Mental Health

Meet the Mason Nation: Nandini Koka

Lauren Reuscher — Wed, 20 Nov 2024 17:37:27 +0000

Meet the Mason Nation: Nandini Koka Lauren Reuscher Wed, 11/20/2024 - 12:37

Nandini Koka, MD

Job: Executive Director, Student Health Services

Dr. Nandini Koka, executive director of Student Health Services at ��AV. Photo by Evan Cantwell/Office of University Branding

Nandini Koka joined ��AV in April 2023 as executive director of Student Health Services, where she leads a staff of nearly 50 that includes doctors, nurse practitioners, counselors, and nurses. As a medical doctor with training in family medicine and urgent care, she is passionate about helping patients get better quickly and enhancing access to care.

At the largest and fastest-growing public research university in Virginia, Koka has found a place where the need for that care continues to grow.

The doctor is in: In her role, Koka provides direction and leadership for Student Health Services to ensure students receive quality clinical care. She also serves as a medical advisor and resource to campus leaders on health-related matters. In a post-pandemic world, where many aspects of health care remain an urgent community need, her input is essential across George Mason’s campuses.

Helping the student body: Koka knows that learning is not confined to the classroom, and some of the biggest lessons can address a fundamental part of students’ lives: their health.

“I am excited to work at George Mason because of the opportunity to care for a diverse student population,” said Koka. “I want to help guide students as they become advocates for their own health and create goals to maintain a healthy lifestyle.”

Appointments on the books: Last year, Student Health Services had 16,500 student interactions—this includes in-person and telehealth visits, lab work, and nurse triage interactions across the Fairfax, Mason Square, and Science and Technology campuses.

Koka knows this number could go even higher. One of her primary goals is to increase awareness of the health services available to students.

“One of the biggest challenges we face is creating awareness around Student Health Services and the fact that we are a full-service medical clinic,” said Koka.

Addressing the body and mind: “We continue to see the need for mental health care as a challenge in the community,” said Koka. “Student Health Services has a unique approach to behavioral health, as we utilize a collaborative care model.”

Dr. Koka leads a staff of nearly 50 that includes doctors, nurse practitioners, counselors, and nurses. Photo by Evan Cantwell/Office of University Branding

In this model, medical providers partner with behavioral health counselors to co-manage the care of students. Koka says that this team approach has given students more touchpoints with clinicians and provides a more holistic care model.

Additionally, all patients who visit Student Health Services are given a mental health screening at their first visit, and once a year thereafter. Primary care providers are a key point to identify concerns related to mental health.

Finding ways to make it cost-free: Sexual and reproductive care is another critical area of need at Student Health Services. “We have partnered with a community organization to provide free sexually transmitted infection (STI) services to students throughout the semester,” said Koka. “We continue to look for ways to expand access to services for our students.”

Fostering a supportive community: A dynamic campus community is what brought Koka to higher education. “I have been able to interact with our students and see their excitement about being here at George Mason and wanting to be a part of this community,” said Koka.

Rest as part of health: Outside of work, Koka enjoys spending time with her family. “Our two daughters keep us busy with soccer and dance, and we have fun going to the games and watching the performances,” said Koka. To relax, she might go for a run, play with her dog, or try out new recipes.

More about Student Health Services

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Faculty and Staff News

Student Health Services

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Well-Being

Mental Health

College of Public Health receives NIH grant to pilot AI chatbot for African Americans with depression

Mary Cunningham — Mon, 10 Jun 2024 17:03:05 +0000

College of Public Health receives NIH grant to pilot AI chatbot for African Americans with depression Mary Cunningham Mon, 06/10/2024 - 13:03

In This Story

Farrokh Alemi, PhD

Janusz Wojtusiak, PhD

Kevin Lybarger

As a leader in innovative health solutions, ��AV’s College of Public Health received a National Institutes of Health (NIH) AIM-AHEAD program grant to pilot an artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot for Black and African Americans with depression. Professor Farrokh Alemi will enhance his first-of-its-kind, evidence-based artificial intelligence tool to address the medication needs of African Americans with depression.

Professor of Health Informatics Farrokh Alemi

The existing AI tool recommends antidepressants for 16,775 general-population patient subgroups, each representing a unique combination of medical history. For each of these subgroups, the current project will analyze the effectiveness and appropriateness of the recommendations for African Americans, using the NIH All of Us database and existing published literature.

To the researchers' knowledge, this is the first research focused on developing and evaluating an antidepressant recommendation system for Black and African American people.

“Antidepressant medications are a first-line treatment for depression; however, a majority of depressed patients do not experience improvement with their first antidepressant. Additionally, minority populations, including Black and African Americans, are not well represented in antidepressant studies, contributing to reduced antidepressant effectiveness in these populations,” said Alemi. “There is a significant need to synthesize available evidence regarding antidepressant effectiveness and provide personalized treatment recommendations, and this project addresses a major gap in the management of Black and African Americans with depression.”

Researchers will develop a Knowledge-enhanced Antidepressant Recommendation Dialogue System (KARDS), which will engage users in a back-and-forth conversation to acquire the patient information needed to identify the appropriate antidepressant medication. The AI will provide the patient with a list of recommended medications, list of the relevant studies, and an explanation for the medication decisions. The system will automatically send the patient’s clinician a brief point-of-care recommendation and explanation, with an option to examine a complete record of the conversation and the supporting evidence.

“Chatbots—or patient-facing dialogue systems like the one we will create—hold transformative potential for the health care sector and are increasingly prominent in psychiatric applications, predominantly through therapy-bot implementations,” said Alemi. “Our chatbot will help improve the detailed, time-consuming, medical history intake process, and provide point-of-care summary and prescription recommendations to the patients’ clinicians. The chatbot will make patients more comfortable because the natural language modality provides an intuitive, empathetic, stigma-free interface.”

Once the AI chatbot is developed, the team will test the dialogue system with Black and African American patients to evaluate system functionality and user preferences. Additionally, the project will train a Black or African American doctoral or master’s student in AI, expanding the available workforce and building the community’s capacity to address AI.

Alemi will lead the research team, which includes Janusz Wojtusiak, a George Mason professor of Health Informatics and the director of the Machine Learning and Inference Laboratory, and Kevin Lybarger, a George Mason assistant professor in the Department of Information Sciences and Technology in the College of Engineering and Computing. All three members have collaborated previously to diagnose COVID at home from presenting symptoms.

The $70,906 grant is part of the NIH’s AIM-AHEAD (Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning Consortium to Advance Health Equity and Researcher Diversity) program, which aims “to establish mutually beneficial and coordinated partnerships to increase the participation and representation of researchers and communities currently underrepresented in the development of AI/machine learning models and enhance the capabilities of this emerging technology, beginning with electronic health record data.”

Innovate for Good is an ongoing series that examines how George Mason faculty in the College of Public Health are harnessing technology to improve health outcomes.

If you have stories to share as part of the Innovate for Good series, email Mary Cunningham at mcunni7@gmu.edu.

Topics

Artifical Intelligence

Tech Talent Investment Program (TTIP)

George Mason researchers harness the power of artificial intelligence to match patients with the most effective antidepressant for their unique needs

Mary Cunningham — Wed, 29 May 2024 19:46:58 +0000

George Mason researchers harness the power of artificial intelligence to match patients with the most effective antidepressant for their unique needs Mary Cunningham Wed, 05/29/2024 - 15:46

Researchers in ��AV’s College of Public Health have leveraged the power of artificial intelligence (AI) analytical models to match a patient’s medical history to the most effective antidepressant, allowing patients to find symptom relief sooner. The free website, MeAgainMeds.com, provides evidence-based recommendations, allowing clinicians and patients to find the optimal antidepressant the first time.

Farrokh Alemi, principal investigator and professor of health informatics at ��AV’s College of Public Health

“Many people with depression must try multiple antidepressants before finding the right one that alleviates their symptoms. Our website reduces the number of medications that patients are asked to try. The system recommends to the patient what has worked for at least 100 other patients with the same exact relevant medical history,” said Farrokh Alemi, principal investigator and professor of health informatics at ��AV’s College of Public Health.

AI helped to simplify the very complex task of making the thousands of guidelines easily accessible to patients and clinicians. The guidelines that researchers created are complicated because of the amount of clinical information that is relevant in prescribing an antidepressant; AI seamlessly simplifies the task.

With AI at its core, MeAgainMeds.com analyzes clinician or patient responses to a few anonymous medical history questions to determine which oral antidepressant would best meet the specific needs. The website does not ask for any personal identifiable information and it does not prescribe medication changes. Patients are advised to visit their primary health care provider for any changes in medication.

In 2018, the Centers for Disease Control reported that more than 13% of adults use antidepressants, and the number has only increased since the pandemic and other epidemics since 2020. This website could help millions of people find relief more quickly.

Alemi and his team analyzed 3,678,082 patients who took 10,221,145 antidepressants. The oral antidepressants analyzed were amitriptyline, bupropion, citalopram, desvenlafaxine, doxepin, duloxetine, escitalopram, fluoxetine, mirtazapine, nortriptyline, paroxetine, sertraline, trazodone, and venlafaxine. From the data, they created 16,770 subgroups of at least 100 cases, using reactions to prior antidepressants, current medication, history of physical illness, history of mental illness, key procedures, and other information. The subgroups and remission rates drive the AI to produce an evidence-based medication recommendation.

“By matching patients to the subgroups, clinicians can prescribe the medication that works best for people with similar medical history,” said Alemi. The researchers and website recommend that patients who use the site take the information to their clinicians, who will ultimately decide whether to prescribe the recommended medicine.

Alemi and his team tested a protype version of the site in 2023, which they advertised on social media. At that time, 1,500 patients used the website. Their goal is to improve the website and expand its user base. The initial research was funded by the Commonwealth of Virginia and by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

The researchers’ most recent paper in a series of papers on response to antidepressants analyzed 2,467 subgroups of patients who had received psychotherapy. “Effectiveness of Antidepressants in Combination with Psychotherapy” was published online in March 2024. Additional authors include Tulay G Soylu from Temple University, and Mary Cannon and Conor McCandless from Royal College of Surgeons in Dublin, Ireland.

In This Story

Farrokh Alemi, PhD

Discover more Research from the College of Public Health

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TTIP

Tech Talent Investment Program

Research

In the George

At the barbershop, it’s OK not to be OK

mthomp7 — Fri, 22 Mar 2024 17:14:29 +0000

At the barbershop, it’s OK not to be OK mthomp7 Fri, 03/22/2024 - 13:14

Destigmatizing mental health support and normalizing therapy in the Black community, one barbershop at a time

��AV alumnus Gary T. Taylor, MSW '15, is destigmatizing mental health support and normalizing therapy in the Black community one barbershop at a time. “Barbershops are this safe space for Black men,” says Taylor who has been working with local barbershops in the Rappahannock region of Virginia since 2022 to foster healthy discussions about mental health by educating barbers on “mental health first aid” for their patrons.

“This is where men may go to talk through things, have big debates, talk about sports. Barbershops are an important part of culture for us as Black men—just like salons are for Black women,” says Taylor. Given the trusted role that barbers often play in Black men’s lives—it seemed like a natural place to Taylor for reaching men about mental health.

Taylor has found that barbershop talks play an important role in normalizing talking about issues and going to therapy. The talks can help point participants in the right direction to get therapy resources or find substance abuse resources.

Working in partnership with the Rappahannock Area Community Service Board, Taylor realized he could bring his crisis therapy experience into the community through “barbershop talks”—informal group discussions with the barber, the shop patrons, and a trained social worker.

“Most of the time when you talk to barbers, they'll tell you they're almost de facto therapists and social workers,” says Taylor, “They're listening to their clients’ problems and maybe don’t know about resources available to help. So we wanted to equip the barbers to know what the necessary resources are just in case somebody comes in and it's a crisis or they're really struggling and they don't know where to go.”

It helps reduce stigma by normalizing that it's OK to not be OK. Therapy doesn’t mean I'm crazy or something's wrong with me,” he says.

Taylor relays to participants that seeking mental health support is just like taking your car in for an oil change to make sure it keeps running properly.

“With the rise of substance abuse and overdoses, the barbers or the folks that are coming to these barbershop talks now are getting Narcan training too. And I think that's the strengths-based approach to meet the community where they're at,” said Taylor.

To date, Taylor has completed more than five barbershop talks in the Rappahannock region and is working with female colleagues to begin salon talks this spring.

“It’s important that people who share lived experiences are leading these sessions, so the participants can relate and see themselves in the facilitator,” says Taylor. "I can speak to that direct cultural experiences of Black men and then also bring in my skill set, my knowledge, my experience, my education to help provide that education and awareness

An assistant professor at Virginia State University, Taylor is also passionate about “passing the baton” to the next generation by getting more Black people—particularly Black men—into the social work profession to meet the growing demand.

“The suicide rate for young Black men has been increasing over the past 5 to 10 years, starting from ages 9 and 10 up to the mid-20s. We’re seeing similar challenges for Black girls too. So, there is a growing need for diversity in the social work profession. That cultural awareness piece for the Black community and having more Black social workers, Black practitioners, Black Licensed Clinical Social Workers (LCSW), it's very, very, very important as we progress in the field.”

Learn more about Taylor's work

Gary Taylor spoke to the College of Public Health about his mission is to “pass the baton” to the next generation of social workers.

Discover what it is like to have a career is social work >

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Mental Health

master of social work

Meet the Mason Nation: Rachel Wernicke, associate dean and chief mental health officer

Lauren Reuscher — Wed, 21 Feb 2024 14:53:28 +0000

Meet the Mason Nation: Rachel Wernicke, associate dean and chief mental health officer Lauren Reuscher Wed, 02/21/2024 - 09:53

Rachel Wernicke

Job: Associate Dean and Chief Mental Health Officer, University Life

Rachel Wernicke has worked as an Army officer, psychologist, therapist, and coach. In 2019, she moved into her current role: associate dean and chief mental health officer at ��AV.

Rachel Wernicke, associate dean and chief mental health officer at Mason. Photo by Evan Cantwell/Office of University Branding

At that time, University Life at Mason created the role of chief mental health officer to address student mental health from a more strategic, public health approach. This decision happened at a critical moment, just before the world entered the greatest mental health challenge of a generation: a global pandemic.

A group effort: “We continue to see significant need for mental health support in students, faculty, and staff,” Wernicke said. “Supporting mental health takes a whole campus effort, with the engagement of our entire Mason community and a commitment to creating a culture and providing the programs and services that sustain mental health and well-being.”

According to Wernicke, nearly every role on campus is connected to this work, “even if on the surface it may not seem so,” she said.

Supporting the troops: Wernicke’s time as an Army captain influenced her decision to become a psychologist. “A core Army leadership practice focuses on caring for people,” Wernicke said. “Learning how to do this when I served as an Army officer led me to study psychology and become a therapist.” The leadership lessons she learned in the Army continue to shape her leadership style today.

Passion for education: As a therapist in training, Wernicke had the opportunity to work in college mental health, and she loved working with students. “Although I’ve practiced in hospitals and other settings, I kept returning to higher education over the years,” Wernicke said.

Wernicke serves as cochair of Mason’s Mental Health and Well-Being Task Force. Photo by Evan Cantwell/Office of University Branding

Mental health as the second pandemic: The COVID-19 pandemic brought increased attention to the need for expanded mental health care. As a result, Mason has adapted and expanded its mental health services for students.

“Both Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) and Student Health Services (SHS) had to shift their services to meet the needs of students during the pandemic,” Wernicke said. “The most critical shift was to offer telemental health services for students.”

Answering the call: The number of students seeking mental health services is rising, both at Mason and nationally, continuing a trend that was underway before the pandemic. From 2010 to 2020, the total number of students served by Mason’s CAPS increased by 55%. The growing demand for services hasn’t stopped.

“As of January 2024, just over halfway through our fiscal year, CAPS has supported more than 1,100 students,” Wernicke said. “This compares to 1,254 students served during the entirety of the previous fiscal year.”

Multiple avenues for care: SHS also provides mental health care to students. “SHS provides universal screening for depression and substance use concerns to all students being seen by a health care provider,” Wernicke said. “Any student who screens positive for these concerns is offered treatment.”

In the 2023 fiscal year, SHS had 725 behavioral health interactions with students, a 266% increase from the prior year.

Mason launched a partnership with a telemental health vendor, TimelyCare, in fall 2022. This care option reaches students wherever they are located, at whatever time is convenient for them. Through TimelyCare, students may access free mental health services 24/7, 365 days a year. As of January 2024, TimelyCare has provided mental health services to 1,518 Mason students since its launch.

Planning for the future: Mason continues to evolve its approach to supporting mental health. Wernicke serves as cochair of Mason’s Mental Health and Well-Being Task Force with Nance Lucas, executive director of Mason’s Center for the Advancement of Well-Being.

“We are working to raise awareness of the resources available to our community and to make recommendations for programs, policies, practices, and services that will support a culture of mental health and well-being at Mason,” Wernicke said.

The task force includes students, faculty, and staff from across the university. “The charge is both aspirational and practical, focusing on creating a systems approach to mental health and well-being at Mason,” Wernicke said.

Putting ideas into action: This year, their goals are to identify a Mason model of mental health and well-being, recommend ways that well-being and mental health services can be expanded, enhance the inclusiveness of these programs and services, and increase community awareness of what is already available. The Patriots Thriving Together hub has been created as a starting point for Mason students and employees to find resources.

Finding joy: Practicing what she preaches, Wernicke finds ways to support her own well-being. “I have three kids—they’re in college, high school, and middle school—so keeping up with their activities and staying connected with them is a priority,” Wernicke said. “Music is a major source of well-being for me and something I enjoy with my family.” She also finds joy and relaxation by exercising, running, spending time with friends, and cooking.

Support from all around: Wernicke says she thrives at Mason because of the people around her. “I’m lucky to be able to work with some of the most talented and committed clinicians, educators, and advocates in CAPS, SHS, and Disability Services,” Wernicke said. “I appreciate being able to work with people from across the university who are committed to student health and well-being.”

Mental health and well-being resources at Mason:

Patriots Thriving Together
Counseling and Psychological Services: 703-993-2380
Student Support and Advocacy Center (SSAC): SSAC Support Request
Crisis Text Line: Text HOME to 741741 to reach a crisis counselor
TimelyCare
Mason's Center for Community Mental Health

Watch Wernicke’s Tedx Talk, “Mental Health in the New Normal: Shaping Our COVID Stories,” for more insights about the pandemic’s impact on mental health and well-being.

Watch Wernicke's Tedx Talk

Mental Health and Well-Being Resources at Mason

Meet more of the Mason Nation

Meet the Mason Nation: Nandini Koka
November 22, 2024
Meet the Mason Nation: Marit Majeske
October 11, 2024
Meet the Mason Nation: Mihee Cho
June 19, 2024
Meet the Mason Nation: Kevin Brim
April 26, 2024
Meet the Mason Nation: Rachel Wernicke, associate dean and chief mental health officer
February 23, 2024

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Meet the Mason Nation

Faculty and Staff News

Well-Being

Mental Health

Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS)

Student Health Services

Women's History Month

Podcast - Ep 53: The critical importance of shared humanity

Damian Cristodero — Fri, 10 Nov 2023 17:44:10 +0000

Podcast - Ep 53: The critical importance of shared humanity Damian Cristodero Fri, 11/10/2023 - 12:44

Content Warning

This story contains references to themes of suicide which some individuals may find distressing.

Dean Melissa Perry joins Mason president Gregory Washington in the studio to discuss to 'epidemic of loneliness' and the importance of a shared humanity.

Photo credit:

Cristian Torres/��AV

Melissa Perry, dean of ��AV’s College of Public Health, is an ardent proponent of virtual reality and AI as tools to help solve the nation’s health challenges. But, as she tells Mason President Gregory Washington, a technology overload has also helped create an “epidemic of loneliness” that has heightened the importance of a shared humanity and “being present for each other.” Perry also discusses her suicide attempt as a teenager which ultimately inspired her career in public health.

^{Getting back to my point about ensuring we remain focused on access and equity, making sure we don’t create digital divides by whatever strategies we’re using AI for. We want to make sure our advancements and our improvements will benefit population health, not just privileged populations that are inclined to navigate sophisticated systems. We want to make it as accessible and level the playing field for everyone."}

Listen to this episode

Read the Transcript

Narrator (00:04):

Trailblazers in research, innovators in technology, and those who simply have a good story all make up the fabric that is ��AV, where taking on the grand challenges that face our students graduates and higher education is our mission and our passion hosted by Mason President Gregory Washington. This is the Access to Excellence podcast. This podcast includes a discussion about suicide. If you or someone you know is experiencing suicidal thoughts or a crisis, please reach out immediately to the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988. You can also contact the crisis text line at 741-741. These services are free and confidential.

Gregory Washington:
Melissa Perry grew up in rural Vermont about six miles from the Canadian border. As she prepared to attend the University of Vermont in Burlington, she fretted about driving in the city because as she said, it would be too scary and too complicated. But there is nothing timid about what Dr. Perry, the Dean of ��AV's College of Public Health, the first college of public health in Virginia, has accomplished in her career. Dr. Perry is the immediate past co-chair of the National Academies of Sciences Engineering and Medicine Committee on Emerging Science. And she is an ardent proponent of virtual reality as a tool to help solve what she calls Virginia's triple health crisis: A dramatic rise in opioid overdoses, the growing demand for mental health services, and the declining supply of qualified healthcare practitioners. She also has a famous relative singer, Katie Perry, which we'll talk about. Dr. Perry, welcome to the show,

Melissa Perry (02:00):

Dr. Washington. I couldn't be more excited to be here. Thanks so much.

Gregory Washington (02:03):

Let's just get things started here. I'm curious what it was like for you, coming from a small town in Highgate, Vermont. Is it true that you were one of only two students in your graduating class to go on to college?

Melissa Perry (02:17):

It is true, in fact. So I went to Missisquoi Valley Union High School, so it was a union school that had several different feeder towns, and I was coming from Highgate, Vermont, and the students from my town, there was a handful of about 30 or so students, and only two of us ended up going to college. So of our 400-student graduating class two from Highgate, Vermont went to college.

Gregory Washington (02:44):

So what did the other students do?

Melissa Perry (02:46):

Well, in Highgate, it's a really small town, as you mentioned, just six miles south of the Canadian border. Not a lot of industry, not a lot of opportunity to be upwardly mobile, economically mobile. So folks would sometimes farm. They sometimes would work in local stores or gas stations. Sometimes they would go into logging, oftentimes into construction. But they oftentimes stayed close to home and really didn't venture far out of our town of Highgate in our county of Franklin County, Vermont.

Gregory Washington (03:19):

So you go to the University of Vermont. How did your time there change your worldview and maybe even guide your career choices? How did that happen?

Melissa Perry (03:27):

Going to university had a huge impact on me. During high school, I had a really troubled time, and it was quite unlikely that I would go to college. A lot of folks didn't believe that I was gonna be able to make it. And when I finally arrived at the University of Vermont, if you can imagine this, it was the first time that I ever had health insurance. So prior to that, growing up in Vermont, our health insurance policy was essentially don't get sick, um, . So I arrive on campus and it was very overwhelming because being from a tiny town, I hadn't had a lot of metropolitan experiences. I hadn't really ventured far out of my town, whereas Burlington, Vermont, really felt like a metropolis. And there were so many students coming from other states who had a lot more resources and a lot more travel, and a lot of exposure to a lot of parts of the world that I'd never seen myself. And in fact, there was a disparaging term for people coming directly from Vermont. They were referred to as woodchucks. And so I was seen as a woodchuck my first year in college. Ultimately, I was able to overcome that feeling of inhibition and embarrassment, but really showing up for the first time in Burlington, Vermont on that campus was, in the beginning very intimidating and very overwhelming, but ultimately it became, education became so affirming for me. I understood once that door opened, I just wanted to keep going.

Gregory Washington (04:56):

That is the liberating power of education, isn't it?

Melissa Perry (04:59):

Absolutely. Absolutely. That's my story.

Gregory Washington (05:02):

So tell me a little bit about your relationship to Katy Perry.

Melissa Perry (05:06):

So Katy Perry, my father left our family when I was really young. I was like two years old when he first left. And he was essentially estranged from our family. It was my brother and mother and me, and I didn't have a lot of connections with him over the years. Later on, I came to learn that he had a half-sister, so his father remarried and had a daughter, and that daughter was Christine. And Christine is Katie's mom. So in fact, Katie and I share the same paternal grandfather, and that makes us first half-cousins.

Gregory Washington (05:42):

First half cousins.

Melissa Perry (05:44):

That’s right, that's right.

Gregory Washington (05:45):

You know where I'm from. We just say, first cousin ,

Melissa Perry (05:50):

We share the same grandfather.

Gregory Washington (05:53):

No, understood. Understood. So let's talk a little bit about you being dean of the first College of Public Health in Virginia. You worked at public health colleges before, and I think when we got connected to you, you were at GW. But I know you've spent some time at John Hopkins, at Harvard, and at GW. Talk to us a little bit about why is the distinction of being a college of public health so important.

Melissa Perry (06:18):

Absolutely. Yes. I think altogether, I've been at schools and colleges of public health for almost 35 years. And in fact, right now there are over 30,000 students in the country that are getting degrees in schools, colleges, and programs of public health. They are studying at the undergraduate level, at the master's level, and at the doctoral level. They are studying epidemiology, they're studying health services, they're studying social determinants of health. They're studying environmental health, and infectious diseases. And here at our college, we also have components of public health that include nursing and also social work. So suffice it to say a college or school of public health makes sure that we have the opportunity to train in very focused ways to prepare a whole myriad of public health experts that can respond to the pressing needs of our country.

Gregory Washington (07:17):

So what is your vision for the college? Where do you want to take it and what kind of impact can it have?

Melissa Perry (07:22):

There is no doubt in my mind that this college can have a tremendous impact. Being the first college in the Commonwealth has been an ultimate honor, privilege, and important opportunity that we are pushing forward to be a leader in providing training, structured training and opportunities for folks in the Commonwealth and beyond that want to sign up for being part of a public health change in our region, in our state, in our nation, and in our world. I'm really excited about being able to convene leaders' expertise and also push forward and generate new knowledge in areas of research. I'm also super excited about how inclusive excellence across this university resonates so powerfully with our College of Public Health. The vast majority of our students, of our faculty, of our staff, they really care in making sure that we ensure health is a human right. And we ensure that everyone has access to health and well-being regardless of where you are in society, regardless of what zip code you live in. And I strongly believe that our College of Public Health is doing this and will continue to push forward with those values and with that mission.

Gregory Washington (08:39):

I love it. Healthcare is a right, and everybody deserves access. You know, that's so important in this day and time. You know, I don't have time to go through all of the programs in the college, but one

Gregory Washington (08:51):

that

Gregory Washington (08:52):

personifies exactly what you've just highlighted there is our Mason and Partners, our MAP clinics, and they provide healthcare to really vulnerable populations in the community. So talk to me about how that program fits into the broader college goals that you have.

Melissa Perry (09:11):

Yes. I have to share the story with you, Dr. Washington. When I was interviewing for this position, and I first learned about Mason and Partner clinics, I almost didn't believe it. What I came to understand was something that hearkened back to a period in my training in the early ‘90s where there was an active interest in people going into health, going into medicine, going into public health, going into nursing, really invested in responding to underserved communities, marginalized communities, and making sure that everyone had access to healthcare. And so, so many of those clinics have somehow disappeared, whereas George Mason has made sure that the Mason and Partner clinics are alive and well, thanks to a lot of hard work on the part of our incredible nurse leaders and our nurse, nursing students, and making sure that everyone, those folks that are the most invisible, the most marginalized, the most hard to reach, are getting access in Fairfax and also in Prince William County. We're super proud of the MAP clinics, and we wanna continue to advance and also ensure that they're as well integrated across the college as possible and also presenting great opportunities for our students across the university.

Gregory Washington (10:27):

It is a fantastic program, and it really does personify the campus. So what other research programs are at the College of Public Health that have you excited?

Melissa Perry (10:39):

We are having a great time in advancing our council on education and Public Health accreditation. This is a big deal for us. Launching this college has meant the support from Mason, the support of the commonwealth, the support of the community. And so now we're hard at work putting together our self-study so that the entire college will be accredited. We're really enjoying the opportunity to integrate nursing. We're very proud of our school of nursing, ensuring that nurses are learning from public health leaders and epidemiologists and health service experts are also learning from nursing. And then also social work. What a point of pride to have a department of social work within a College of public health. And we hear that from students and from faculty saying, this is unique, this is truly interdisciplinary, and this is exactly what we're looking for innovation in health services, provision of healthcare, and also in the prevention of disease.

Gregory Washington (11:36):

Outstanding. Outstanding. So let's talk a little bit about your personal connection to public health. How did you get into the field?

Melissa Perry (11:46):

I really appreciate the question, Dr. Washington. And actually, this goes way back, it goes way back to when I was, was young and growing up in rural Vermont. And in fact, that tiny town had very few, as I mentioned, economic opportunities. There was a lot of strife, a lot of mental and emotional strife. There was unemployment. There were many a single-parent families. There was quite a bit of alcohol abuse, tons of tobacco use, and other drugs. And at a point when I was quite young, right around 14, it was a very lonely time in my life. I was a lonely adolescent. My mom was working night and day at this, actually, it was a local watering hole. It was essentially a snack bar, but it was really a bar. That's how we're able to make some money by selling, uh, beer and wine. And she was working night and day.

Melissa Perry (12:40):

So I didn't have a supportive family or community of friends. I really didn't have anyone. And I reached a point of despair and I was at home alone and felt as though nothing would change, really had hit rock bottom in sadness and loneliness and despair. And so I found a bunch of pills. I didn't know what they were. I just knew at that moment that I didn't wanna continue. I didn't wanna continue living with this kind of pain. And so I took a bunch of pills. I didn't know what they were at the time. I just swallowed, um, I don't know, 50 or so pills. And I guess through tremendous grace, my brother found me. He came home and he found me. He called the ambulance. And the next thing I remember, I woke up in the intensive care unit in Burlington, Vermont. I had tubes everywhere, had no idea how they got there.

Melissa Perry (13:36):

And woke up to realize that three days had passed and I had been in a coma. I was absolutely terrified by what I had just done. I couldn't believe it. It was unfathomable what I had just attempted. At that moment I knew I didn't wanna die. I knew I wanted to live. And it was through the support of a lot of folks, the friends that I didn't know I had, I didn't feel like I had, teachers, mental health workers, guidance counselors. All of these people reached out to me and said to me, you really matter. We don't want to lose you. And I would say, looking back, that that was a transformative moment. That was the moment when I decided I really wanted to make a difference in the world. I wanted to address mental health crises. I wanted to address pain and suffering, and I wanted to get busy living.

Melissa Perry (14:28):

And I just wanted to tell you, Dr. Washington, that, um, this is the first time that I've actually shared this story publicly. And I did it for two reasons. One is that I really respect you and I really trust you, and I know how you and all of our people at George Mason really care about mental health, mental health crises, and people who may be experiencing suicidality or suicidal ideation. So I knew this was a safe place to talk about it. And then secondly, I hope that by sharing this message, if even one person hears this and feels as though this resonates with you, you have to know that there is another side. That it's common to believe that there's not. But you can get through whatever you're dealing with and push through. And there is support to get you through. And I guess my story is, is an example of that.

Gregory Washington (15:26):

Well, first and foremost, I, I'm humbled. I wanna say thank you for sharing. You never know what people are dealing with and what individuals who might be listening to this podcast are dealing with. So I am grateful for you sharing your story, that the story could have an impact on someone else. The reality is you have achieved tremendous heights since that time. You know, and look at where you are today. That's really kind of a message. It's a message of triumph, but it's also a message for people who may be in a point of despair right now. These things can turn around. You can end up at a great point in life. And also, I would say to those of you out here listening, if you or someone you know is experiencing suicidal thoughts or crisis, please reach out immediately to our suicide and crisis lifeline by calling or texting 988. You can also contact the crisis text line at 741-741. These services are all free and confidential. So with that as a backdrop of what you just highlighted to us, what were your thoughts when you read the report by the Centers for Disease Control that said, nearly 57% of teen girls in the US felt persistently sad or hopeless, double that of boys, and 30% of teen girls seriously considered suicide.

Melissa Perry (16:56):

It was incredibly distressing. My first reaction was distressed. The second reaction was, I identify, the third reaction was, I really need to talk about my own experience as a way of reaching out, as a way of affirming what it's like to be in that space as a, as adolescent girl feeling hopeless. I'm really concerned as an epidemiologist and as a public health leader, that we have seen such a tremendous increase in the sense of loneliness and despair and hopelessness. I feel strongly that despite the many, many advances that we've experienced with technology, we're also experiencing a epidemic of loneliness. Mm. In a very paradoxical way. I anchor back to just about 16 years ago, 2007, when the smartphone arrived. And before you know it, we all had this small glass rectangle in our hands. And by its very nature, we start to tune others out.

Melissa Perry (17:59):

There's an important quote that I've used before, and that is behind any type of machine, whether or not it's a gun, a car, or a computer, we are at risk of losing a piece of our humanity. And so as we find ourselves communing at the screen, I think we're disconnecting inadvertently, unconsciously, unintentionally from each other. And so to have such a massive number of teen girls throughout the US experiencing, uh, loneliness and despair tells me that it's critically important to rally support, to turn toward each other, to continuously recognize how much our teens need us as adults, as community members, as friends, as leaders, as parents, as teachers, as educators, and really recognize the critical importance of shared humanity and being present for each other.

Gregory Washington (18:55):

Look, you, you , I don't know if you meant for this to be a class, but you're indeed teaching today. You know, a year or so ago, we did a podcast with Robyn Mehlenbeck, and I don't know if you know, uh, Robyn.

Melissa Perry (19:08):

Yes. I've interacted with Robin for sure. I really admire her leadership at the university.

Gregory Washington1 (19:12):

Yeah. So she heads our Center for Psychological Services and one of the things she said, it stuck with me, and it was, she said, A mental health crisis on the heels of Covid would actually be the country's second pandemic. What do you think about that? And is this all tied together?

Melissa Perry (19:31):

I think that's a very powerful, very insightful statement I wanted to share with you. I thought you’d enjoy hearing that yesterday, I was over in Arlington at the Carter School and we had this great symposium on the many contributions that Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter have made to the world. And so I convened a fireside chat with a colleague of mine, Eliot Sorel, who's a very well-known public mental health, global health psychiatrist. And we talked about the way in which the Carters were grappling with mental health issues in the 1980s. What were the issues then? It was partly ensuring that people were coming out of mental hospitals. It was destigmatizing mental health issues. It was funding research so we could better understand how common these issues were. So we had a very robust conversation. So that's the 1980s. And I mentioned it to say that as a country we've grappled, we grappled with mental health issues. I find that now in the two thousands, 2020s, we are being more open about these conversations. We're also seeing that, for example, pre-COVID, the probability that someone in the US would be experiencing some mental health crisis in their lifetime was around 25%. And that as we are coming out of Covid, the probability that someone 70 or younger might experience some type of mental health crisis has increased to one in two or 50%.

Gregory Washington (21:07):

Whoa.

Melissa Perry (21:08):

So these are very, very real issues. I felt strongly that the extreme isolation that so many millions of people went through during Covid certainly exacerbated mental health issues. The continuous bad news that we all had to consume on a daily basis also exacerbated mental health distress. And I honestly believe, and in some ways the Carter's reinforce this in their notion of community matters. The connections that we have in our lives and how we cultivate them and the way that we seek them out has a tremendous impact on navigating the hardships and the battles that each of us has to navigate on a daily basis.

Gregory Washington (21:50):

I guess kind of all of this seems like it's kind of converging here, right? If you have, the Virginia Department of Health reported that from 2019 to 2020, Virginia saw a 17% increase in overdose deaths. Then in 2021, 37% of adults in Virginia reported symptoms of anxiety or depression. And yet we have 22% of the folk in our population who are unable to get counseling or therapy. When you start to pull all of this together, is this the triple health crisis in Virginia that you were speaking of?

Melissa Perry (22:23):

I think that is very, uh, much how it's manifesting. I think these are very, very, uh, real and pressing and alarming problems. And at the same time, I believe that we can develop solutions. We are developing solutions. I think the awareness, public awareness is absolutely essential. I think unpacking what we're looking at in terms of the healthcare crisis and having enough providers, it partly stems from pushing systems beyond their capacity. And that includes all of the healthcare workers who were pushed far beyond what they could actually handle during Covid. And recognizing that we have to, in many ways make sense and harmonize how we deliver healthcare, how we access populations, and how we support our healthcare providers, our nurses and other health workers, so that they can have a semblance of calm and sanity and harmony in the work that they do and they're so passionate about. Healthcare workers are talking about not as much pay as they're talking about shortages that really compromise their ability to deliver quality care.

Melissa Perry (23:36):

They care about their patients and they can't deliver it. When it comes to the opioid crisis, goodness gracious, who could imagine how lethal our current class of opioids has become? Who could imagine that? We've been contending with drugs as a country for decades now, but we are in a place where these drugs that are currently being used, fentanyl and other drugs are so lethal that it really takes one use to end a life. So I believe a public health approach, a public mental health approach, a population approach to the provision of health, health as a human right, and also health provision as a common good that we all must invest in and believe in and be connected to, is really the answer to this multiple epidemics or what's been referred to as a syndemic of various health crises in the country.

Gregory Washington (24:29):

So why are we stuck in a deficit of this availability of care? It goes well beyond having an adequate number of staff people to deal with it. Why are we stuck?

Melissa Perry (24:40):

Again, I like to anchor back to the early ‘90s when we had very, uh, vigorous conversations as a society and certainly among public health leaders about this notion that healthcare should not be treated as a commodity. It shouldn't be only left to the market to see how it lands. In fact, we have to covet the provision of healthcare to ensure that everyone gets access to quality care rather than just those that can afford it, or just those that can navigate an extremely complicated system. Let's face it, we all recognize that it's getting more and more complicated. I think recent data I've read is that at least 27 million Americans are carrying some type of health-related debt. How did we get there? How did we use healthcare and convert it into a commodity? And with a business mindset when in fact, as a society, we recognize it's critically important that everyone remain healthy and get access to the care that they so deserve.

Gregory Washington (25:45):

So you're a big proponent of virtual reality as a healthcare tool. And in order to tackle a problem like this, we need scale, right? More people need to get access to services and care. So how can VR help in these types of situations?

Melissa Perry (26:02):

Uh, that's a great topic, and you're absolutely right. I think about things in terms of populations. Thousands of people, hundreds of thousands of people. That's how I envision how a disease might travel through a population. That tells you so much about the disease, about who's being affected and also what's causing that disease, and what are the factors that are hastening the transmission or the conditions of the disease. To be honest, I like to say that I'm a bit of a digital migrant, and that is that I essentially trained without a lot of technology. I think I typed my, certainly my undergraduate papers on an electric typewriter. So I've never been an early adopter of technology, but when I came to Mason and put on a virtual reality headset for the first time, it was a huge aha moment. It was, okay. So I think cynically, when I heard about VR, I thought, so we're retreating into the virtual world, uh, because we can't solve problems in the real world?

Melissa Perry (27:03):

I think that was my misguided notion. But once I experienced VR, I realized, oh, this is such a powerful way to immerse our students in real-world situations. So sure, you can do role-playing in the classroom, but how about having immersive situations where you really feel like you're there either treating a patient or how about dealing with a person who might be in a mental health crisis? You don't want to be exposed to that for the first time when you're in the middle of it. You really want to, um, have preparation. You wanna have a simulation. So I'm super excited by the many skills and the many creative exposures we can give our students to best prepare them to go out into the world and know how are they going to treat their first patient, or how are they going to navigate, let's say, the new unknown epidemic or a new chemical exposure? We can write scenarios. We can write cases that will have students work through all of those issues and be well-prepared when they graduate.

Gregory Washington (28:10):

That's interesting. 'cause you, you and I aren't too far apart in age. And I remember back when I worked on my dissertation, it was on an Apple, a Macintosh machine. So you were, uh, somewhat of a slow adopter early.

Melissa Perry (28:26):

I was, I was. So just for a correction. So I was doing my undergrad papers on the typewriter I remember at UVM, but for my master's and doctoral work, it was this Gateway computer that came in a Holstein cow-type black and white box. And that I had to assemble. And then it had a MsDos prompt, so I remember that as well.

Gregory Washington (28:49):

Understood. So can't talk these days about the future without talking about artificial intelligence. It's interesting. We're not discussing enough how it can be linked to public health, right? We hear a lot about it with physical health, and we actually hear now about mental health. So where do you see the intersection with AI in public health?

Melissa Perry (29:15):

I think my years of being, not necessarily, I'd say a late adopter, not a laggard or a Luddite, but maybe a late adopter. I think I'm over that because I've recognized that it hasn't, uh, suited me well. So I would put myself in an early adopter space. When it comes to AI, I feel a lot of optimism. I feel worry for sure. I share the many worries that so many folks have put forward. And perhaps we're in what you could call a hype cycle where we're overreacting to what AI has to offer. With that said, similar to virtual reality, these machine learning technologies can push us further. And we've seen head-spinning demonstrations of how AI can come up with the detection of disease, can come up with new diagnoses that currently weren't understood. So I think we need to poke and prod as judiciously and responsibly as possible, and at the same time, not be fearful. We have to recognize that whatever we may be teaching in public health right now may quickly become outmoded. But that means that embracing these technologies and really preparing our students for the next generation where they can harness it, where they can have these powerful curated tools to support them, to envision. I think there are different minds for the future. And I think the humanitarian mind, the ethical mind, the synthesizing mind, the moral mind, those are areas of teaching and educating that we can continue to do. And no machine system is going to change that.

Gregory Washington (30:54):

Right, to a certain extent. But what I will tell you, I believe that AI affords an opportunity. You're looking at data and you're looking at large amounts of data relative to measurements or outcomes relative to public health for communities, right? And AI has the ability to see patterns and data that we may not catch early enough. And so I think that there may be something there in that regard. I think there may be some benefits there that will help in the public health space.

Melissa Perry (31:28):

I completely agree. I think you're absolutely right. The ability to process massive amounts of data and to be able to see patterns and signals amidst reams of data that it's not humanly possible to process. I think that will really catapult us forward. And again, we're seeing that even in the diagnostic space, right?

Gregory Washington (31:48):

I think epidemiologists are gonna be using these tools probably akin to how they use a basic computer today. I honestly believe the tools are gonna be that helpful.

Melissa Perry (31:58):

I agree with you. I don't think that's farfetched at all. And I do have a posture of receptivity and excitement about the future and really wanna make sure that we are as proactive as possible in understanding how best to harness this and how to teach these opportunities of AI usage for our students so they can be really in the driver's seat and they can come up with new applications, which I think are proliferating all the time. So the ability to power through massive amounts of data to detect, again, new risk factors, new signals, and new causes of disease, I remain very optimistic about.

Gregory Washington (32:36):

Well, then you kind of answered my next question for me, because this whole Center of Disease Control report that came out in March basically states that AI is poised to transform the practice of medicine and the delivery of healthcare. I would assume that you would wholeheartedly agree with that.

Melissa Perry (32:53):

I agree with that, and I think that's the kind of open-mindedness that we need to be approaching, the power of AI. And at the same time, understand, getting back to my point about ensuring that we remain very focused on access and equity, making sure that we don't create further digital divides by whatever strategies we're using AI for. We wanna make sure that our advancements and our improvements are going to benefit population health, not just privileged populations or those that are inclined to navigate sophisticated systems. We really wanna make it as accessible and parsimonious and level the playing field for everyone in our society.

Gregory Washington (33:38):

So prior to coming to Mason, you completed a one-year sabbatical in Albania as part of the Fulbright International Education Program for Global Scholars. One thing you found in your interactions with people in that population is that one of the usual greetings between people is, are you tired?

Melissa Perry (33:58):

Yes, that's exactly right.

Gregory Washington (33:59):

What did that tell you about the state of public health, not necessarily in Albania, everywhere as we deal with the physical and mental stress of the pandemic and its aftermath relative to these other factors we discussed?

Melissa Perry (34:13):

I think it was very poignant. Yes. I really had an insight to that when I was in Albania. It's true in the Albanian language, one of the greetings, the first greeting is how are you? To which everyone always responds fine. And then the next is, are you tired? To which people usually say yes, I'm kind of tired. And so it has been a true reflection of the population burden of the stress and strain of what we've been through. At the same time, again, I have to harken back to 2007. I, on a personal basis, feel as though the cognitive complexity and the digital overload that I find myself immersed in and living every day. I think that also can be beleaguering. I think it can be somewhat isolating and overwhelming that our poor brains are trying to keep up with machines, even simply our smartphones as though we can process information like we’re machines, when in fact we're not.

Melissa Perry (35:12):

So there's a fatigue factor there. And as I said at the moment, in March of 2020, when so many universities sent everybody home, I just thought, again, being in that isolated place at home, for those that had the privilege of being at home, because there were hundreds of thousands of essential workers that didn't, they were having to show up for work on the front lines every day. But for those people who were at home, only able to get information from their computer, didn't have the ability to be in their natural settings. And that's among other people, I think our brains are wired to need that. And then consuming constant bad news, that was a very beleaguering and exhausting time. And I think we're still working hard to come out of it to return to a sense of normalcy. In reality, I don't think we'll ever be the same as we were pre-COVID because we learned profound lessons about pathogens, infectious diseases, and the ability for new pathogens to change and to mutate to create the next pandemic. So it's not a matter of will there be another pandemic. Unfortunately, the answer is yes, it's a matter of when.

Melissa Perry (36:33):

But there's so much that we as a society can learn. I say that these have to be lessons learned, not just lessons observed as to what happened. Why did we find ourselves so unprepared, and what can we do going forward? For me, as a dean of a college of public health, it is training the next generation.

Gregory Washington (36:53):

I agree a hundred percent. You know, The Washington Post reported that since 20, 20, 30 states have passed laws that limit public health authorities. Given what we were talking about, given what we know, , since the pandemic hit, what do you see as the consequence of such an action? Why would they do this, by the way?

Melissa Perry (37:17):

Oh boy. Yes, absolutely. You've raised a really serious topic, a really important topic, and an opportunity to learn a ton. Again, lessons to learn rather than to just observe. So in the early days of the pandemic, fellow colleagues from the American Public Health Association published this really eye-opening report where they demonstrated that over the past 25 years, we as a country had lost 250,000 public health jobs. It was a staggering number. It was as though, as I mentioned, training in epidemiology and public health at Johns Hopkins in the early ‘90s. I felt surrounded by cadres of public health leaders. Many were going into the epidemiologic intelligence service. They were being trained to be on the front lines during crises, such as the Covid-19 pandemic. And when it hit in 2020, we were woefully unprepared. We didn't have those workers. We hadn't invested in the public health infrastructure.

Melissa Perry (38:19):

We had uninvested. And also data. Data is an epidemiologist's bread and butter, just as we were talking about with AI. You need good data, timely data, accurate data, and thorough data in order to understand what's going on. And what we found during the pandemic is that we didn't have it. We didn't have the systems, and a lot of conflicting forces were trying to shield the data or hold onto it and not release it. So what you're just talking about these laws about data usage is part of it. It's the last direction we wanna go in. In fact, I would say data needs to be a public possession. It needs to be made in the public domain to better inform how we prevent disease, how we treat, how we respond, how do we mitigate for all the members of our society. So the last thing we should be doing is disinvesting in public health. COVID did make words like pandemic, epidemiology, and concepts such as infectious disease or disease rate or transmission. Those became household words.

Gregory Washington (39:22):

Exactly. That's one of the silver linings in this whole thing.

Melissa Perry (39:26):

Absolutely. And that was a clarion call. It was an opportunity for public health to rise to the occasion. I think what we can't allow to happen is that we slip back into complacency because we're not in crisis mode. And that, again, we learn valuable lessons for next time versus just observing them.

Gregory Washington (39:44):

So in a perfect world, what would be your definition of public health?

Melissa Perry (39:48):

My definition would be the opportunity for health, well-being and happiness for all. Simply put,

Gregory Washington (39:57):

Outstanding. Outstanding. Well, I can say we can't wait to see the results of the work that you are doing, your vision for our College of Public Health and where it's going and the work in your individual lab. I kept a lab going when I was a dean. What was that term you said in Albania? Are you tired?

Melissa Perry (40:17):

Are you tired? . .

Gregory Washington (40:21):

I did that. I kept a fairly large group of graduate students going during that time. And I could tell you it was tiring, but it was quite fulfilling. I really got a lot out of it personally. And my students, I was able to do right by them too. So I feel good about that time in my life. Any last parting words?

Melissa Perry (40:40):

Absolutely. I just need to gush a little bit because since coming to Mason, it's been really a lot of fun. I'm having a really great time here. I feel very, very affirmed and I feel very comfortable. And so I've been heard to say, this will make you a little bit embarrassed. But as I'm talking about our president, I say, Dr. Washington embodies the values and the vision and the empathy that we all really are inspired by. And I say that I will follow that guy anywhere, . So I'm experiencing a lot of gratitude for Mason, for the way in which I've been welcomed here for the support and excitement about public health, and just delighted to be part of this world-class university.

Gregory Washington (41:25):

I appreciate that, and I look forward to working with you as we move forward in this journey together.

Melissa Perry (41:31):

I'm really looking forward to that too.

Gregory Washington (41:33):

Well, that's going to wrap things up here at Access to Excellence. I'd like to thank Melissa Perry, the dean of the College of Public Health. I am Mason President Gregory Washington saying, until next time, stay safe, Mason Nation.

Narrator:
If you like what you heard on this podcast, go to podcast.gmu.edu for more of Gregory Washington's conversations with the thought leaders, experts, and educators who take on the grand challenges facing our students, graduates, and higher education. That's podcast.gmu.edu.

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Access to Excellence Podcast Episodes

Podcast — EP 64: Navigating AI’s risks and rewards
January 21, 2025
Podcast — EP 63: The economic perceptions driving U.S. politics
December 11, 2024
Podcast — EP 62: What are the chances of intelligent life beyond Earth?
November 18, 2024
Podcast - EP 61: Can dirty coffee grounds be the key to clean water?
October 21, 2024
Podcast Ep 60 - Marking a decade of success at Mason Korea
August 6, 2024

In This Story

Gregory Washington

Melissa J. Perry, Sc.D., MHS

Mason opens new behavioral health facility in Fairfax

Colleen Rich — Fri, 27 Oct 2023 18:28:23 +0000

Mason opens new behavioral health facility in Fairfax Colleen Rich Fri, 10/27/2023 - 14:28

On Friday, Oct. 27, ��AV’s College of Humanities and Social Sciences and Department of Psychology hosted a grand opening of its new facility for the Center for Community Mental Health and Center for Evidence-Based Behavioral Health, two centers whose research and community services are deeply connected to strengthening our communities.

From left, Keith Renshaw, Fairfax Mayor Catherine Read, center director Robyn Mehlenbeck, and Dean Ann Ardis. Photo by Ron Aira/Office of University Branding

The new City of Fairfax location at 9900 Main Street is optimally located to enable community members’ easy access to critical mental health services, while also providing space to advance research and train the next generation of behavioral health providers.

The Center for Community Mental Health serves as the main training clinic for Mason doctoral candidates in clinical psychology, as well as students in other behavioral health disciplines such as counseling and social work. The center provides state-of-the-art, accessible, affordable, and culturally sensitive therapy and testing services to those in need, regardless of income. It is one of the only sites in the mid-Atlantic to offer therapies and testing on a sliding scale, which enables access to care for as low as $5 per session. The center sees children as young as age 5, and works with community members across the lifespan, including addressing the mental health needs of veterans.

“At the Center for Community Mental Health, we firmly believe that mental health services should be available to everyone, regardless of ability to pay,” said Robyn Mehlenbeck, the center’s director. “We also believe you should receive help when you need it and not be told you’ll need to wait three or four months.”

To meet community need, the center has expanded staffing for its emotional support lines to 12 hours a day every day in both English and Spanish, Mehlenback said. Three session skills treatment plans are also available with little to no waitlist, as a bridge to longer term services, she added.

Last year, the Center for Community Mental Health provided more than 2,100 therapy sessions, completed 118 evaluations and more than 315 evaluation sessions, and helped train 77 undergraduates and 57 graduate students—all with a commitment to the community.

Mason’s Center for Evidence-Based Behavioral Health is committed to decreasing barriers to accessing high-quality mental health care. Serving as a critical bridge between research on the best therapies and real-life applications, it offers training and consultation to the community’s behavioral health workforce in culturally responsive, research-based, behavioral health treatments. The Center for Evidence-Based Behavioral Health has trained approximately 430 clinicians and clinical supervisors, who represent eight local county-based organizations and 38 private behavioral health organizations, over the last year alone.

“The Center for Evidence-Based Behavioral Health brings together Mason faculty, with different areas of expertise, to partner with and train behavioral health providers in research-based therapies,” said Christy Esposito-Smythers, CEBBH Director. “This helps our current workforce address gaps in training, learn new treatment techniques, and further enhance their ability to effectively treat clients with a variety of behavioral health concerns.”

“Mental health and behavioral health are health care. We need to change the conversation to remove both the stigma and the barriers to these critical services,” said City of Fairfax Mayor and Mason alum Catherine Read. “Mason is taking a leadership role in developing a model for quality affordable mental health services while training the next generation of mental health care providers. Fairfax City is the beneficiary of this groundbreaking effort to invest in the holistic well-being of an entire community. We are fortunate in our proximity and partnership with Mason.”

“The behavioral health needs in our community are acute, as are the behavioral health workforce development needs in the region,” said Ann Ardis, College of Humanities and Social Sciences dean. “This new facility will provide Mason faculty and students with a state-of-the-art environment in which to pursue research-to-practice activities in service to our communities.”

The Center for Community Mental Health’s Emotional Help Line provides free, anonymous, confidential support in both English (703-215-1898) and Spanish (703-914-3878). The line is open daily from 8:30 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.

See what Mason is doing for Community Mental Health

Delve into Behavioral Health Research

New resources on mental health and student accommodations now available

Pam Shepherd — Fri, 20 Oct 2023 20:55:04 +0000

New resources on mental health and student accommodations now available Pam Shepherd Fri, 10/20/2023 - 16:55

In This Story

Kenneth Walsh, PhD

Rose Pascarell, MA

Dear Colleagues:

We are writing to share two important resources that we hope you will read, use, and share.

Accessibility, wellness, and mental health for our faculty, staff, students, and community members are top priorities for ��AV. We are committed to educating the Mason community about inclusivity, accessibility, and mental health; providing resources for faculty, staff, and students; and connecting those in need with clinical care. Community support for students with disabilities is core to Mason’s values of including a multitude of people and respecting differences.

Today, we are making two important resources available:

Language Matters: This guide provides faculty, staff, and students with critical information to dispel myths about mental health and to address language that may create barriers to seeking help. You can view, and are encouraged to share, this one-page summary (this document includes a general one-page summary, a summary for students, and a summary for faculty).
Let's Help Our Students: Access, Equity, and Inclusion for Students with Disabilities: This guide outlines for faculty and staff how to work with students who need accommodations by providing guidelines, key terms, laws and policies, examples, and resources to
help with inclusion and the breaking down of barriers. This also has a one-page summary.

Both guides are offered in support of Patriots Thriving Together – the Mason-wide initiative to improve the mental health of our community by 1) Creating an inclusive and welcoming environment, 2) Delivering education and training 3) Nurturing community, 4) Using research and evidence-based practice, and 5) Delivering clinical care.

Using the “right words” to discuss mental health and mental illness, and stressing the importance of student accommodations, can help to prevent stigma and discrimination. As importantly, it can help us continue to build a welcoming and inclusive environment where everyone can succeed.

All the best.

Kenneth D. Walsh, PhD Rose Pascarell
Interim Provost and Executive Vice President Vice President for University Life

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Strategic Direction

Tackling Virginia’s Challenges

Colleen Rich — Thu, 15 Jun 2023 17:44:04 +0000

Tackling Virginia’s Challenges Colleen Rich Thu, 06/15/2023 - 13:44

��AV has long been adept at transforming scarce resources into measurable results, and that grit and perseverance are now being rewarded. Thanks to the efforts of two Virginia representatives and two U.S. Senators, Mason now has funding for five separate projects that address some of the state’s most urgent challenges.

U.S. Representative Gerry Connolly (D-VA) secured funding for projects focusing on cybersecurity and on mental health, while U.S. Representative Jennifer Wexton (D-VA) championed funding for projects that take on the opioid epidemic and tick-borne illnesses. U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner (D-VA) and Tim Kaine (D-VA) won funding for a unique tutor-to-teaching program that also combats pandemic-related declines in K-12 learning achievement. All of the funding comes as part of the federal omnibus appropriations bill that President Biden recently signed into law to fund the government through Fiscal Year 2023.

Such funding doesn’t just provide a financial boost. It’s recognition of the university’s reputation as a bold innovator, and a vote of confidence in our ability to push further with research and technologies that can have far-reaching benefits.

Connolly agrees, saying “��AV is a pillar of our community, but the effects of its world-class education and world-changing research can be felt throughout the country.”

Read on to find out more about the projects being funded and their anticipated impact on Virginia.

Securing the Nation’s Data

As technology quickly changes, the U.S. government similarly must adapt its systems and policies to ensure that the nation’s data and technology remain secure—and they will soon have a valuable partner in Mason.

47% of American adults have had their personal information exposed online by cybercriminals.

Mason is a leader in cybersecurity, with a program that is currently ranked No. 9 in the world, and a bachelor’s degree in cyber security engineering that was the first of its kind to be offered in the United States. That pioneering expertise will be put to use via the new Mason Center for Excellence in Government Cybersecurity Risk Management and Resilience, which will be supported by $1 million in federal funding secured by Connolly.

The center will act as a strategic partner in cybersecurity and IT modernization efforts through education and workshops for federal government IT and cybersecurity executives and middle managers. In developing and offering these resources, the center will also leverage Mason’s Institute for Digital Innovation (IDIA), to be housed within the new Fuse building at Mason Square, by leaning on IDIA’s deep interdisciplinary expertise across all facets of cybersecurity research, governance, policy, and education.

Amarda Shehu, associate vice president of research at IDIA and professor of computer science, will operate the center along with J. P. Auffret, director of research partnerships and grants initiatives in Mason’s School of Business and director of the Center for Assurance Research and Engineering.

With a 25-year history in government IT leadership and governance education, Mason is uniquely qualified to lead this effort. Connolly expressed optimism about the center, saying, “I can’t wait to see the results in action.”

Addressing Mental Health Care Needs

Of the pandemic’s many lasting effects on society, declining mental health and well-being are among the most critical, and youth are particularly susceptible. Federal statistics show that more than a third of young people in the United States have reported persistent feelings of sadness and hopelessness, and suicide is the second-leading cause of death for those ages 10 to 24. In Virginia alone, 86 children in the state died by suicide in 2020.

50.6% increase in emergency department visits during the pandemic for youth suicide risk.

Thanks to nearly $1 million in federal funding won by Connolly, Mason will continue its existing efforts in addressing this mental health crisis through the Saving Lives and Decreasing Health Disparities project. The project aims to train community clinicians to serve diverse, low-income youth and families and provide access to low- to no-cost, culturally sensitive evidence-based assessments that can be easily implemented in community mental health settings.

The project leads—Mason psychology professor Christianne Esposito-Smythers and Psychology Department chair Keith Renshaw—hope to make a significant impact within the region. “This work is intended to increase the effectiveness of mental health services, reduce the likelihood of life-threatening behavior, and decrease the costs of care for our lowest-income youth and families,” Esposito-Smythers says.

Collaborating to Counter a Crisis

Already a crisis before the pandemic, the opioid epidemic has steadily worsened nationwide, with federal, state, and local officials reporting alarming spikes in drug overdoses.

80% increase in fatal opioid overdoses in Virginia between 2019 and 2021.

According to the most recent data from the Virginia Department of Health, fatal overdoses in the state from all substances increased by 69 percent between 2019 and 2021; fatal opioid overdoses increased by 80 percent. Nearly three quarters of all Virginia’s drug overdose deaths in 2020 involved fentanyl, an opioid that is more than 50 times more potent than heroin.

Continued isolation from the global pandemic, economic devastation, and disruptions to the drug trade have all fueled the surge. Large numbers of opioid overdose deaths have disproportionately been among those of less privileged socioeconomic status living in rural areas. State statistics also show that the formerly incarcerated who have substance abuse disorder are up to 129 times more susceptible to overdose in the first two weeks following their release.

Mason’s College of Public Health is well positioned to tackle these issues with their expertise in directly supporting health in surrounding communities. Now, with the help of federal funding won by Wexton, researchers at Mason will work to alleviate the substance abuse crisis via the future Empowered Communities Partnership Center.

With the one-time federal investment of $1,037,519, the center aims to coordinate care across systems of support and gather data to develop new models of community care to both prevent opioid overdoses and limit the burden to the state health care system.

Looping in existing Virginia statewide and local criminal justice and public health partners in a collaborative network will be key to the center’s work. There are additionally plans to expand the coordination of care for those with opioid use disorder reentering the community following their release from incarceration.

Mason nursing professor Rebecca Sutter, MSN ’01, DNP ’12, co-director of the Mason and Partners (MAP) Clinics and the Empowered Communities Program, will oversee the center. She emphasizes that Mason’s existing programs and community partnerships are foundational to the center.

“We are building upon our programs to expand our impact,” Sutter says. “This is a partnership center with the local community guiding its work while acting as a learning laboratory for the next generation of public health strategists and leaders.”

Taking on Ticks

Like many parts of the United States, Virginia is experiencing an increase in tick-borne illnesses, with particularly high numbers of confirmed cases in Fauquier, Loudoun, Prince William, and Rappahannock counties. Left untreated, tick-borne infections can lead to chronic suffering, disability, and even death. Early diagnosis ensures patients receive appropriate treatment, but there is currently a shortage of adequate and accessible testing throughout Virginia.

600 estimated samples tested for tick-borne illness each month at five Virginia clinics.

Mason’s Center for Advanced Testing: Tick-Borne Disease Diagnostic Clinic will soon help change that. The center will use the one-year federal investment of $820,000 secured by Wexton to deploy diagnostic testing—utilizing a suite of unmatched Mason-developed technologies—that will allow for a quicker and more efficient diagnosis.

“Our unique medical technology to diagnose tick-borne diseases began many years ago,” says University Professor Lance Liotta, co-director and medical director of Mason’s Center for Applied Proteomics and Molecular Medicine. “Our team is thrilled to expand our clinical trial under this special funding to now offer routine testing for the entire commonwealth.”

Mason’s technology for patient sample self-collection does not require refrigeration, and results are communicated to the requesting physician within 24 hours to enable appropriate therapy to begin immediately. This is a stark improvement from conventional technologies, which typically take 6 to 12 days to process at major diagnostic laboratories. Additionally, only one patient sample is needed to detect signatures derived from all the major known tick-borne pathogens.

“Mason scientists have been leaders in helping to prevent long-term illness and disability from these diseases, which are becoming more common in Virginia and across the country,” Wexton says. “I'm grateful to Mason for their work on this issue.”

Given that Mason officials anticipate seeing 600 samples per month at five clinics, the program promises to have a dramatic impact on the region. It’s an impact that is indicative of Mason’s culture of tackling problems in singular ways that create measurable results.

One Project, Two Goals

Nationwide, one of the pandemic’s most dire effects has been the sharp decline in learning achievement for K–12 students. Additionally, the number of teachers leaving the profession has sharply risen, with about 40 to 50 percent leaving within the first five years of their careers.

40% of new teachers leave the profession in the first five years.

Mason’s Tutors to Teachers program focuses on tackling both problems simultaneously. The program trains student tutors to address the most pressing gaps K–12 children currently face while nurturing those tutors for careers as future teachers. Now, through federal funding secured by Warner and Kaine, the program will have the support to extend its efforts to even more students and future teachers throughout the state.

Currently, Mason and Virginia Community College System students work with in-service teachers and receive training to provide online tutoring services to low-income K–12 children who are showing pandemic-driven learning gaps. The $1.95 million in federal funding will be used to prepare tutors to help K–12 students become self-regulated learners. Additionally, through relevant course work, mentoring experiences, and guidance provided by Mason faculty, student tutors will be empowered to enter the teacher workforce prepared with the skills needed to make a positive impact.

The funding enables Mason to build off an existing partnership with Fairfax, Arlington, and Alexandria school districts and extend its reach to Prince William County, Franklin City, Frederick County, and Spotsylvania public schools. Plans for expansion include Historically Black Colleges, Native American tribes, and other school districts in Virginia.

Mason’s TEACHERtrack Office administers the program, developed by Mason professors Anastasia Kitsantas and Roberto Pamas, both faculty with Mason’s School of Education.

Priyanka Champaneri, BA ’05, MFA ’10, and John Hollis contributed to this story.

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Social work students connect with therapy horses, dogs to learn how to help trauma survivors

Shayla Brown — Tue, 13 Jun 2023 18:20:06 +0000

Social work students connect with therapy horses, dogs to learn how to help trauma survivors Shayla Brown Tue, 06/13/2023 - 14:20

“Horses very much discern who you are and how you are based on how your inside and your outside match,” said ��AV professor Vicki Kirsch.

Each semester Kirsch takes students in her advanced Trauma and Recovery course to Project Horse Empowerment Center in Purcellville, Virginia, to learn about the emerging field of equine assisted psychotherapy (EAP).

Vicki Kirsch at Project Horse for her Trauma and Recovery course. Photo by Evan Cantwell/Office of University Branding

As a therapist, Kirsch specializes in working with individuals who have experienced trauma, early childhood abuse, sexual assault, and relationship issues and with transgender individuals through their transitioning process. She has been a fan of horses for most of her life and incorporates the horses to enhance evidence-based interventions with clients for her private practice.

“EAP is just finding its feet,” said Kirsch, an associate professor of social work in Mason’s College of Public Health. “It’s like a baby compared to other [therapy] fields. There are different paths, and some are better than others

Students at Project Horse for Kirsch's Trauma and Recovery course. Photo by Evan Cantwell/ Office of University Branding

She is able to help those who suffered horse-related trauma such a fall or being trampled. “[I worked] mostly with people who wanted to start riding again but were too afraid to,” she said. But EAP can be beneficial for overcoming other types of traumas as well, she added.

Kirsch wants students think outside the box when working with trauma survivors. “We have to engage with the body because trauma lives in the body,” she said.

These interventions can include brushing, petting, and rhythmic breathing with the horses.

“People have used horses for a long time for therapeutic riding, working with autistic kids and people with developmental and physical disabilities. But in the field of psychotherapy, which is what I do, it’s new,” said Kirsch.

Mason student Tara Amor with one of the therapy dogs. Photo provided

“Going to Project Horse and meeting those horses who were also survivors of trauma themselves was very beautiful,” said Minnie Thukral, who graduated from Mason with a master of social work. “It was interesting to see how we could use connecting with animals to help with healing and recovery, and to see where your career can take you.

“The main goal of the course is to be able to recognize childhood injuries or trauma when a person sitting in your office is telling you their personal life stories and it has some form of trauma that they don't know exists,” said Tara Amor, a clinical psychology student who graduated from Mason with a master of social work in May 2023. “As a clinician, [we have to] recognize it and unpack all that, then implement an intervention to help them to heal."

In addition to working with horses, students in the class got to explore other approaches with the campus K9s who visited their classroom during the semester.

“It's all about healing,” said Amor. “You want to help your client continue living with their trauma because that trauma doesn't go away. You heal it; it's part of who you are, but it's not who you are.”