This document provides information on current fellows in a mental health research fellowship program, including their educational backgrounds and research topics. It then outlines the goals and approach of establishing a collaborative research cluster across Los Angeles County departments of mental health and health services, UCLA, and USC. This includes conducting individual research projects mentored by faculty from these institutions on topics like a peer health navigator intervention, mental health services act transformation, and evaluating a low income health plan. It provides timelines and outlines of these projects and highlights issues like data harmonization and future funding.

2. Current Fellows

3. Erin Kelly
• BA: New York University
• PhD: UC Irvine
• Department of Psychology and
Social Behavior
• Moderators of Workplace Stress
in Public Mental Hospitals Using
the Person-Environment Fit
Model

4. Sarah Starks
• BA Stanford University
• PhD UCLA School of Public Health
• Cost-Effectiveness of DMH Full
Service Partnerships in Los
Angeles County

5. Howard Padwa
• BA University of Delaware
• PhD UCLA
• Department of History
• A comparative history of French
and British drug policy
• Social Poison: The Culture and
Politics of Opiate Control in
Britain and France (Johns
Hopkins University Press, 2012)

6. Andrew Sabica
• BA Pomona College
• PhD University of Hawaii
• Department of Clinical
Psychology

7. MH Cluster Goal
(9/10/2010)
• Integration and improvement of mental
and physical health care of patients
with severe mental illness (SMI) in Los
Angeles County

8. Background:
Physical Health in SMI
• Individuals with SMI die nearly 20 years earlier than those in the
general population
• Premature mortality is largely due to illnesses with modifiable risk
factors such as obesity, diabetes, hyperlipidemia
• These risks are exacerbated by:
– SMI in itself
– Many of the most widely used treatments for including both
antipsychotic and mood stabilizing drugs
– Systemic barriers to adequate medical care

9. MH Cluster Approach
• SMI is complex product of
biological, psychological, social, and
cultural factors
• Care of SMI has required taking all of
these multiple determinants into
account

10. MH Cluster Approach

11. Molecular Sociocultural
Genetics Clinical Care Health Services & Policy Research
Biology Analysis
Kelsey Nelson Stephen Joel John Stefan Gery
Paul Arns
Martin Freimer Marder Braslow Brekke Timmermans Ryan

13. Aims
• Prepare young scholars to become independent
researchers
• Address research questions that are scientifically
tractable and have public health relevance
• Develop a collaborative research infrastructure
across Los Angeles County Departments of
Mental Health and Department of Health
Services, UCLA, and USC

14. Content
• Research Seminar
– UCLA Center for Health Services and Society
– USC School of Social Work
– USC CTSI
– LAC DMH Headquarters
• Mentoring
– UCLA &/or USC Faculty Mentor
– DMH Mentor
• Individual research projects

15. Research Projects
• Peer Health Navigator Intervention
• MHSA Transformation
• Low Income Health Plan Evaluation

16. Fellows, Projects, & Mentors
Howard Padwa Sarah Starks Erin Kelly Andrew Sabica
Low income
health plan
MHSA
Transformation
Peer Navigator
Faculty Mentor Joel Braslow Joel Braslow John Brekke John Brekke

17. Peer Health Navigator Year 1

18. Peer Health Navigator Year 2

19. MHSA Transformation Year 1

20. MHSA Transformation Year 2

21. LIHP Year 1

22. LIHP Year 2

23. October-December timeline

24. Collaboration via the internet

27. Major Issues
• Data harmonization within DMH and between
DHS and DMH
• Future funding of the fellowship?