Saida Abdi

Saida Abdi is an Assistant Professor at the School of Social Work within the University of Minnesota, specializing in refugee trauma and resilience. Her work focuses on enhancing systems of care for refugee and immigrant communities through culturally responsive interventions.

• Education:
  • PhD in Social Work/Sociology, Boston University
  • MSW, Boston University
  • MA, University of Ottawa
  • BA, Carleton University

Dr. Abdi’s research centers on refugee youth and families, trauma systems therapy, and culturally adapted mental health services. She has developed trauma-informed frameworks co-led by community members to improve care ownership and engagement.

Her recent publications emphasize scalable interventions for refugee mental health disparities, integrating socioecological perspectives and community-driven solutions. Key contributions include adaptations of Trauma Systems Therapy for Refugees (TST-R) and guidelines for culturally sensitive mental health interpretation.

Dr. Abdi actively trains organizations globally on refugee mental health and collaborates with the National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN). She received a grant to study virtual healthcare accessibility for African immigrants.

She contributes to crisis response initiatives, including the University of Minnesota’s Disparities in COVID Response Task Force, and co-founded the TST-R model at Boston Children’s Hospital.