Amy Lee, MPH, contributes to a wide range of research focused on improving whole-person care, from prevention to treatment for common mental health and substance use conditions. Her main goals include reducing stigma related to care for unhealthy alcohol and other substance use, and improving patients’ receipt of high-quality treatment and support for these conditions in primary care. Her other areas of interest include health equity, social justice, and social determinants of health.

Working with senior investigator Katharine Bradley, MD, MPH, Ms. Lee has played a lead role in Kaiser Permanente Washington’s Behavioral Health Integration (BHI) initiative. As the primary BHI practice coach, she trained and supported clinical teams in implementing a standard process for screening primary care patients for alcohol and other substance use as well as depression; providing brief counseling for patients with unhealthy alcohol use; and engaging patients in shared decision making and treatment for alcohol and other substance use disorders, depression, and suicidal ideation. Currently, Ms. Lee is working with Dr. Bradley and colleagues to develop a decision aid for people with alcohol use disorders. She is also leading the implementation monitoring team on a nationwide study in six health systems to test the implementation of a collaborative care model for treating opioid use disorders in primary care.

Ms. Lee’s other recent and ongoing projects include:

• Scientific co-lead with Joseph Glass, PhD, MSW, on a Learning Health System project to create data-driven tools for monitoring the quality of care for patients with opioid use disorders and buprenorphine prescribing to treat opioid use disorders.
• Lead practice coach on a Learning Health System project directed by Cara Lewis, PhD to more fully integrate Community Resource Specialists (CRSs) into primary care teams. This work includes refining core components and capabilities of the CRS role, assisting in program implementation and building tools to support the CRSs and CRS program, and supporting standardization of the role systemwide.
• Contributor to “Let’s Rethink How We Drink,” an educational video focused on inspiring people to think about how drinking can affect their health and consider positive changes.
• Collaborator on the CHOICE study, for Considering Healthier Drinking Options in Collaborative Care, which tested collaborative care for veterans with unhealthy drinking who receive their primary care from Veterans Affairs Puget Sound.

Ms. Lee received her master’s degree from the University of Washington’s Community Oriented Public Health Practice program in 2012, after which she joined Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute (KPWHRI) as a clinical research specialist. She became a research interventionist in 2015 and was promoted to research associate in 2016. Ms. Lee is a steering committee member of the Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Equity and Access Team, also called HEAT, and is a member of the KPWHRI Equity Team.