaisdell-Brennan, has recently been recognized with multiple prestigious honors from the American Psychiatric Association (APA) and other professional organizations.
Among her recent accolades, Dr. Blaisdell-Brennan, Class of 1999, has been named a Distinguished Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association. This designation is reserved for psychiatrists who have demonstrated sustained outstanding contributions to the field. She was also named an APA Mental Health Equity Champion, in recognition of her work to improve access, culturally responsive care, and outcomes for underserved populations.
In addition to these major honors, Dr. Blaisdell-Brennan’s leadership roles span local and national psychiatry organizations. She is President-Elect of the Honolulu County Medical Society and serves as the Psychiatry Representative to the Hawaii Medical Association. Within the APA, she serves on the Assembly Executive Committee and is currently President of the American Indian, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian Caucus. Dr. Blaisdell-Brennan also received the Assembly District Branch Best Practice Award and the APA Assembly Resident-Fellow Member Mentor Award. Those recognitions underscore her excellence in both clinical practice and mentorship.
Dr. Blaisdell-Brennan brings nearly two decades of experience to her work, emphasizing psychiatric care that considers the individual and the broader cultural, identity, and community contexts.
In her Mental Health Equity Champion Spotlight interview with the APA, Dr. Blaisdell-Brennan explained why equity matters in Hawaiʻi’s unique cultural and geographic context.
“Mental health equity means that every person has a fair opportunity to achieve the highest possible level of mental well-being, regardless of socioeconomic status, geographic location, or cultural identity,” Blaisdell-Brennan said.
She highlighted longstanding disparities rooted in historical trauma and unequal access to care, particularly for Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities. Dr. Blaisdell-Brennan has worked to bridge these gaps through culturally informed clinical practice, advocacy for telehealth access, and workforce development to retain trained professionals in underserved areas.
“Cultural humility means recognizing that we don’t hold all the answers,” she said. “Our patients do. They bring the wisdom of their ‘ohana, their community, and their lived experience into the healing process.”
“Dr. Blaisdell-Brennan’s work continues to elevate mental health care in Hawaiʻi and beyond,” said JABSOM Dean Sam Shomaker, MD, JD. “Combining clinical leadership, advocacy, and a focus on equity to advance practice in ways that are both respectful and impactful is everything we aim to do at JABSOM, and we congratulate Dr. Blaisdell-Brennan on these honors. It would make your father, Kekuni Blasidell, who was also one of the founding fathers of our school, very proud.”