Indiana University Psychologist Receives $3 Million to Improve Evidence-Based Mental Health Treatment

Strategic Insights -

Indiana University clinical psychologist Cara Lewis has been awarded nearly $3 million in National Institutes of Health grants to tackle two major issues in bringing evidence-based mental health treatment into community mental health centers. The two grants of $1.79 million and $1.16 million will enable Lewis to explore the implementation of measurement-based treatment for depression and measure the readiness for change in community mental health clinics.

Key Takeaways:

  • The current average time for research findings to reach healthcare consumers is 17 years, with only 14% of clinical research being implemented.
  • Measurement-based care, which uses symptom data collection to identify client progress and guide treatment, has been shown to improve treatment outcomes and reduce symptom deterioration.
  • The proposed study will compare two methods for implementing measurement-based care: a tailored approach and a standardized method.
  • The study aims to create a set of pragmatic measures for clinics to assess their readiness for change and implement evidence-based practices.
  • The research will involve administering a nine-question survey to clients at the beginning of each therapy session to collect data on symptoms of depression.
  • The study will be conducted at Centerstone locations in Indiana and Tennessee, which serve over 142,000 people across four states.
  • The ultimate goal is to create measures that can guide providers in delivering evidence-based care and facilitate the adoption of new practices in community mental health settings.

Statistics:

  • The average time for research findings to reach healthcare consumers is 17 years.
  • Only 14% of clinical research is implemented in healthcare settings.
  • Depression is among the nation's top 10 chronic illnesses, with costs of over $80 billion annually in the U.S.
  • Measurement-based care has been shown to improve treatment outcomes and reduce symptom deterioration.
  • The nine-question survey will be administered to clients at the beginning of each therapy session to collect data on symptoms of depression.

Sources:

  • Indiana University news release.
  • National Institutes of Health grants.
  • Centerstone locations in Indiana and Tennessee.
  • Cara Lewis, Indiana University clinical psychologist.
  • HT Media Ltd.