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Vietnamese refugees in a small boat being loaded onto a U.S. amphibious command ship in 1982.
Vietnamese refugees in 1982 prepare to come aboard the USS BLUE RIDGE (LCC-19). The refugees were rescued by the amphibious command ship 350 miles northeast of Cam Ranh Bay, Vietnam, after eight days at sea in a 35-foot fishing boat. (James Franzen, USN, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)

Since the fall of Saigon in 1975, more than 1.2 million Southeast Asian refugees and immigrants have resettled in the U.S. Many of them have experienced significant trauma. Now, many Vietnamese refugees in the U.S. are at ages where they’re beginning to develop dementia. But like other underrepresented groups in the U.S., they also face barriers to seeking treatment for trauma and dementia.  In this episode of Unfold, we talk to a UC º£½ÇÔ­´´ researcher embarking on the first long-term study examining early life contributors to dementia in Vietnamese American communities.

In this episode:

, social psychologist at Alzheimer's Disease Center at UC º£½ÇÔ­´´ Health

, former child refugee from Vietnam, recent graduate of UC º£½ÇÔ­´´ School of Medicine and psychiatry resident at UCSF Fresno

Oanh Meyer, a social psychologist at the Alzheimer's Disease Center at UC º£½ÇÔ­´´ Health, stands next to her mother, a former Vietnamese refugee, who now has dementia.
Oanh Meyer, right, a social psychologist at the Alzheimer's Disease Center at UC º£½ÇÔ­´´ Health, and her mother, left, a former Vietnamese refugee who now has dementia. Meyer is researching the link between wartime trauma and dementia in Vietnamese communities. (Oanh Meyer/UC º£½ÇÔ­´´)
Head shot of Duy Nguyen, a former child refugee from Vietnam and now aspiring psychiatrist.
Duy Nguyen, an aspiring psychiatrist, fled Vietnam as a refugee when he was just five years old. The former UC º£½ÇÔ­´´ medical school graduate is now a resident at UCSF Fresno.

 

 

Transcriptions May Contain Errors

 

Marianne Russ Sharp 

In 1975, the South Vietnamese capital of Saigon fell to the communist North Vietnamese Army, effectively marking the end of the Vietnam War

 

Historical News Clip 

Saigon April 30. Eight o'clock, the last American helicopter on the roof of the American Embassy prepares to lift off the last of the evacuees fleeing before the advancing communist armies.

 

Historical News Clip 

The people here were herded into groups, all they could take was hand luggage. Fifty at a time they took off for the carrier's waiting in the South China Sea.

 

Amy Quinton 

These TV news clips captured the mood during the fall of Saigon. The story we're about to unfold begins shortly after with the historic displacement and migration that followed.

 

Historical News Clip 

Today the UN High Commission of Refugees called the situation an appalling human tragedy.

 

Historical News Clip 

They are arriving at the rate of 1000 per day. Vietnamese and ethnic Chinese who say they'd rather pay $2,000 a piece to their government and risk the high seas then live and work in a labor camp.

 

Historical News Clip 

This is the east coast of Malaysia. Final destination for thousands of refugees fleeing Vietnam. Many don't make it this far. They're attacked by pirates, drown or starve to death.

 

Historical News Clip 

We people we are being treated just like animals, not like a human beings.

 

Marianne Russ Sharp 

125,000 Vietnamese refugees came to the US in 1975. By 2010, more than 1.2 million Southeast Asians had resettled in the United States as a result of the Vietnam War. That made them the largest refugee group in the country.

 

Amy Quinton 

We're going to hear from one of those refugees in this episode of Unfold.

 

Marianne Russ Sharp 

As you might imagine, the trauma that comes from war and displacement is profound.

 

Amy Quinton 

Trauma affects the brain. It can lead to depression, anxiety, and other medical conditions. And