The Leitner Center awarded the Transcultural Psychosocial Organization (TPO) – Cambodia from Phnom Penh with its Annual Human Rights Prize at the Center’s Annual Dinner on March 5, 2012. Working at the intersection of mental health and human rights, TPO-Cambodia strives to heal the psychological wounds of Cambodia’s traumatic past and works within communities to address the most severe psychosocial problems facing Cambodians today. Accepting the award on behalf of TPO-Cambodia was the organization’s Executive Director, Dr. Chhim Sotheara.
Dr. Chhim Sotheara is the Executive Director of TPO – Cambodia and has been working on mental health for the past 16 years. He received his MD at the University of Health Sciences (UoHS) and is a certifi ed psychiatrist from the UoHS and Oslo University. He further holds a Master in Psychological Medicine from the University of New South Wales, Sydney. He is currently a PhD candidate of the Monash University in Melbourne. Dr. Sotheara’s research interests and areas of clinical expertise include post-traumatic stress disorder and cross-cultural psychiatry.