The UW Medicine Behavioral Health Institute (BHI) at Harborview is a relatively new program at Harborview Medical Center that supports faculty and staff in their efforts to innovate in the area of Behavioral Health Care. The Institute serves as a comprehensive regional resource and is committed to the improvement of behavioral health care in Washington State and beyond. Current work supports such efforts as innovative training and workforce development programs, a program to improve the care of individuals experiencing a first episode of psychosis, training for telepsychiatry, and improvement of the state’s crisis response system.

Susan McLaughlin, PhD, has been selected as the new Director of the BHI, following Jim Vollendroff, MPA, who served as its inaugural director. Susan served as Chief Executive Officer of HealthierHere since 2017, and prior to that she spent many years with King County Department of Community and Human Services as well as King County Behavioral Health and Recovery Division. Susan has also served as a clinical psychologist in private practice and holds a PHD in Clinical Psychology from San Diego State University. This new position will have oversight of the BHI and report to Sommer Kleweno Walley, MHA, MA, Chief Executive Officer at Harborview and a member of the BHI Steering Committee. Other members of the Steering Committee include Carolyn Brenner, MD, Mark Snowden, MD, MPH, and Jürgen Unützer, MD, MPH, MA. We welcome Susan to this new role and are excited to partner with her on furthering the important work of the Behavioral Health Institute.