Mental health is a vital part of overall health. But traditional mental health care reaches only a fraction of the millions who could benefit. So, researchers at Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute (KPWHRI) are finding practical, patient-centered ways to reach people affected by conditions such as depression, bipolar disorder, and anxiety.
“Many of the ideas that are changing American mental health care were first tested here at Kaiser Permanente Washington,” says Gregory Simon, MD, MPH, senior investigator at KPWHRI and a Kaiser Permanente Washington psychiatrist. “We’re now working to spread those innovations to large health systems across the country.”
Innovative patient-centered mental health programs developed at KPWHRI include:
“We are partnering with health care leaders at Kaiser Permanente Washington and other health systems to test innovative programs and implement treatments that work,” Dr. Simon says. “We want ‘learning health care system’ to be more than a slogan.”
Ormel J, VonKorff M. Reducing common mental disorder prevalence in populations. JAMA Psychiatry. 2021 Apr 1;78(4):359-360. doi: 10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2020.3443. PubMed
Penfold RB, Thompson EE, Hilt RJ, Kelleher KJ, Schwartz N, Beck A, Clarke G, Ralston JD, Hartzler AL, Coley RY, Akosile M, Vitiello B, Simon GE. Safer Use of Antipsychotics in Youth (SUAY) pragmatic trial protocol. Contemp Clin Trials. 2020 Dec;99:106184. doi: 10.1016/j.cct.2020.106184. Epub 2020 Oct 20. PubMed
Xi W, Banerjee S, Penfold RB, Simon GE, Alexopoulos GS, Pathak J. Healthcare utilization among patients with psychiatric hospitalization admitted through the emergency department (ED): a claims-based study. Gen Hosp Psychiatry. 2020 Oct 7;67:92-99. doi: 10.1016/j.genhosppsych.2020.10.001. PubMed
Kline-Simon AH, Sterling S, Young-Wolff K, Simon G, Lu Y, Does M, Liu V. Estimates of workload associated with suicide risk alerts after implementation of risk-prediction model. JAMA Netw Open. 2020 Oct 1;3(10):e2021189. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2020.21189. PubMed
Schaefer KR, Muller CJ, Smith JJ, Avey JP, Shaw JL Using the electronic health record to identify suicide risk factors in an Alaska Native health system. Psychol Serv. 2020 Aug 27. doi: 10.1037/ser0000492. Online ahead of print. PubMed
![]() Gregory E. Simon, MD, MPHSenior Investigator |
![]() Ben Balderson, PhDSenior Collaborative Scientist |
![]() Katharine A. Bradley, MD, MPHSenior Investigator |
![]() Paula Lozano, MD, MPHSenior Investigator |
![]() Jennifer B. McClure, PhDDirector, Investigative Science |
![]() Robert Penfold, PhDSenior Investigator |
![]() Karen J. Sherman, PhDSenior Investigator |
![]() Susan M. Shortreed, PhDSenior Biostatistics Investigator |
![]() Dori E. Rosenberg, PhD, MPHAssociate Investigator |
![]() Gwen Lapham, PhD, MPH, MSWAssistant Investigator |
![]() Jennifer F. Bobb, PhDAssociate Biostatistics Investigator |
![]() Cara C. Lewis, PhDSenior Investigator |
![]() Joseph E. Glass, PhD, MSWAssociate Investigator |
![]() Kai Yeung, PharmD, PhDAssistant Investigator |
![]() Julie E. Richards, PhD, MPHSenior Collaborative Scientist |
![]() Paige D. Wartko, PhD, MPHCollaborative Scientist |
![]() Lynn DeBar, PhDSenior Investigator |
![]() Yates Coley, PhDAssistant Biostatistics Investigator |
![]() David S. Carrell, PhDAssociate Investigator |
![]() Abisola Idu, MS, MPHCollaborative Biostatistician I |
![]() Eric Johnson, MSSenior Collaborative Biostatistician |
![]() Rod L. Walker, MSSenior Collaborative Biostatistician |
![]() Robert D. Wellman, MSSenior Collaborative Biostatistician |
![]() Julia J. Smith, MSSenior Collaborative Biostatistician |
![]() Leah K. Hamilton, PhDCollaborative Scientist |
![]() Brian D. Williamson, PhDAssistant Biostatistics Investigator |
![]() Rosemary Meza, PhD, MSCollaborative Scientist |
Paul Crane, MD, MPH
Professor, Internal Medicine
University of Washington
Patrick Heagerty, PhD
Professor and Chair, Department of Biostatistics
University of Washington
Laura P. Richardson, MD, MPH
Adolescent Medicine
Seattle Children's Hospital
Professor, Department of Pediatrics
University of Washington
Noah R. Simon, PhD
Assistant Professor, Biostatistics
University of Washington
Principal Investigator, Therapeutics Development
Seattle Children’s Research Institute
Emily Williams, PhD, MPH
Investigator
Health Services Research & Development
VA Puget Sound Health Care System