Bridge from Saigon
A Viet-American Memoir of Family and Mind by Hoangmai H. Pham- A book review
Bridge from Saigon by Hoangmai H. Pham is a deeply moving memoir that perfectly captures the struggles and resilience of an immigrant woman. The memoir begins in Vietnam, during a time of uncertainty and fear, and it evolves into a personal telling of immigrating to the United States of America, the emotions associated with the journey, and the growth that follows. The story is told with complete honesty, and its unique format captivates the reader. Pham shares her past and her family’s history, but she also includes glimpses of some of her therapy sessions, which encourages a deeper bond and understanding between the reader and author. Additionally, Pham recounts the challenges of displacement, adjusting to a new culture, and finding a sense of belonging, along with common struggles within immigrant families and their long-lasting effects on personal well-being. Her writing is simple yet beautiful, allowing space for powerful and emotionally impactful moments.
This is a memoir that stays with you. Any reader will be able to relate to Pham’s struggles with identity, isolation, pressure to succeed, and, most importantly, perseverance. Her story highlights how she was able to acknowledge and process her struggles, transforming them into something triumphant. Overall, Bridge from Saigon by Hoangmai H. Pham is a heartfelt and inspiring memoir that explores resilience, survival, cultural identity, and the immigrant experience.
Her story is incredibly important in the disability arena due to her dedication to providing exceptional person-centered care. Pham (pictured, left) has had a long, successful career, starting with her AB from Harvard University, MD from Temple University, and her MPH from John Hopkins University. She has served on various advisory bodies, been a member of executive board committees, a co-director at a research center, a Chief Innovation Officer, published her own research, and much more. Her memoir expresses how accomplished, yet deeply service-oriented and purpose-driven Hoangmai Pham is.
Specifically, her memoir mentions the frustration and anxieties caused by witnessing how individual patients and their families were affected by the lack of proper medical care. Those feelings deepened once she tried to find proper help for her autistic son. Throughout that journey, she saw firsthand the lack of awareness and education from medical, psychological, and clinical professionals. She recognized the gap in research and quality care for patients with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), so she created IEC (Institute for Exceptional Care), a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing safe and high-quality care to those with IDD.
Pham’s work has created a movement where people with disabilities and their families can feel safe and reassured by the unique approaches IEC takes to include authentic community engagement (Pham, 2024). The principles of authentic engagement ensure that people with different perspectives and experiences remain the primary focus of IEC’s work. Furthermore, they incorporate self-advocates, family, caregivers, or partners into every project to encourage interactions with healthcare leaders, removing imbalances of power and influence, and valuing
their expertise equally. IEC’s methods further decrease healthcare’s systematic gap by building trust, collaboration, identifying, and creating inclusive and creative solutions to patient care. Additionally, IEC is a constantly evolving organization to ensure the improvement of healthcare in various ways. Therefore, they aim to better integrate technology into care plans and expand clinical research to better address patient priorities and needs while delivering extraordinary, equitable, and accessible care.
IEC’s mission, along with my hope, is that their work teaches communities about the intricacies of healthcare and informs clinicians, therapists, and medical professionals on how to build an inclusive and supportive healthcare system that empowers the IDD population (Pham, 2024). Her impactful work in the disability arena has already, and will continue, to shape the future of equitable care around the world. The experiences detailed in her memoir have helped her understand the systematic gaps in the healthcare system, which in turn have fueled her passion and determination to be an advocate for meaningful change. Her perspective as an “outsider” and immigrant fostered a profound empathy for those who have felt “othered” in society, inspiring a reflex to protect and walk alongside them. Ultimately, her memoir and accomplishments reflect the powerful intersection of resilience, cultural identity, the immigrant experience, and motherhood, demonstrating how personal challenges can be transformed into lasting impact for entire communities.
About the Reviewer
Mayra Elena Salgado immigrated from Honduras to the United States at age nine. She graduated with highest honors from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, where she was inducted into Phi Theta Kappa and the Alpha Society for her academic and research achievements. She currently works as a coordinator for the Family Support Program at a nonprofit organization. Salgado plans to pursue a master’s degree and doctorate in psychology and hopes to become a neuropsychologist contributing to research and advocacy.