This observational study will examine mobility challenges and opportunities among people living and working in South Beacon Hill using participatory research methods: 1) community member photography-enhanced storytelling (photovoice), 2) interviews with Beacon Hill stakeholders and community members, and 3) mobility audits.
Targeted Condition: General Mental Well-Being
Harm reduction in the context of social distancing
The devastating impacts of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) epidemic is expected to have impacts on young adults’ mental health and substance use (a population already at high risk). Time is of the essence to provide young adults evidence-based information to reduce risk from alcohol use within the context of COVID-19 epidemic, promote continuation of social distancing while also encouraging pro-social behavior to reduce isolation, and skills to reduce coping- or socially-motivated alcohol use and associated negative consequences. This project aims to develop and examine feasibility and acceptability of a time-sensitive COVID-19-specific personalized normative feedback intervention disseminated via social media that focuses on drinking motivations to cope with distress and/or to enhance social connectedness, as well as to promote engagement in strategies for stress management and increase engagement in social, alcohol-free activities while also practicing social distancing.
Disseminating a user-friendly guide: Advancing the science of intervention adaptation and improving access to evidence-based psychological treatment
Adaptation of evidence-based practices and programs (EBPs) is a necessary component of the implementation process. EBPs must be adapted to function with the constraints of real-world practice settings, providers’ expertise, and patients’ needs. The science of intervention adaptation is hungry for well-defined methods of EBP adaptation to guide decision making. A how-to guide for EBP adaptation titled MODIFI: Making Optimal Decisions for Intervention Flexibility during Implementation, is under development with NIMH funding (F32 MH116623). MODIFI will be disseminated via multiple strategies locally, nationally, and internationally. Dissemination of MODIFI will improve the practice of intervention adaptation by providing practitioners with a how-to guide that is (a) evidence-based, (b) usable, and (c) supported by the expert consensus of implementation practitioners and researchers.
Accountable Communities of Health
AIMS Center staff and faculty are working with primary care and behavioral health partners in each ACH to train staff and providers on whole person care strategies. This includes training primary care practices to adopt the Collaborative Care model and/or Bree Behavioral Health Integration Recommendations and training community behavioral health agencies to address the physical health needs of their clients.
Moms’ Access Project ECHO: Perinatal Psychiatry Case Conference Series
Perinatal Psychiatry Case Conference Series is a CME-accredited program for providers in Washington State who want to improve the mental health of their pregnant and postpartum patients.
Facilitated by a multidisciplinary team including UW Medicine perinatal psychiatrists, obstetrician gynecologists, maternal fetal medicine experts, advanced registered nurse practitioners, therapists and social workers, the program aims to increase frontline provider capacity to address common mental disorders in pregnancy and postpartum. Program format is brief didactic followed by in depth case presentation and discussion.
Expanding mental health training and treatment in child and adolescent mental health in Vietnam
Engaged in early relationship-building with Can Tho University of Pharmacy and Medicine (CTUMP), and Can Tho Children’s Hospital (CTCH) in Can Tho, Vietnam to develop training, research, and clinical service delivery models for psychiatry and mental health in the region.
As is true throughout Southeast Asia, persons with mental illness in Vietnam suffer from stigmatization and under-resourced care. But things are changing. Vietnam is experiencing rapid economic expansion and, concurrently, attitudes about caring for individuals with mental illness are shifting. There is a developing awareness of children’s and adolescents’ mental health needs, and illness. UW faculty are working with the leadership at CTMUP to expand its capacity to provide mental health care in general psychiatry and in pediatrics, assisting community psychiatrists to update their knowledge, and guiding the leadership at the new Children’s Hospital to develop mental health programs.
