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.”
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Richards JE, Hohl SD, Segal CD, Grossman DC, Lee AK, Whiteside U, Luce C, Ludman EJ, Simon G, Penfold RB, Williams EC. "What will happen if I say yes?" perspectives on a standardized firearm access question among adults with depressive symptoms. Psychiatr Serv.2021 Aug 1;72(8):898-904. doi: 10.1176/appi.ps.202000187. Epub 2021 May 4. PubMed
Penfold RB, Hilt RJ, Schwartz N, Thompson EE, Robb AS, Correll CU, Newton D, Rogalski K, Earls MF, Kowatch RA, Beck A, Yarborough BJ, Crystal S, Kelleher KJ. Development of a symptom-focused model to guide the prescribing of antipsychotics in children and adolescents: results of the first phase of the Safer and Targeted Use of Antipsychotics (SUAY) clinical trial. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry. 2022 Jan;61(1):93-102. doi: 10.1016/j.jaac.2021.04.010. Epub 2021 May 4. PubMed
Watanabe JH, Simon GE, Horberg M, Platt R, Hernandez A, Califf RM. When are treatment blinding and treatment standardization necessary in real-world clinical trials? Clin Pharmacol Ther. 2022 Jan;111(1):116-121. doi: 10.1002/cpt.2256. Epub 2021 May 2. PubMed
Coley RY, Johnson E, Simon GE, Cruz M, Shortreed SM. Racial/ethnic disparities in the performance of prediction models for death by suicide after mental health visits. JAMA Psychiatry. 2021 Apr 28:e210493. doi: 10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2021.0493. [Epub ahead of print]. PubMed
![]() Gregory E. Simon, MD, MPHSenior Investigator |
![]() Ben Balderson, PhDResearch Associate |
![]() Katharine A. Bradley, MD, MPHSenior Investigator |
![]() Paula Lozano, MD, MPHSenior Investigator, Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute |
![]() 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, PhD, HSPPSenior Investigator |
![]() Joseph E. Glass, PhD, MSWAssociate Investigator |
![]() Kai Yeung, PharmD, PhDAssistant Investigator |
![]() Julie E. Richards, PhD, MPHResearch Associate III |
![]() Paige D. Wartko, PhD, MPHResearch Associate |
![]() 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,Senior Collaborative Biostatistician |
![]() Julia J. Smith,Senior Collaborative Biostatistician |
![]() Leah K. Hamilton, PhDResearch Associate II |
![]() Brian D. Williamson, PhDAssistant Biostatistics Investigator |
![]() Rosemary Meza, PhD, MSResearch Associate II |
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