Podcast: What Public Health Can Teach Us About Culturally Affirming Care

In this episode of “Psyched Perspectives,” host Frank A. Clark, MD, sits down with Shambrekia Wise, who is an author, entrepreneur, and public health professional, to discuss the Sightseeing Sandy Project. This is a children's book series she created with her daughter, Sandy, to introduce young readers to world cultures without the financial barriers that often limit family travel.

Wise, a Gates Millennium Scholar with a background in public health, said that training shaped both her professional outlook and the values behind the series. She described public health work as having removed unconscious biases and given her a foundation for engaging people across different backgrounds with respect and openness—values she said translate directly into the books, which center on cultural humility rather than adopting or judging the practices of other cultures.

The project began after a family trip to Los Angeles, prompted by a round-table invitation Wise received following her 2015 multiple sclerosis diagnosis. During the trip, Sandy, then a young child, noticed few children on her flight who looked like her and asked her mother why. That conversation, about financial, time, and health barriers that can limit travel access for some families, led Sandy to propose solutions of her own, eventually settling on the idea of a book series after a market-research trip to a Dallas bookstore in 2020 turned up nothing similar on the shelves.

The series has since published 6 titles covering the Bahamas, Paris, Jamaica, India, North Africa, and Chicago, with characters and story details drawn from real cultural touchpoints, historical figures, and family research.

Clinical Relevance

Asked why mental health clinicians in particular might take an interest in the series, Wise pointed to representation as a bridge-building tool in clinical settings. She said that when young patients see characters they can identify with, it can open communication and help close gaps in understanding between clinicians and patients from different cultural backgrounds—paralleling the same intentionality she applies with her own daughter to build trust and connection.

"I feel like that same care and concern can basically be in that situation too with your health care providers when they have adolescents and younger children that they're treating," Wise said.

New Board Game

Wise also discussed an upcoming expansion of the project: a 100-path travel-themed board game for 2 to 6 players, developed with more than 200 trivia and activity cards spanning geography, culinary traditions, history, and landmarks featured across the book series. The first production run of 1500 units, manufactured overseas, is expected to arrive in early January and will include Black History Month-themed content timed to the game's release. The game will be sold through the company's own channels as well as Amazon and Shopify.

Looking Ahead

Wise said the project remains a collaborative effort with her daughter, who has been involved in every book and the game's development from the outset, and that future titles are planned to expand representation further.

Dr Clark is an outpatient psychiatrist at Prisma Health-Upstate and clinical associate professor at the University of South Carolina School of Medicine, Greenville. He served on the American Psychiatric Association's Task Force to Address Structural Racism Throughout Psychiatry, and he currently serves as the Diversity and Inclusion section editor and advisory board member for Psychiatric Times.

Ms Wise is an author, entrepreneur, and public health professional.