EPI-CAL - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Director of the Center for Applied Clinical Informatics
Adam Wilcox is the Director of the Center for Applied Clinical Informatics and Professor of Medicine at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. He is an appointed member of the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI) Methodology Committee, and an elected fellow of the American College of Medical Informatics. Dr. Wilcox has broad experience in both applied and research informatics, both in academia and healthcare delivery organizations. He has worked in healthcare and research institutions across the country, focusing on the applications of information, data and technology to improving care. He is noted for his work with designing, developing and sustaining data systems for populations with research and electronic health record data; for design and implementation of health information systems; and for advancing methods in sustainability of data systems. He has done specific work in disadvantaged communities and in information systems and care structures supporting integrated mental health care. He was also the original principal investigator for the AHRQ-funded Washington Heights Informatics Infrastructure for Comparative Effectiveness Research (WICER), which was an early population health research database effort focused on populations with health disparities. At Intermountain Healthcare, he led the development and implementation of primary care and emergency medicine systems, while also researching the effectiveness of care managers and integrated mental health care in an advanced practice model that was a precursor to the patient-centered medical home.
He has authored over 100 book chapters, peer-reviewed articles and abstracts in applying clinical informatics to health services. Dr. Wilcox received his Ph.D. in medical informatics from Columbia University.
Job Titles:
- Project Policy Analyst I, Department of Psychiatry
Adrian (he/him) is a project coordinator for EPI-CAL where he assists in the implementation of the Learning Health Care Network and the Training and Technical Assistance programs. He has prior experience coordinating projects and programs on the reduction of stigma around mental health within the LGBTQIA+ community in Solano County. Adrian has also worked in cooperative housing space in the cultivation and preservation of affordable housing, especially in Latinx communities. He has a BA in Sociology from the University of California, Davis.
Job Titles:
- Program Evaluation Specialist / UCSD Health Services Research Center
- Program Evaluation Specialist, UCSD Health Services Research Center / University of California
Amanda is a Program Evaluation Specialist with the Health Services Research Center at UC San Diego. She earned her Master's degree in Public Health from George Washington University, Milken Institute of Public Health. Amanda's involvement on the EPI-CAL project includes supporting the county data analysis component of the statewide Learning Health Care Network (LHCN) evaluation as well as site training and technical support for the implementation of the new digital health data platform in participating Southern California Early Psychosis programs.
Job Titles:
- Contracts and Grants / Research Administrator / Behavioral Health Center of Excellence
Brooke Herevia earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Multicultural and Gender Studies from California State University, Chico in 2004 and has worked as an administrator in finance for over 14 years. She currently works on evaluation projects for the BHCOE and is the acting project manager for two state-funded projects. She will also be starting as an MBA student at UC Davis in Fall 2020. Go Aggies!
Job Titles:
- Director of the UC Davis Imaging Research Center
- Professor of Psychiatry, Director of EDAPT Clinic
- Professor of Psychiatry, Director of EDAPT Clinic, Director of Behavioral Health Center of Excellence
Dr. Carter is the Director of the UC Davis Imaging Research Center and Director of the UC Davis Behavioral Health Center of Excellence. He is also a board certified psychiatrist and the Director of the UC Davis Early Psychosis Programs. In this role, Dr. Carter has substantial expertise in the implementation of evidence based early psychosis care, knowledge of the course of early psychotic illness and use of standardized clinical assessment of early psychosis symptoms, functioning, and outcomes. He provides substantial knowledge related to recruitment of individuals with early psychosis into research studies as well as analysis of complex longitudinal data. He assists with site recruitment and implementation of study procedures, supports the integration of the proposed study with ongoing research in the EDAPT and SacEDAPT clinics, provides direct support through the UC Davis Behavioral Health Center of Excellence, shares responsibility for examining data obtained through the project, and supports data analysis and reporting of results in conference presentation and manuscripts.
Chelyah Miller is a Junior Specialist in the UC Davis Department of Psychiatry. Chelyah graduated from University of California, Davis in 2019 with a B.A. in Psychology and a minor in Education. She has experience working with children as well as working within mental health. She plans to continue focusing on research that centers mental health and highlighting the voices of underrepresented communities.
Job Titles:
- Lived Experience Junior Specialist
Chris Hakusui is a Lived Experience Junior Specialist. Before returning to Connecticut College for a B.A. in Psychology in 2019, Chris worked as a programmer and a hardware repair technician. After graduation, he worked as a direct care counselor before beginning his M.S. in Psychology and joining Dr. Niendam's team. His main goal with his dual backgrounds in Psychology and Computer Science is to help drive the improvement of mental healthcare with technology; and is highly optimistic about the potential of the EPI-CAL project to continue to push this Psychology/Technology paradigm shift.
Job Titles:
- Assistant Clinical Research Coordinator, Department of Psychiatry, Weill Institute for Neurosciences / University of California
Christopher Blay has been involved in Dr. Loewy's lab since 2019 and is now an Assistant Clinical Research Coordinator at UCSF. She is primarily involved in the development of the DUP measurement tool and county data analysis components of the project.
Job Titles:
- Associate Professor, Department of Pediatrics
Dr. Tancredi is a statistician on the faculty in the Department of Pediatrics and a member of the Center for Healthcare Policy and Research at the University of California, Davis. He has extensive training and experience in statistical methods for the design and analysis of experimental and observational trials of behavioral interventions, including over 20 years of experience heavily involved in collaborative medical research at UC Davis and at Rush University in Chicago. As part of the EPI-CAL project, Dr. Tancredi brings specific expertise on efficient design and analytic approaches for ensuring valid and reliable assessment of intervention effects in observational studies. He also has particular expertise in clinic-based intervention research and advanced statistical methods.
Job Titles:
- Clinical Psychologist
- Clinical Psychologist, Director of Operations for UC Davis Early Psychosis Programs
- Clinical Psychologist, Director of Operations for UC Davis Early Psychosis Programs, Department of Psychiatry
Dr. Shapiro is a clinical psychologist and the director of operations for the UC Davis Early Psychosis Program (SacEDAPT and EDAPT). He completed his doctoral training at Emory University and a specialized fellowship in the practice and dissemination of cognitive behavioral therapy at the University of Pennsylvania. He comes to UC Davis after filling similar leadership roles in Massachusetts and Georgia, deepening his expertise in the assessment and treatment of early psychosis, as well as more broad cognitive behavioral strategies for change. Dr. Shapiro is particularly interested in understanding how the things that make us each different affect the way we process and understand our experiences, then how they affect change when these ways get us stuck. He is also passionate about teaching and training in these areas and is an avid runner and music enthusiast.
Job Titles:
- Fidelity Consultant / University of Calgary
Job Titles:
- Clinical Psychologist
- Health Sciences Assistant Clinical Professor & Director of Clinical Training of UC Davis Early Psychosis Programs
- Health Sciences Assistant Clinical Professor & Director of Clinical Training of UC Davis Early Psychosis Programs, Department of Psychiatry
Dr. Karina Muro is a bilingual and bicultural clinical psychologist who has been part of the UC Davis Early Psychosis Programs (SacEDAPT and EDAPT) clinics since 2016. In 2021, she was appointed faculty in the Department of Psychiatry at UC Davis Medical Center and is the Director of Clinical Training for the UCD Early Psychosis programs. She oversees the APA-accredited Trauma Adolescent Mental Illness (TAMI) training track for pre-doctoral psychology interns and serves as the primary clinical supervisor. Dr. Muro has 8 years of experience providing linguistically and culturally appropriate clinical care and psychosocial assessment for Spanish-speaking Latinx clients and families. She is passionate about enhancing clinical services for marginalized and underserved communities as well as teaching in areas of cultural and linguistic considerations. She leads the Spanish Consultation group at the EDAPT clinics to support providers in providing culturally affirming care. She is a co-investigator for the NIMH EPINET project, EPI-CAL. She is the Spanish Language Consultant/Educator and the Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility Co-Leader for the Early Psychosis Training and Technical Assistance Center (EP-TTA).
Job Titles:
- Assistant Director of Clinical Training at the UC Davis Early Psychosis Program
- Assistant Director of Clinical Training at UC Davis Early Psychosis Programs
- Assistant Director of Clinical Training at UC Davis Early Psychosis Programs / University of California
Dr. Khalima A. Bolden is a licensed clinical psychologist and the Assistant Director of Clinical Training at the UC Davis Early Psychosis Program. Dr. Bolden received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the San Diego State University/University of California San Diego Joint Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology after completing her internship at UCLA with a focus on Early Psychosis and Trauma. She went on to complete a postdoctoral fellowship in Clinical Psychology at Vanderbilt University Medical Center with a focus on Early Psychosis and Neuropsychological Assessment. Throughout her training and career she has developed expertise in the diagnosis and treatment of trauma with an emphasis on treating comorbid trauma and serious mental illness. Since arriving at UC Davis, Dr. Bolden has actively served on the Department of Psychiatry's Diversity Advisory Committee, and is involved in recruitment activities focused on increasing diversity and inclusion in both the department and in the health system. Dr. Bolden has also demonstrated her commitment to excellence in teaching and education and has lectured courses on social determinants of health in both the medical and nursing schools. Dr. Bolden also has an active and rich research which focuses on examining sociocultural factors associated with risk for psychosis and access to care. Dr. Bolden has specific expertise in the impact of systemic marginalization of African Americans both in society and in the healthcare system on the mischaracterization of psychosis symptoms in this population as well as the role of intergenerational and contemporary trauma on this population as a key stressor contributing to psychosis symptoms in this group. She has published in various scientific journals focusing on these interests and is the member of a number of scientific societies.
Dr. Rebecca Grattan is a Clinical Psychologist based in New Zealand. Her research specialty is understanding how stress reactivity is involved in poor outcomes for mental health. She has a particular interest in what factors influence homelessness risk for young people with severe mental illness, and has been working on the EPI-CAL project to develop a screening tool for youth homelessness.
Job Titles:
- Clinical Psychologist
- Training Director
- Licensed Clinical Psychologist / Department of Psychiatry
- Licensed Clinical Psychologist, Department of Psychiatry, University of California, Davis
Dr. Sabrina Ereshefsky is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist and the Assessment Training Director of the UC Davis Early Psychosis Program, where she provides training, supervision, assessment services, and oversight of quality management. She received her Ph.D. in Human Services/Child Clinical Psychology from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, completed her pre-doctoral clinical internship at University of Arizona's Early Psychosis Intervention Center (EPICenter), and finished her clinical training as a post-doctoral fellow at UC Davis' Early Psychosis Program under the mentorship of Dr. Tara Niendam. Dr. Ereshefsky supports the EPI-CAL project under the LHCN and TTA arms: 1) her quantitative research focuses on understanding provider and organization level characteristics that may impact implementation and uptake of Beehive (e.g., burnout, stigma and recovery beliefs), 2) she contributes to Beehive trainings to support clinic staff improve data driven care and find utility in clinical data, 3) her early qualitative project efforts have informed later components of the LHCN including the development of the EULA, Beehive platform, and outcome measures selected, and 4) she brings her assessment training expertise to the TTA Assessment Consultation Team. Dr. Ereshefsky also supports a 4-year SAMHSA initiative called "Sacramento Clinical high-risk Intervention for Psychosis Stepped-Care (SCIP Step)" Project, which will increase capacity of Sacramento County Community Mental Health (CMH) services to implement clinical high-risk for psychosis (CHRp) evidence-based stepped-care treatment within community youth mental health programs.
Job Titles:
- Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry
Dr. Stephania Hayes joined EPI-CAL in 2021 as a Post-Doctoral Research Scholar researching topics such as rural mental health access and peer support under the Coordinated Specialty Care model. She brings a broad range of research, clinical, and personal expertise to the team. Dr. Hayes received her Ph.D. in Social Welfare from UC Berkeley, where her dissertation examined occupational stress in a large sample of peer support specialists across the US. Her prior work spans the areas coercive mental health treatment, apprehension toward clinical care, administration of consumer-driven mental health programs, and body-focused repetitive behaviors. She has methodological interests in measure development, utilization of large administrative datasets, and increasing accessibility of scientific findings to benefit general audiences. Dr. Hayes completed clinical training and her M.A. in Occupational Therapy at the University of Southern California, with field rotations on an Assertive Community Treatment team and an inpatient psychiatric unit for patients with complex medical needs. As a Certified Peer Support Specialist, she directed an innovative community program which blended creative arts and mental health recovery-oriented education for diverse groups throughout Riverside County. At UC Davis, she has enjoyed building on this mix of experiences. Now an Assistant Professor and member of the Training and Technical Assistance (TTA) and Learning Health Care Network (LHCN) Programs, Dr. Hayes leads the Lived Experience Integration Team which works to center the perspectives of service users in all aspects of research and practice in the EPI-CAL network. Her current research uses state-level health utilization data to estimate incidence of early psychosis and need for services across California. Dr. Hayes also mentors peer support providers at the EDAPT and SacEDAPT clinics.
Job Titles:
- Clinical Research Coordinator
- EPI - CAL Project Manager / Senior Clinical Research Coordinator, Department of Psychiatry, University of California, Davis
- EPI - CAL Project Manager, Senior Clinical Research Coordinator / Department of Psychiatry
Dr. Valerie Tryon is a Clinical Research Coordinator who received her Ph.D. in Behavioral Neuroscience from the University of Washington and has experience managing longitudinal research projects. Dr. Tryon serves as the Project Manager for the EPI-CAL project and oversees day-to-day project activities. Dr. Tryon is particularly interested in supporting the development of a connected network of Early Psychosis programs to promote data sharing between programs and use of data in clinical care.
Job Titles:
- Senior Evaluation Research Associate, UCSD Health Services Research Center / University of California
Dr. Wilson is an Evaluation Research Associate with the Health Services Research Center at UC San Diego. She is the project manager for the evaluation of the San Diego County Suicide Prevention Action Plan, HSRC Innovations Program contract, and data de-identification project. She has also been involved in the evaluation of Prevention and Early Intervention programs for San Diego County as well as projects funded by the Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission. Prior to her position at UC San Diego, Dr. Wilson worked as a Senior Analyst for the UK Ministry of Justice.
Job Titles:
- Data Systems Analyst, Center for Healthcare Policy and Research / University of California
Job Titles:
- Project Manager / Department of Psychiatry
- Project Manager, Department of Psychiatry, Weill Institute for Neurosciences
Dr. Garman received her Ph.D. in Integrative Neuroscience from Stony Brook University, NY and has expertise managing clinical research projects with a focus on early identification of risk factors and biomarkers. Her primary roles on the EPICAL and LHCN project will be responsibility for the management of all project activities conducted at UCSF, including the Duration of Untreated Psychosis (DUP) Component and the County Data Analysis Component of the project.
Job Titles:
- Project Coordinator With the UC Davis Department of Psychiatry
- Project Policy Analyst I, Department of Psychiatry
Jayde Black is a Project Coordinator with the UC Davis Department of Psychiatry. Her role is to support the Early Psychosis Clinical and Research Programs. Jayde assists with the Training and Technical Assistance (TTA) and the Learning Health Care Network (LHCN) programs for the EPI-CAL project.
Job Titles:
- Professor, Department of Family and Community Medicine
Joy Melnikow, MD, MPH is the Director of the Center for Healthcare Policy and Research and Professor of Family and Community Medicine at the University of California, Davis. She serves on the executive committee for the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center, and is a member of the US Preventive Services Task Force. She received her MD from UC San Francisco and her MPH in epidemiology from UC Berkeley. She completed her residency in Family Medicine at the University of Massachusetts, worked for the Indian Health Service, and was on the faculty of MetroHealth Medical Center/Case Western University before coming to UC Davis in 1992. As part of the EPI-CAL project, Dr. Melnikow contributes to the research design, data analysis, and interpretation of data collected. She has specific research expertise in economic evaluation, analysis of large datasets, cost effectiveness modeling, patient preferences assessment, and comparative effectiveness research, and a strong focus on generation and synthesis of evidence to inform health policy and reduce health disparities.
Job Titles:
- Junior Specialist / Department of Psychiatry / University of California
- Junior Specialist for the EPI - CAL
Katherine Nguyen is a Junior Specialist for the EPI-CAL project. She received a B.S. in Psychology with a Biological emphasis from UC Davis and is currently working on her M.S. in Applied Behavior Analysis. Katherine's role in the EPI-CAL project involves site training and technical support for the implementation of the new digital health data platform in participating California Early Psychosis programs.
Dr. Katie Pierce received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology with specializations in Developmental Psychopathology and Quantitative Methodology. She is particularly passionate about the early identification of psychosis and the measurement of negative symptoms such as anhedonia and avolition. Dr. Pierce has worked in a variety of research and clinical settings, and has experience working with individuals experiencing psychosis in both outpatient as well as psychiatric inpatient settings. She believes that research and clinical practice should inform one another, and is motivated to conduct research that may have direct clinical applications. Dr. Pierce is presently a Post-Doctoral Research Scholar working on the EPI-CAL project at the UC Davis Imaging Research Center. Her roles in this project include conducting data analyses for the EPI-CAL project, engaging in project outreach to early psychosis clinics throughout California, and completing fidelity assessments.
Job Titles:
- Project Manager for EPI - CAL
- Project Policy Analyst
Kathleen Nye is a project manager for EPI-CAL. Kathleen has previously coordinated research studies evaluating use of mobile health applications in northern California early psychosis programs. She also has experience working with clients and families as a clinic coordinator in the UC-Davis SacEDAPT clinic. As part of the EPI-CAL project, Kathleen manages the design, development, and deployment of Beehive. This includes meeting with community partners to gather and incorporate their feedback into the development of Beehive. She also develops and leads Beehive trainings for EPI-CAL sites.
Job Titles:
- Project Policy Analyst for EPI - CAL
- Project Policy Analyst I / Department of Psychiatry
- Project Policy Analyst I, Department of Psychiatry / University of California
Katie is a Project Policy Analyst for EPI-CAL. She holds a BA in psychology from Northwestern University and has prior experience assisting with research on social functioning and cognition in people living with psychosis. She also has an extensive background in mental health advocacy both individually and working with groups like NAMI Chicago and Students With Psychosis. Katie will be working on the EPI-CAL Learning Health Care Network and Training and Technical Assistance programs as a core member of the Lived Experience Integration team. She is particularly interested in quality of life, improving access to early intervention, and amplifying voices of lived experience.
Job Titles:
- Associate Professor in Psychiatry, Director of Clinical Training, UC Davis Early Psychosis Programs, Department of Psychiatry
- Licensed Clinical Psychologist
Dr. Tully is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist and the Director of Clinical Training at the UC Davis Early Psychosis Program (SacEDAPT and EDAPT clinics). As part of the EPI-CAL project Dr. Tully is supporting the design, development, and deployment of the digital health data platform. Dr. Tully is particularly interested in developing client-centered data ownership and permissions systems, identifying the best ways to train providers in using data as part of standard care, and examining the role of sex and gender in mental health outcomes for young people experiencing psychosis.
Job Titles:
- Clinical Research Coordinator for the EPI - CAL Project at the University of California
- Clinical Research Coordinator, Department of Psychiatry
Lindsay Banks is a clinical research coordinator for the EPI-CAL project at the University of California, Davis. Lindsay predominantly works on the qualitative component of the project, taking part in focus groups and data analysis.
Job Titles:
- Implementation Consultant / Columbia University
Job Titles:
- Junior Specialist / Department of Psychiatry / University of California
- Junior Specialist, Department of Psychiatry
Madison Miles is a Junior Specialist in the UC Davis Department of Psychiatry. She received a B.A. with majors in Psychology, Anthropology, and Art, and a minor in Childhood Studies from Case Western Reserve University. Madison's role on the EPI-CAL project includes site training and technical support for participating California Early Psychosis programs. She also had research interests in the interactions between adverse childhood experiences and the development of psychopathology.
Job Titles:
- Survey Worker / UCSD Health Services Research Center
- Survey Worker, UCSD Health Services Research Center / University of California
Maliha is a Survey Worker for the Health Services Research Center at UC San Diego. She earned her Bachelor's degree in Public Health with a concentration in Medicine Sciences from UC San Diego, Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science. Her support in the EPI-CAL project includes supporting the county data analysis component of the state-wide Learning Health Care Network (LHCN) evaluation, site training and providing technical support for the implementation of the new digital health data platform in participating Southern California Early Psychosis programs.
Job Titles:
- Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry
- Co - Investigator
Dr. Savill is a co-investigator leading the qualitative component of the EPI-CAL project. He has experience managing large datasets including management of multisite clinical trials of interventions for individuals with psychosis. Alongside his clinical trials experience he has developed expertise in conducting qualitative studies. This work has spanned remote and in-person structured qualitative interviews, survey research, and focus groups with consumers and community providers. He also has expertise related to conceptualizing the duration of untreated psychosis (DUP), and evaluating interventions designed to reduce DUP. Dr. Savill has experience of evaluating and validating measures for use in clinical settings, and has been trained to conduct and supervise standardized clinical assessments in early psychosis.
Job Titles:
- Professor
- Professor, Department of Psychiatry
Dr. Shumway holds a doctorate in quantitative psychology from the University of California, Berkeley. She has worked in mental health services research for over thirty years, studying services for people diagnosed with severe mental illness and other underserved populations, with a focus on measurement and methodology. She has led NIMH-funded and other studies on measurement of stakeholder preferences for treatments and treatment outcomes and has led two NIMH-funded studies using cognitive approaches to improve patient-reported outcome measures. Dr. Shumway is working with the EPI-CAL team that is developing tools for measuring the duration of untreated psychosis.
Job Titles:
- Program Evaluation Specialist / UCSD Health Services Research Center
Job Titles:
- Program Evaluation Specialist, UCSD Health Services Research Center / University of California
Job Titles:
- Clinical Research Coordinator
- Clinical Research Coordinator, Department of Psychiatry
Misha Carlson (she/her) is a clinical research coordinator in the UCSF Department of Psychiatry under Dr. Rachel Loewy. She has a B.S. in Clinical Psychology from Tufts University and her previous experience has focused on increasing accessibility to mental health for underserved populations. Misha's duties with EPI-CAL include supporting the Training and Technical Assistance program as well as helping develop the Duration of Untreated Psychosis measure.
Job Titles:
- Junior Specialist, Department of Psychiatry
Natalia graduated from the University of New Mexico with a B.A. in Psychology in 2015. Currently, she a first year doctoral student in the Health Psychology and Clinical Science program at the City University of New York and a Junior Specialist at the UC Davis Imaging Research Center. Natalia's primary roles are coordinating the Duration of Untreated Psychosis study and conducting phone screens in Spanish and English to assess eligibility for clinical services at the UC Davis Early Psychosis clinic. For the EPI-CAL research project, she will be co-leading focus groups and translating project documents to Spanish.
Job Titles:
- Junior Specialist / Department of Psychiatry
- Junior Specialist in Dr. Niendam
- Junior Specialist, Department of Psychiatry / University of California
Nitasha Sharma is a Junior Specialist in Dr. Niendam's lab investigating better treatment models for individuals with psychosis spectrum disorder and early intervention to improve outcomes. She received her B.S. in Neurobiology, Physiology and Behavior from UC Davis. She is interested in understanding the behavioral and neural mechanisms behind mental health disorders. Nitasha is a member of the EPI-CAL research team at the UC Davis Imaging and Research Center. Her involvement on the EPI-CAL project includes working with study participants, providing technological assistance, and collecting data from diverse populations. In addition to her role on the research team, Nitasha works as a care coordinator in the EDAPT and SacEDAPT clinics. She is passionate about reducing mental health stigma and advocates for inclusivity and equality in the healthcare system. She enjoys working with diverse patient populations and helping breakdown language and cultural barriers. She hopes to utilize these experiences to provide quality care for her patients when working as a physician in the future.
Dr. Loewy is a co-investigator on this study focusing on the development of the DUP measure and collaborating on the early psychosis clinic network. She held a co-founding position developing some of the first community-based early psychosis (EP) coordinated specialty care (CSC) clinics in CA, which utilized a shared standardized data collection system over 5 counties, as well as founding the CSC clinic at UCSF. She has experience in clinical services research and expertise in early psychosis symptom assessment and measure development. Dr. Loewy is recognized as a national expert in community-based treatment of early psychosis as reflected by membership on the PhenX Early Psychosis Clinical Services Working Group panel and contributor to several SAMHSA-contracted EP guidance documents.
Renata Botello is a first-year clinical psychology Ph.D. student at Boston University. She is interested in motivators and challenges to social interaction in psychosis. Specifically, she is passionate about understanding what predicts a meaningful social interaction in people with schizophrenia. Renata contributed to the UC Davis Early Psychosis Program as a bilingual clinic and outcomes coordinator. As part of the EPI-CAL team, Renata translated study assessments and led Spanish and English focus groups for people with psychosis and their family members. Renata is passionate about the inclusion of Spanish speaking families and their perspective on outcome variables in early psychosis care.
Shadeh is a Program Evaluation Specialist with the Health Services Research Center at UC San Diego. She earned her Master's degree in Public Health from San Diego State University, concentrating in Health Promotion and Behavioral Science. Shadeh supports the county data analysis component of the statewide Learning Health Care Network (LHCN) evaluation and provides technical support for the implementation of the digital health data platform in participating Southern California Early Psychosis programs.
Job Titles:
- Clinical Research Coordinator
- Clinical Research Coordinator and Nationally Certified Peer Specialist
- Clinical Research Coordinator, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
Shannon Pagdon (she/they) is a clinical research coordinator and nationally certified peer specialist living with psychosis. Shannon has worked as a research assistant with the EPINET project in New York and California and with the University of Pittsburgh. Shannon is the co-creator of Psychosis Outside the Box and was recently elected as Vice President of Lived Experience Research for the International Conference on Early Intervention in Mental Health (IEPA). In spare time, Shannon enjoys reading, baking, hiking, and spending time with her dog, Scout.
Job Titles:
- Clinical Research Coordinator / Department of Psychiatry, Weill Institute for Neurosciences
Sophie (she/her) is a clinical research coordinator in the UCSF Department of Psychiatry in Dr. Rachel Loewy's lab. She earned her B.A. in Psychology with minors in Spanish and Public Policy from the University of California, Berkeley and has plans to pursue a doctoral degree in Clinical Psychology in the future. She has experience serving Spanish-speaking populations and working to decrease barriers to receiving quality mental health care. Sophie's role with EPI-CAL includes project leadership for the LHCN County Data Analysis cost and utilization portion. Her research interests include Stress, Trauma and Psychopathology, ACEs, Early Psychosis, Health Policy, Accessibility, and Culturally Responsive Care.
Job Titles:
- EPI - CAL Principal Investigator
- EPI - CAL Principal Investigator, Professor in Residence & Executive Director of UC Davis SacEDAPT Clinic, Department of Psychiatry
Job Titles:
- Professor of Health Economics, Vice Chair for Faculty Affairs
Todd Gilmer, Ph.D., is Professor of Health Economics, Vice Chair for Faculty Affairs, and Chief of Division of Health Policy in the Department of Family Medicine And Public Health at the University of California, San Diego. He received his Ph.D. in economics from the University of Washington in 1997. His research has focused on three areas: health insurance/risk adjustment, cost-effectiveness of diabetes care, and mental health services. Dr. Gilmer specializes in research design and data analysis, the use of large data sets including those from Medicare, Medicaid, and commercial health plans, national surveys and census data, and mixed data sets that combine epidemiological data with health insurance claims, and the evaluation of community based interventions to improve chronic disease care to low-income populations.
Job Titles:
- Outcomes Junior Specialist
- Outcomes Junior Specialist, Department of Psychiatry
Viviana Padilla is an Outcomes junior specialist in Dr. Niendam's lab investigating better treatment models for individuals with psychosis spectrum disorder and early intervention to improve outcomes. She recently received a B.S. in Psychology with a Biological emphasis from UC Davis. Viviana's role involves working in the clinic with the UC Davis Early Psychosis Program and on the EPI-CAL research project at the UC Davis Imaging and Research Center. She is passionate about helping reduce mental health stigma and advocates for equal treatment and inclusivity across diverse cultural backgrounds. Viviana works directly with Spanish-speaking families in hopes of reducing language and cultural barriers to provide a comfortable space for everyone in the community. Viviana is eager to help individuals suffering from mental illness and plans to use this research experience to gain admission into a Clinical Ph.D. program to continue her work in the field.