Center on Psychiatric Disability and Co-Occurring Medical Conditions

State-of-the-Science Summit on Integrated Health Care

Center on Psychiatric Disability & Co-Occurring Medical Conditions

Summit Speakers

• John Brekke: brekke@usc.edu
  
  John Brekke received his PhD in Social Welfare from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and is currently a Frances G. Larson Professor of Social Work Research at the University of Southern California School of Social Work. John’s research has been funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the UniHealth Foundation, and the Patient Centered Outcomes Research Initiative. His work focuses on the improvement of community-based services for individuals diagnosed with mental illness. He is a Fellow in the National Academy of Social Welfare and Social Work.


• Emily Brigell: ebrigell@uic.edu
  
  With more than 20 years of experience in home health, public health, and outpatient health services administration, Emily Brigell serves as the Director of Integrated Health Care and the AVIVA Women’s Health and Midwifery Project in the University of Illinois at Chicago, College of Nursing Institute for Health Care Innovation. These nurse-managed health centers serve to significantly improve health outcomes for vulnerable populations in the Chicago area. Integrated Health Care provides integrated primary and mental health care services for individuals with serious mental illnesses. Ms. Brigell received a BSN from the State University of New York at Albany, and her MS in Public Health Nursing from the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Nursing.


• Catana Brown: cbrown2@midwestern.edu
  
  Catana Brown is Associate Professor of Occupational Therapy at Midwestern University in Glendale, AZ. Her recent research focuses on wellness services, particularly weight loss, for people with psychiatric disabilities. She served as Director of the project, “Training Peers and Providers to Manage Weight and Well-Being through a Nutrition and Physical Activity Curriculum,” for the UIC Center on Psychiatric Disability and Co-Occurring Medical Conditions. This project resulted in the Nutrition and Exercise for Weight Loss and Recovery (NEW-R) program. She is also involved in projects to assess community functioning, sensory processing, and the use of photovoice.


• Mary Brunette: mary.f.brunette@dartmouth.edu
  
  Mary Brunette is Associate Professor of Psychiatry at the Dartmouth Psychiatric Research Center. She received her MD from Oregon Health Sciences University and has been involved with research and clinical care of patients with serious mental illnesses and co-occurring substance use disorders for over 15 years. Specifically, she engages in psychosocial research and clinical trials studying treatments for people with these co-occurring disorders. In recent years, she has initiated a program of research on smoking cessation for people with psychiatric disabilities. With her research group, she has developed a web-based, motivational decision support system that is tailored for smokers with mental illnesses, accommodating cognitive limitations and low computer experience. Several pilot studies indicate that this tool improves engagement in evidence-based treatment.


• Mary Colleran: mcolleran@trilogyinc.org
  
  Mary Colleran became Chief Operations Officer of Trilogy Incorporated in 2013, after serving as the Director of Grants and Special Projects and Grants Manager since January 2010. Mary is responsible for the development and oversight of Trilogy’s federal and municipal grants, evaluation, quality assurance, and research efforts. Mary received her Master’s degree in social work, with a focus on program management, from Boston University in 2001. She has over fifteen years of experience in nonprofit development and management. In addition, Mary has conducted trainings and lectures on grant writing and program evaluation.


• Judith Cook: jcook@uic.edu
  
  Judith Cook is Professor of Psychiatry and Director of the Center on Mental Health Services Research and Policy at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She directs the federally-funded Center on Psychiatric Disability and Co-Occurring Medical Conditions, along with grants focused on intervention science and psychiatric epidemiology. She works with federal, state, and local authorities on behavioral health service system reconfiguration and alternative financing strategies. Her recent work focuses on randomized controlled trials of evidence-based practice treatments for serious mental illness. She also is studying the return to work process among Social Security Administration (SSA) disability beneficiaries in partnership with Mathematica’s Disability Research Consortium funded by SSA. She served as Expert Consultant on Employment and Income Supports to the President’s New Freedom Commission on Mental Health, and as an Advisory Committee member and Reviewer of the Surgeon General's Report on Mental Health. Over the course of her distinguished career, Judith has received multiple honors and awards.


• Tim Devitt: Timothy.Devitt@thresholds.org
  
  Tim Devitt has worked with community mental health programs for over 25 years as a homeless outreach worker, team leader, therapist, program director, researcher, consultant, and executive level administrator. His current position as Vice President of Clinical Operations at Thresholds Psychiatric Rehabilitation Centers in Chicago involves providing leadership and oversight to clinical programs and special initiatives. Tim’s research and training interests pertain to the implementation of evidence-based mental health and co-occurring tobacco dependence and other substance use treatments. Tim has presented nationally and co-authored papers on the integration of mental health and other substance use practices, is lecturer at the University of Chicago School of Social Services Administration, and a member of the Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers.


• Risa Fox: risa.fox@samhsa.hhs.gov
  
  Risa Fox is a Public Health Advisor at the Center for Mental Health Services of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). She received a Master in Science degree from the Columbia School of Social Work, and is a licensed clinical social worker. She serves as government project officer for the Rehabilitation Research and Training Centers for adults with psychiatric disabilities, and the newly-awarded Transforming Lives through Supported Employment Program. Risa is the SAMHSA lead on employment as part of the Recovery Support Strategic Initiative that emphasizes the importance of meaningful work and education in recovery from mental and substance use disorders. She also serves on the Curb Cuts to the Middle Class Initiative, which is a cross-agency effort working to increase equal employment opportunities and financial independence for individuals with disabilities, especially those who have the most significant disabilities. Risa is a member of the federal Interagency Committee on Disability Research and Community Employment for People with Disabilities, a committee that coordinates and streamlines federal efforts to enable people with disabilities to access competitive-wage jobs in the community.


• Alice Geis: ageis@trilogyinc.org
  
  Alice Geis joined the Trilogy team in November 2008 and became the organization’s Director of Integrated Healthcare in 2010. She is a family psychiatric nurse practitioner. Alice works with Trilogy’s Chief Medical Officer on its Integrated Healthcare Program and also oversees its nursing services. She is a faculty member in the Department of Community Systems & Mental Health at Rush University College of Nursing, and teaches various public health and psychiatric nursing courses. She serves as the clinical instructor for Rush nursing students placed at Trilogy. Previous roles have included director of a psychiatric home health program, psychotherapist, and consultant.


• Crystal Glover: crystal_glover@rush.edu
  
  After receiving her Ph.D. in Social Psychology from Howard University, Crystal Glover completed a post-doctoral research fellowship at the Dartmouth Psychiatric Research Center. Currently, she serves as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Preventive Medicine, and a BMO Harris Bank Health Disparities Research Fellow at Rush University Medical Center. Her lines of research include health disparities and minority health; intersectionality as a conceptual framework and methodology; social cognitive processes; and mixed-methods approaches. She has published on barriers to physical activity, as well as on the role of race and gender in stigma, discrimination, and stress, among people with psychiatric disabilities. As a member of the Johnson and Johnson Workgroup for Diversity and Cultural Competence in Supported Employment, Crystal also provides continuing education to State of Illinois clinical providers.


• Richard Goldberg: rgoldber@psych.umaryland.edu
  
  Richard Goldberg is the Director of the VA Capitol Health Care Network’s Mental Illness Research, Education and Clinical Center. He received his Ph.D. in clinical and community psychology from the University of Maryland at College Park in 1994. Richard is a Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Maryland, School of Medicine. His research portfolio includes both VA- and NIH-funded studies focusing on the quality of psychiatric and medical care for people living with serious mental illnesses. He is also actively engaged in clinical intervention research focusing on improving the physical health of people in mental health recovery. A licensed psychologist, Richard is also actively involved in psychiatry and psychology training. Since 2007, he has served as Director of the Hub Site, overseeing the multisite National VA Interprofessional Fellowship Program in Psychosocial Rehabilitation and Recovery Oriented Services. He is Director of a VA Psychosocial Rehabilitation Training Program and oversees this national initiative to train staff in the delivery of social skills training.


• Sara Gotheridge: sgotheridge@trilogyinc.org
  
  Sara Gotheridge joined the Trilogy team in 2003 in the Psychiatric Services Department and became the agency’s Medical Director in 2007. Sara provides psychiatric consultation and oversight of Trilogy’s Psychiatric Services Department and direct supervision of Trilogy’s Integrated Health Care Program. She is a Board Certified psychiatrist who received her medical training from Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine. She has taught and lectured at Northwestern University and throughout Chicago.


• Dori Hutchinson: dorih@bu.edu
  
  Dori Hutchinson has worked at the Center for Psychiatric Rehabilitation at Boston University for 30 years. She currently serves as the Director of the Services Division. She also is an Associate Professor at Sargent College of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences at Boston University. She recently was the Principal Investigator of the Boston University, Campus Suicide Prevention Program, a three-year SAMHSA grant-funded initiative. Her recovery programs have included evidenced-based health education and lifestyle interventions for persons with psychiatric and medical conditions; a holistic adult education program that helps people develop readiness to change; and a jump-start career oriented peer mentoring program for young adults with mental illnesses. She is a member of SAMHSA’s wellness task force and of SAMSHA’s steering committee of the Resource Center to Promote Acceptance, Dignity, and Social Inclusion. She is the current chairwoman of the Board of Directors of the Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association and the chairwoman of the Board of Directors of Employment Options in Massachusetts. She has received multiple awards for her work in developing and studying initiatives to help people with psychiatric disabilities assume meaningful roles in the community.


• Jessica Jonikas: jonikas@uic.edu
  
  Jessica Jonikas is Associate Director of the University of Illinois at Chicago, Center on Mental Health Services Research and Policy, as well as a Research Specialist in Health Systems Research for the UIC Department of Psychiatry. Jessica is co-investigator or program director on multiple projects to promote health and self-determination for people with psychiatric disabilities, as well as evidence-based practice and research translation in public mental health settings. For over two decades, she has been involved in preparing and mentoring the behavioral health workforce. She is senior author or co-author on influential research articles, training materials, and other educational resources to promote health, self-determination, and community participation. These materials, many the first or only of their kind, are widely disseminated and have helped promote changes in treatment and policy throughout the U.S.


• Erin Kelly: elk_006@usc.edu
  
  Erin Kelly earned her Ph.D. in Psychology from the University of California Irvine in 2012. Erin is currently the recipient of a unique joint fellowship between the University of California-Los Angeles, the University of Southern California, and the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health. Her current research focuses on interventions designed to aid individuals with mental illnesses to improve both their access to physical health care services and the quality of their interactions with medical providers.


• John Mayes: jmayes@trilogyinc.org
  
  John Mayes was appointed President and CEO of Trilogy in January 2006. He is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and Certified Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Counselor. He earned his Master’s Degree in Social Work at the University of Illinois at Chicago. He came to Trilogy from Thresholds, where he rose from Program Coordinator to Associate Director. At the time of his departure from Thresholds, he managed most of the agency’s programs on Chicago’s south and west sides and the near-west suburbs. During John’s tenure at Trilogy, he has focused on developing community partnerships to bridge funding and service gaps, and to ensure that barriers to primary and behavioral health care are reduced or eliminated for clients on their recovery journeys. John is a former President of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill of Greater Chicago.


• Sheila O'Neill: Sheila.ONeill@thresholds.org
  
  Sheila O'Neill is the Vice President of Clinical Practices at Thresholds Psychiatric Rehabilitation Centers, where she has led the successful implementation of evidence-based practices. She oversees the Thresholds Workforce Development and Clinical Practices Departments, which together train over 1,000 Thresholds staff members in clinical and administrative practices. In addition, Sheila manages the Nurse Care Coordination program, and most recently, has devoted her time to expanding and strengthening Thresholds’ partnerships with Federally Qualified Health Centers to ensure that persons served receive high quality integrated health care. She enjoys a close working relationship with both the Thresholds Research and Evaluation Departments to promote service delivery based on positive outcomes. Sheila has worked with the Dartmouth Psychiatric Research Center as a Quality Management Project Director on the Social Security Administration’s Mental Health Treatment Study. She is a recent graduate of the Johnson and Johnson Health Care Executive Program at UCLA Anderson School of Management.


• Lisa Razzano: razzano@uic.edu
  
  Lisa Razzano is a tenured Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Deputy Director of the Center on Mental Health Services Research and Policy at the University of Illinois at Chicago. She is co-Principal Investigator of the UIC Center on Psychiatric Disability and Co-Occurring Medical Conditions, and serves as the Director of the James Scholar Program at the UIC College of Medicine. Lisa’s portfolio of research includes programs to adapt evidence-based practices in behavioral health for individuals with co-occurring physical and mental health conditions, including those living with HIV/AIDS and psychiatric disorders. She is an elected member of the American Psychological Association’s Task Force on Serious Mental Illness and Severe Emotional Disturbance, and recently served as chairwoman of the Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association. Her research and academic contributions have been recognized with multiple research awards and honors.


• Mark Salzer: mark.salzer@temple.edu
  
  Mark Salzer is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences at Temple University. He is also the Principal Investigator and Director of the Temple University Collaborative on Community Inclusion of Individuals with Psychiatric Disabilities, a research and training center funded by the National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research. Mark has been the Principal Investigator on numerous federally-funded research grants, and has published more than 80 articles and book chapters on the delivery of effective community mental health and rehabilitation services to individuals with psychiatric disabilities.


• Sam Shore: sshore@triwestgroup.net
  
  Sam Shore is a consultant with 35 years of experience in the field of mental health services and policy. Sam has served in several leadership positions in his career, and has acquired extensive experience in public mental health services policy development, operations, and evaluation. In his career in the Texas mental health system, Mr. Shore held positions in community mental health, state hospital psychiatric inpatient services, and the state office. Sam served as the project director for several successful SAMHSA grant projects, including the Mental Health Transformation grant, which allowed the state to build a strong foundation of recovery-oriented systems of care for adults with mental illnesses and children with emotional and behavioral disorders. He most recently served as the director of mental health services for veterans and their families, and project director of a jail diversion and trauma recovery grant. Sam has special interests and experience in self-directed care and integration of physical and behavioral health systems. He received a Master of Science degree in Social Work from The University of Texas at Austin.


• Lisa St. George: lisas@recoveryinnovations.org
  
  Lisa St. George is the Director of Recovery Practices at Recovery Innovations and the Director of The Recovery Opportunity Center. Lisa is an expert in developing recovery-focused systems, and strong peer support workforces that provide mental health, addiction, and whole health peer support. She has provided leadership and start-up to recovery programs in Arizona, California, and New Zealand. Lisa has successfully supervised and developed strong and sustainable peer workforces in more than 20 programs, and provided leadership for over 600 peer support workers. She believes in and creates career ladders for peer workers. With a grant from the Office of Statewide Healthcare Planning and Development in California, she is supporting large-scale system transformation through the development of a strong and sustainable, well-trained peer workforce. Wherever she goes, she brings unending belief in the inherent courage, wisdom, and strength of people in recovery. She has authored books, many tools, and articles for Recovery Innovations that support a recovery perspective. Lisa serves on several boards, and is active in the Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association.


• Dena Stoner: dena.stoner@dshs.state.tx.us
  
  Dena Stoner is currently Senior Policy Advisor for the Texas Department of State Health Services. She also serves as Chair of the National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors Medicaid and Finance Division. Dena has over 35 years of experience in public policy, management, strategic planning, program design, and program and policy implementation. She has developed and implemented a number of major initiatives in Medicaid-funded home and community-based services, acute care, managed care, and behavioral health. In her current position, Dena is responsible for developing initiatives to improve services for people with mental health and substance abuse conditions, such as the nationally recognized Texas Money Follows the Person Behavioral Health Pilot, Medicaid Incentives for Prevention of Chronic Disease Study, and Home and Community-Based Services for Adults with Mental Illness. Her work has been featured in various national periodicals.


• Peggy Swarbrick: pswarbrick@cspnj.org
  
  Peggy Swarbrick has worked for the Collaborative Support Programs of New Jersey Wellness Institute for 16 years. She also is a part time Associate Professor at Rutgers University. Peggy is nationally-recognized for her research, training, and consultation activities in the areas of wellness and health promotion, employment services, the role of peer support workers, and strategies for enhancing recovery through participation in valued occupations.


• Sherry Jenkins Tucker: sjtucker@gmhcn.org
  
  Sherry Jenkins Tucker is the Executive Director of the Georgia Mental Health Consumer Network, Incorporated. She earned her Master’s degree from West Virginia University and is a Certified Peer Specialist. Sherry is the Chair of the Georgia Behavioral Health Planning and Advisory Council. She previously worked for the West Virginia Mental Health Consumers’ Association and directed their Mental Health Consumer Network and the West Virginia Office of Consumer Affairs. Prior to that, she was a Behavioral Health Advocate for Legal Aid of West Virginia for nine years. Sherry is a person in recovery from a behavioral health diagnosis and holds the credential of ITE or “I’m the Evidence” that recovery works. She has extensive experience with the consumer/survivor movement and has expertise with WRAP facilitation, Leadership Academy training, peer workforce development, advocacy, and mind/body/spirit wellness. She has been nationally recognized with awards honoring her important advocacy work.