Author Bios for Mental Health Services: A Public Health Perspective, Third Edition
About the Contributors
Sergio Aguilar-Gaxiola, M.D., Ph.D. is Professor of Internal Medicine, School of Medicine, University of California (UC), Davis. He is the Founding Director of the Center for Reducing Health Disparities at UC Davis Health System and is Co-Chair of the National Institutes of Health's Community Engagement Key Function Committee for the Clinical and Translational Science Awards. Dr. Aguilar-Gaxiola is the Coordinator for Latin America and the Caribbean of the World Health Organization's World Mental Health Surveys Consortium, and his research includes cross-national epidemiologic studies on patterns and correlates of mental disorders and understanding and reducing health disparities in underserved populations.
Jordi Alonso, M.D., Ph.D. is the head of the Health Services Research Unit of the Institut Municipal d'Investigació Mèdica (IMIM-Hospital del Mar). He is a Professor at the Pompeu Fabra University (UPF), Barcelona, where he is the Director of the Master's Program in Public Health and also an Associate Professor at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. Dr. Alonso has published over 400 scientific articles in the area of health outcomes research.
William A. Anthony, Ph.D. is Director of Boston University's Center for Psychiatric Rehabilitation and a Professor in the College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences at Boston University. In 1992, Dr. Anthony received the Distinguished Service Award from the President of the United States for his efforts "...in promoting the dignity, equality, independence and employment of people with disabilities." He has written extensively on the topic of psychiatric rehabilitation, and has authored or co-authored over 100 articles in professional journals, 16 textbooks, and several dozen book chapters.
Lori Ashcraft, Ph.D. is the Executive Director for the Recovery Innovations Recovery Opportunity Center. She has developed several curricula to help individuals with psychiatric experiences move beyond recovery by finding their purpose, making their own unique contribution, and using their experiences to help others grow and recover, skills based on her own personal experiences of having struggled with severe depression most of her life. Previously, Dr. Ashcraft served as the Deputy Director for Community Programs in the California Department of Mental Health, Director for Adult Services for the Arizona Regional Behavioral Health Authority, and Executive Director of the Recovery Education Center.
Stephen J. Bartels, M.D., M.S. is Professor of Psychiatry and Professor of Community & Family Medicine at Dartmouth Medical School. He is the Director of Dartmouth's Centers for Health and Aging and oversees the Center for Aging Research, the Northern New England Geriatric Education Center, and the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Center for Senior Health, as well as serving as the Medical Director for New Hampshire's Bureau of Elder Services. Dr. Bartels has authored or co-authored over 130 peer reviewed articles, monographs, and book chapters, and has served in a variety of national leadership roles in the field of geriatrics.
Crystal R. Blyler, Ph.D. is a Social Science Analyst with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. An experimental psychologist by training, Dr. Blyler has served for the past 10 years as a project officer for evaluations of the federal Center for Mental Health Services' discretionary grant portfolio, including: transformation of state mental health systems, supported employment, consumer-operated services, disability work incentives, and comprehensive services for transition-aged youth with serious mental illnesses and emotional disturbances.
Robert W. Burke, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor in the Department of Teacher Education at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio where he teaches courses in the Early Childhood Education Preparation Program. In his previous work with children and families, he served as an elementary school teacher in Grades K-5 for twelve years as well as an additional seven years as a caseworker in both mental health and juvenile justice agencies. His teaching, research, and service agendas examine the intersection of individual, group, and political dynamics of teaching and learning at kindergarten-sixth-grade levels, with a particular focus on the "Psychosocial Curriculum" that encompasses the mental health dimensions inherent in teachers' and students' shared lives in classrooms.
Tina Crenshaw, Ph.D., M.L.S., M.S.Ed. is a psychologist affiliated with the National Center for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder within the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. She has worked previously as a psychologist, librarian, research writer, and electronic information resource manager. Dr. Crenshaw holds advanced degrees in clinical psychology, educational psychology, and library science.
Karen J. Cusack, Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and a Research Fellow at the Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Previously, Dr. Cusack completed a National Research Service Award postdoctoral fellowship jointly sponsored by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Duke University. He research focuses on Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and substance abuse, cognitive-behavioral interventions, and the intersection of mental health and criminal justice, areas in which she has published extensively.
Faith Dickerson, Ph.D., M.P.H. is Director of Psychology at the Sheppard Pratt Health System. She also heads the Sheppard Pratt Stanley Research Program and chairs the Sheppard Pratt Institutional Review Board. Dr. Dickerson holds adjunct appointments in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Maryland and at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, and her research interests focus on health services for persons with serious mental illness and the role of infectious agents and other environmental factors in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
Marisa Elena Domino, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor of Health Economics in the Department of Health Policy and Administration at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Dr. Domino's research interests include the economics of mental health, agency relationships among physicians, patients and insurers, the diffusion of new technologies, and the public provision of health care and health insurance to low income populations. She has published scholarly work on the impact of managed care on treatment selection for depression in both public and private settings, the impact of managed care on the field of psychiatry, behavioral health carve-outs, and the effect that Medicare Part D has on individuals with severe mental illness.
Thomas W. Doub, Ph.D. is the Chief Operating Officer for Centerstone Research Institute in Nashville, Tennessee. He works with academic researchers and clinicians across the U.S. toward the goal of providing access to the most innovative mental health and addiction treatments. Dr. Doub oversees Centerstone's community mental health research portfolio, and directs efforts to implement these findings into clinical practice.
Joel Farley, R.Ph., Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor in the Division of Pharmaceutical Outcomes and Policy in the Eshelman School of Pharmacy at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Dr. Farley's research focuses on the impact of Medicaid prescription managed care policies on economic and clinical outcomes in vulnerable patient populations. Currently, he is examining Medicaid data to assess the effect of prescription benefit changes on patterns of care for individuals with schizophrenia.
Paul Flaspohler, Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Psychology and the Director of Program Development and Evaluation for the Center for School-Based Mental Health Programs at Miami (Ohio)University. In addition to applied work in community development and program evaluation, he assists schools and communities identifying needs and developing solutions for community problems. Dr. Flaspohler's current projects include the Evidence-Based Practices for School-Wide Prevention Programs (funded by the Health Foundation of Great Cincinnati) and the development of a network of University-Community partnerships supporting expanded School Mental Health (EPIC).
Jan Goodson, B.S. is Director of Grant Writing for the Centerstone Research Institute. She oversees the development and submission of all grant proposals to government and private sector funders in order to sustain, enhance, and expand the prevention, treatment, and research of mental health and substance abuse disorders in Tennessee and Indiana. Ms. Goodson is Grant Professional Certified by the American Association of Grant Professionals.
Junius Gonzales, M.D., M.B.A. is founding Dean of the College of Behavioral & Community Sciences and Executive Director of the Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute at the University of South Florida. Dr. Gonzales is a psychiatrist and health services research who previously served as Principal and Scientist at Abt Associates, as well as Chief of the Services Research & Clinical Epidemiology Branch and Acting Director for the Division of Services & Intervention Research at the National Institute of Mental Health.
Howard H. Goldman, M.D., Ph.D. is Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, where he directs the Mental Health Systems Improvement Collaborative. Dr. Goldman was the Senior Scientific Editor of the Mental Health: A Report of the Surgeon General, and he is the Editor of Psychiatric Services.
Julie Goldstein Grumet, Ph.D. is a clinical psychologist currently with the Washington D.C. Department of Mental Health. Dr. Grumet is the Prinicipal Investigator on a federally funded grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration on the prevention of youth suicide. She has extensive experience in providing school-based mental health prevention, intervention, early intervention and treatment to minority youth.
Sharon Green-Hennessy, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor of Psychology at Loyola University Maryland where she teaches graduate seminars on child and adolescent psychopathology and its treatment. Prior to joining Loyola, Dr. Green-Hennessy held a joint Instructor appointment in the Departments of Psychiatry at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and Kennedy Krieger Institute. Dr. Green-Hennessy is a licensed psychologist in Maryland, with research interests in access and barriers to mental health care among children and adolescents, child maltreatment, attachment theory, and the psychological assessment of children.
Ardis Hanson, M.L.S. is Director of the Research Library at the Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute at the University of South Florida (USF). Her interest in the use of technology to enhance research led Ms. Hanson to develop the web site for the Library and the Institute in 1993 and, as Institute Webmaster, she has created a number of specialized research resources for Institute and Internet users. Ms. Hanson is an editor and author of texts in library and information sciences, and is currently is pursing her doctoral degree in health and organizational communication at USF.
Kevin D. Hennessy, Ph.D. is a Senior Public Health Advisor within the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) where he provides leadership and guidance on issues of healthcare financing, workforce development, and translating research to practice for mental health and substance use services. Dr. Hennessy is a practicing clinical psychologist who previously served in the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and as a Senior Policy Advisor to the President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health. He is currently an Associate Editor of the Journal of Behavioral Health Services and Research.
Jill Hensley, M.A. currently serves as the Program Manager for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration's (SAMHSA) Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) Coordinating Center, which oversees efforts to implement evidence-based practices to prevent, diagnose, and address FASD across state, local, and juvenile court settings. Previously she served as Project Director for SAMHSA's Co-Occurring Center for Excellence (COCE), a technical assistance and training center addressing co-occurring mental health and substance abuse disorders. Ms. Hensley has over 20 years of research, policy and program experience in the areas of mental health and substance abuse treatment, HIV/AIDS, and criminal justice.
Michael Hogan, Ph.D. is Commissioner of Mental Health in New York. Dr. Hogan chaired the President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health in 2002-2003 and was appointed as the first behavioral health representative on the Board of The Joint Commission in 2007. He previously served as Director of the Ohio Department of Mental Health, and Commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Mental Health, as well as President of the National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors (NASMHPD) and NASMHPD's Research Institute.
Ronald Kessler, Ph.D. is a Professor of Health Care Policy at Harvard Medical School, where he leads a program in psychiatric epidemiology. Dr. Kessler is the Principal Investigator of the US National Comorbidity Surveys and a Co-Director of the WHO World Mental Health Survey Initiative. He is a member of the Institute of Medicine and the National Academy of Sciences, and the ISI Web of Knowledge has rated Dr. Kessler the most highly cited researcher in the world in the field of psychiatry for each of the past nine years.
Sing Lee, M.B., B.S., FRCPsych is a Professor at the Department of Psychiatry and the Director of the Hong Kong Mood Disorders Center, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong. He is also lecturer at the Department of Social Medicine, Harvard Medical School and the Asia-Pacific Coordinator of the World Mental Health Initiative. Dr. Lee's principal research interest is mental health and social change in Chinese society.
H. Stephen Leff. Ph.D. is a Senior Vice President at the Human Services Research Institute (HSRI) and Associate Professor in the Harvard Medical School Department of Psychiatry at the Cambridge Health Alliance. He directs The evaluation Center at HSRI, a program to provide technical assistance nationally for the evaluation of adult mental health systems change, and has developed web-based needs assessment and resource allocations tools for mental health planning. Dr. Leff's research interests and work focus on mental health systems evaluation and planning, evidence-based practices, the measurement of cultural competency, fidelity measurement, and the linking of mental health evaluation and planning activities.
Bruce Lubotsky Levin, Dr.P.H., M.P.H. is Associate Professor and Head of the Graduate Studies in Behavioral Health Program at the Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute & the College of Public Health, both at the University of South Florida (USF). Dr. Levin is also Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Behavioral Health Services & Research and Director of the USF Graduate Certificate in Mental Health Planning, Evaluation, & Accountability Program. He is Senior Editor of texts in women's mental health, mental health, and public health for pharmacists, with research interests in managed behavioral health care, mental health policy, graduate behavioral health education, and mental health informatics.
Anne Lezak, M.P.A. is Principal of ADL Consulting, as well as a Senior Writer for Advocates for Human Potential, Inc., with an expertise in mental health policy and planning, homelessness, children's mental health and systems of care. Over the past 20 years, she has authored major reports, monographs, technical assistance materials, and grant submissions for a host of federal, state and national organizations.
Theodore C. Lutterman, B.A. is Director of Research Analysis at the National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors' Research Institute (NRI). Mr. Lutterman has over 25 years experience working with state mental health agencies in the design, development, and implementation of national data compilation and research projects. Mr. Lutterman also directs the federally-funded State Data Infrastructure Coordinating Center, which produces the State Mental Health Authority Revenue/Expenditure Study, the State Profiling System, and the Client Level Data Pilot Study.
Ronald W. Manderscheid, Ph.D. is Director of Mental Health and Substance Use Programs at the Global Health Sector of SRA International, and an Adjunct Professor at the Department of Mental Health, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University. At SRA, Dr. Manderscheid develops new demonstration and research projects around mental health and substance use services, programs, and systems, using a public health framework. Previously, Dr. Manderscheid served as Branch Chief, Survey and Analysis Branch, for the federal Center for Mental Health Services in the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, where he served as principal editor for eight editions of Mental Health, United States.
Noel A. Mazade, Ph.D. is the founding Executive Director of the National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors' Research Institute, Inc. Previously, he held managerial positions with the National Institute of Mental Health, North Carolina Mental Health Legislative Study Commission, and the Oakland County (Michigan) Mental Health Services Board. He has held faculty appointments in psychiatry, public health, and social work at Harvard University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and the University of Maryland.
Dennis McCarty, Ph.D. is a Professor in the Department of Public Health & Preventive Medicine at Oregon Health & Science University. He collaborates with policy makers in state and federal government and with community-based programs to examine the organization, financing, and delivery of publicly funded treatment services for alcohol and drug use disorders, and currently leads the national evaluation for the Network for Improvement of Addiction Treatment (NIATx), and directs the Oregon/Hawaii Node of the National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network (CTN). Previously, Dr. McCarty directed the Massachusetts Bureau of Substance Abuse Services for the Massachusetts Department of Public Health.
Kathleen Ries Merikangas, Ph.D. is Senior Investigator and Chief of the Genetic Epidemiology Branch in the Intramural Research Program at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). Prior to joining the NIMH in 2002, Dr. Merikangas was Professor of Epidemiology and Public Health, Psychiatry, and Psychology and the Director of the Genetic Epidemiology Research Unit in the Department of Epidemiology and Public Health at the Yale University School of Medicine. Dr. Merikangas has authored or co-authored more than 300 scientific publications and has presented lectures throughout the U.S. and in more than 20 countries.
Rebecca Morris, M.P.A. is President of Gallais Communications, which specializes in health issues. Previously, while serving as Director of Communications for Advocates for Human Potential, Inc., she had lead writing/editing responsibilities on a contract supporting the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's (SAMHSA's) Behavioral Health Workforce Development Initiative. Ms. Morris has written and edited a wide variety of health-related monographs, working papers, briefings, conference documentation, and other reports for agencies and organizations such as the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, U.S. Department of Justice, the U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy, the Annie E. Casey Foundation, and The Medical Foundation.
Dennis P. Morrison, Ph.D. is Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Centerstone Research Institute, where he oversees all research and information technology activities for Centerstone, the largest community mental health care organization in the United States. Previously, he served as the CEO of the Center for Behavioral Health (CBH) in Bloomington, Indiana. Under his leadership, CBH received the Ernest A. Codman Award in 2003, the Nicholas E. Davies Award in 2006, and the Negley Award in 2007.
Noosha Niv, Ph.D. is currently the Associate Director of the Education and Dissemination Unit of the Desert Pacific Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Center. She conducts clinical and health services research examining the treatment needs, utilization and outcomes among individuals with severe mental illness, substance abuse disorders, and co-occurring disorders, as well as the influence of environmental and cultural factors on psychopathology and treatment outcomes. Dr. Niv received her doctoral degree in clinical psychology, and completed a postdoctoral fellowship, both from the University of California, Los Angeles.
Fred C. Osher, M.D. is the Director of Health Systems and Health Services Policy at the Council of State Governments Justice Center, and serves as a senior medical consultant to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's Co-occurring Center of Excellence. Dr Osher is a community psychiatrist with clinical, research, and policy interests in effective services for persons with serious mental illnesses and co-occurring substance use disorders, and he has published extensively in the areas of homelessness, community psychiatry, co-occurring disorders, and effective approaches to justice involved persons with behavioral health disorders. Dr. Osher has a history of public-sector service at local, state, and Federal levels, including the federal Center for Mental Health Services and the National Institute of Mental Health.
Airia Papadopoulos, M.P.H. is an Assistant in Research in the Department of Mental Health Law and Policy at the Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute, University of South Florida. Ms. Papadopoulos currently coordinates a state-funded study of Medicaid-funded behavioral health services. She is studying for a Ph.D. in Applied Anthropology with research interests that include racial disparities in mental health, particularly in the diagnosis and treatment of depression among African Americans, and the connection between depression and obesity among adolescents.
Carl E. Paternite, Ph.D. is Professor and Chair of the Department of Psychology at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, where he has been on the faculty for 30 years. He is the founding and current director of the Center for School-Based Mental Health Programs in the Department of Psychology, and also directs the Ohio Mental Health Network for School Success, a joint venture of the Ohio Department of Mental Health and the Ohio Department of Education. Dr. Paternite has particular expertise in approaches to involve educators more fully within school mental health efforts; public policy advocacy and moving policy to action; school mental health workforce development issues; and formative evaluation of school mental health programs; and has published extensively in edited books and peer-reviewed journals.
John Petrila, J.D., L.L.M. is a Professor in the Department of Mental Health Law & Policy at the University of South Florida. He is a member of the MacArthur Foundation Research Network on Mandated Community Treatment and Past President of the International Association of Forensic Mental Health Services. He is also co-editor of Behavioral Sciences and Law, and publishes frequently on mental health law and policy issues.
Bernadette E. Phelan, Ph.D. is a Senior Research Advisor at the National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors' Research Institute and concurrent President of Phelan Research Solutions, Inc. She has experience in the field of behavioral health as an evaluator, researcher, and grant Principal Investigator. Previously, Dr. Phelan was the Chief of Research and Special Projects for the Division of Behavioral Health within the Arizona Department of Health Services, as well as Assistant Director of the Arizona Medical Board.
Allison D. Redlich, Ph.D. is an Assistant Professor in the School of Criminal Justice at the State University of New York, University at Albany. She conducts research on Mental Health Courts and other forms of criminal justice diversion, and is a nationally recognized expert with extensive publications on police interrogations and false confessions, particularly with vulnerable populations such as persons with mental illness and juveniles. Dr. Redlich serves on the executive committee of the American Psychology-Law Society (Division 41 of the American Psychological Association), as well as on the editorial boards of three journals.
Traci Rieckmann, Ph.D. is a Research Assistant Professor in the Center for Substance Abuse Research and Policy in the Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine at Oregon Health & Science University. Dr. Rieckmann's research focuses on the organization and delivery of drug abuse treatment services, primarily in the translation of research to practice and the implementation of evidence-based practices, as well as assessing disparities in access and retention in care and adapting practices for American Indian/Alaskan native communities. Her clinical work has focused primarily on adolescents and adults with substance abuse and co-occurring disorders.
Steven S. Sharfstein, M.D., M.P.A. is President and Chief Executive Officer of the Sheppard Pratt Health System, where he has worked for 22 years. He is also Clinical Professor and Vice Chair of Psychiatry at the University of Maryland, and previously served in various positions at the National Institute of Mental Health. A practicing clinician for more than 30 years, he is best known for his extensive research and writing on the economics of practice, and public mental health policy.
Tevfik Bedirhan Üstün, M.D. is the Coordinator of Classifications, Terminologies, and Standards in the World Health Organization (WHO). Dr. Üstün is also the Co-Director of the WHO World Mental Health Survey Initiative, and is currently responsible for the WHO's Family of International Classifications (ICD, ICF and other health classifications), standardized health terminologies, and health information standards. He has authored or co-authored more than 200 articles and several books on psychiatry, primary care, classifications and health assessment.
Aricca Van Citters, MS has over ten years of experience in the evaluation of mental health services and interventions for older adults. She has specialized in health care quality improvement, health promotion, and the implementation and dissemination of evidence-based practices. Ms. Van Citters has an extensive background in conducting outcomes evaluations and has provided technical assistance in implementing geriatric mental health services, developed curriculum for educating early career investigators in community-based geriatric mental health research; and developed educational materials for implementing effective late-life depression programs.
Philip S. Wang, M.D., Dr.P.H. is the Deputy Director of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH). Prior to joining NIMH, he served on the faculty at Harvard Medical School where his research focused on effectiveness trials, pharmacoepidemiology, pharmacoeconomics, and health services research.
Mark D. Weist, Ph.D. is a Professor at the University of Maryland, School of Medicine, and serves as the Director of the Center for School Mental Health, one of two federally funded national centers providing leadership in the advancement of school mental health policies and programs in the United States. Dr. Weist is an internationally known children's mental health expert who has published extensively, advised national research and policy committees, testified before Congress, and presented to the President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health on issues of school mental health, trauma, violence and youth, and evidence-based practice. He and other colleagues have founded the journal Advances in School Mental Health Promotion.
Alexander S. Young, M.D., M.S.H.S. is Director of the Health Services Unit of the Department of Veterans Affairs Desert Pacific Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Center, and Professor at the UCLA Department of Psychiatry. He is a national expert and has published extensively regarding the evaluation and improvement of mental health care quality, and the use of health informatics. Dr. Young has received numerous honors, including the American Psychiatric Association 2000 Early Career Health Services Research Award, and the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill 2002 Exemplary Psychiatrist Award.
Samuel H. Zuvekas, Ph.D. is Senior Economist and Deputy Director, Division of Social and Economic Research in the Center for Financing, Access and Cost Trends at the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ). His research interests include the economics of mental health and substance abuse, health care finance and expenditures, and access to care. Dr. Zuvekas currently serves as chair of the World Psychiatric Association's Section on Mental Health Economics and is a member of the editorial boards of the Journal of Mental Health Policy and Economics and the Journal of Behavioral Health Services & Research.
