RESEARCH TRAINING IN MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES &SYSTEMS

University Of North Carolina Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill NC

Investigators

Linked publications, trials & patents

Abstract

This proposal is a competing continuation application for five years (1998-2003) support for an institutional training program for post-doctoral training in mental health services and systems research sponsored by the Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research (Sheps Center) of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC-CH) and the Department of Psychiatry of the Duke University Medical Center (DUMC). This training program was first funded in 1990 by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) through grant number T32-MH19117 and competitively renewed in 1995 for a three-year period (1995-1998). This interdisciplinary training program for social/behavioral scientists and clinicians has been highly successful during its first eight years: (1) a total of twenty fellows (16 to date and four to enter in the 08 year starting 7/1/97) have been involved in the program, (2) the participating faculty has doubled from 11 to 20 persons; (3) the program's externally-funded research grants portfolio has expanded tremendously from about $2.2 million to over $7 million in annual direct costs including a NIMH services research center (P50-MH51410) for persons with a severe mental disorder; and (4) Public-Academic Liaison (PAL) relationships have been nurtured and expanded to state and local mental health agencies 12 states. Currently, four fellowship slots each year are authorized for this training program; given the success of this program and growing opportunities in the clinical services research area, a total of six slots are requested each year in this continuation application. The Training Program, which usually encompasses a two-year period, has two components: (1) core activities and (2) individualized study. The core component involves a weekly research seminar, participation in departmental seminars and grand rounds at the collaborating institutions, and other research seminars/workshops at UNC-CH or Duke. The individualized study component is tailored to the special interests and needs of each fellow and their prior experience. It is based on an apprentice-type model whereby each fellow is linked to one or more mentor(s) who works with the fellow to develop his/her own research and skill development program. Often, this research is integral to one of the mentor's ongoing research projects in which the fellow is able to function as a junior colleague. Fellows are also able to develop independent research projects with their mentor's assistance. In addition, with the advice and direction of their mentor(s), fellows may also enroll in graduate-level courses to enhance their research design and analysis skills and /or to acquire substantive knowledge relevant to their research interests. Performance in the directed research experience, like all other components of the training program, is evaluated annually by the mentor and by the Program Advisory Committee as a basis of the decision regarding the continuation of the fellow in the program.