Welcome to our iSPARC Jan. 2020 Newsletter!
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Hello 2020 and all of the good stuff it may bring for all of us! In our January Issue of our iSPARC newletter, we highlight some of the most important research we've done and products we've released this past year. You'll also find a link to our
2019 Annual Report which provides more details. We'd love your feedback on what we've done. You can reply to this email if you have comments or ideas you'd like to share. Happy New Year!
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Our iSPARC 2019 Annual Report
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The Massachusetts Department of Mental Health Research Center of Excellence, the UMass
Implementation Science and Practice Advances Research Center
(iSPARC), is pleased to present our
2019 Annual Report
. This report recaps the work our center has done over the past year, including our many new initiatives, our collaborations with the Massachusetts Dept. of Mental Health and other agencies, our community engagement programs and our stakeholder engagement programs.
Read it
HERE. We encourage you to share it with colleagues also.
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New & Popular 2019 Products from iSPARC
Here are some of our new products from this past year, as well as a few of our most popular Tip Sheets. Feel free to share these products with anyone in your network!
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Detecting and Intervening on Suicidality in Emergency Departments: The ED-SAFE Study
While suicide is the tenth leading cause of death in the United States; suicide attempts are much more common, with more than 1 million people per year attempting suicide. In response to this critical need, the National Institute for Mental Health funded Emergency Department Safety Assessment and Follow-up Evaluation (ED-SAFE). ED-SAFE was a large, three-phase suicide intervention trial designed to determine if an ED-initiated intervention could reduce subsequent suicidal behavior. Read more about the ED-SAFE study
HERE
.
The ED-SAFE study was highlighted in Richard McKeon's (Chief of the Suicide Prevention Branch in the Center for Mental Health Services at SAMHSA) testimony before the Armed Services Committee, Subcommittee on Personnel United States Senate hearing on suicide prevention on Dec. 4, 2019. Read his full testimony
HERE.
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Approximately 1 million women in the U.S. have profound hearing loss and use American Sign Language (ASL) as their primary language. Many providers are unfamiliar with the unique linguistic and cultural needs of the Deaf community, therefore Deaf women experience major obstacles to receiving effective physical and mental healthcare. Read about a measure that uses ASL to screen Deaf women for perinatal depression
HERE
. Watch the corresponding American Sign Language (ASL) video
HERE
.
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This Psychiatry Brief presents the implementation of a highly innovative Centralized Referral System – LINK-KID – developed at the Child Trauma Training Center (CTTC) at the UMass Medical School. The LINK-KID referral system connects children in need of evidence-based trauma treatment with mental health providers who have been trained in these treatments. Implementing a centralized referral system such as LINK-KID can be a powerful tool to improved service. Read more
HERE.
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What Were You Thinking? Brain Development in Young Adults
The young adult brain is different from both c
hild and adult brains. If providers are confused or frustrated by their choices, they can take into consideration that young adults exist in a unique developmental period. This tip sheet describes typical and atypical brain development, development of executive functioning, impulse control, risk-taking and other behaviors. Understanding brain development can help improve best practices when working with young adults. Read more
HERE
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Disparities in Vocational Supports for Black Young Adults with Mental Health Conditions
Our new research brief, by
Jonathan Delman
, Ph.D., J.D., M.P.H. begins, "Young adult Black people with disabilities, including serious mental health conditions (SMHCs), are less likely to find and keep jobs than peers who are White" and then discusses the "Whys" including research on barriers and facilitators to employment and goes on to present information on Engagement and Access to Vocational Services. Read or download it
HERE
.
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How to Talk about Mental Health: Addressing Misunderstandings about Mental Health in the Media

This tip sheet was developed as a collaboration between the Massachusetts Statewide Youth Advisory Council (SYAC) and the Learning and Working Center at the Transitions to Adulthood Center for Research (TACR) to clear up some common misunderstandings about mental health conditions and to share strategies to talk about mental health in a more accurate and more helpful way!Read more
H
E
RE.
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This Tip Sheet was developed by our Family Advisory Board and Transitions ACR. We all know that we need to take care of ourselves first, because it enables us to do our best job helping our loved one. But it's easier said than done. This Tip Sheet offers some concrete suggestions that can be incorporated into your daily routine so you really can "put your oxygen mask on first." Read more
HERE.
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Our iSPARC
Webinars in 2019
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Our research teams often present their current research and results via Webinar format. After the webinar, we post them online. Join our email list to always be notified of upcoming webinars. You can view an archive of our past webinars
HERE
.
Increasing Therapy Usability for Deaf Sign Language Users
-Dec 2019
There are two versions of this webinar (ASL only and ASL + presentation)
Re-Conceptualizing & Boosting Engagement for Young Adults with Serious Mental Health Needs in Community-Based Services
- Nov. 2019
Best Practices for Transition Planning for High School Students with Mental Health Conditions
-Sept. 2019
Moving from Trauma-Informed to Trauma-Responsive Care Through Training, Referral and Treatment for Youth and Families
-Sept. 2019
Suicide Risk Detection and Management in Clinical Settings
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Research Highlights of 2019
Dr. Pivovarova is co-Investigator on a Justice for Community Opioid Innovation Network grant, part of the National Institutes of Health Helping to End Addiction Long-term (
HEAL
) initiative that started on 09/01/19 and slated to last five years. This grant will examine implementation of medications for opioid use disorders (MOUDs) in seven jails around Massachusetts, with the aims of understanding barriers and facilitators to initiation of MOUDs in jails and retention in community MOUD treatment of individuals recently released from incarceration. This grant is a joint collaboration between UMMS Worcester, UMMS Baystate, Tufts University, George Mason University, Weill Cornell Medical School, the MA Department of Public Health, and the seven MA Houses of Corrections.
Read more about this grant
HERE.
A diversity supplement was received by
DeafYES!
which will support the mentorship and training of postdoctoral fellow Alexander Wilkins under award R34AA026929, “Piloting
Signs of Safety:
A Deaf-Accessible Therapy Toolkit for AUD and Trauma.” Dr. Wilkins is a Deaf clinical psychology doctoral candidate who aspires to become a clinical researcher who adapts, tests, and disseminates evidence-based alcohol treatments for Deaf sign language users (e.g., Motivational Enhancement Therapy, Relapse Prevention). By supporting Dr. Wilkins in the next phase of his training, we believe he will become the first Deaf person in the nation to serve as a behavioral therapy clinical trials researcher.
Find more information on DeafYES!
HERE
.
Marsha Langer Ellison, Ph.D.
,
our Deputy Director of
Transitions to Adulthood Center for Research
, recently partnered with the Council on State Governments and the K. Lisa Yang and Hock E. Tan Institute on Employment and Disability at Cornell University, to secure a $4 million four-year cooperative agreement to operate a policy development center focused on youth with disabilities, funded by the U.S. Department of Labor. Learn more
HERE
.
In case you missed it, we were recently awarded the third cycle of a 5-Year Rehabilitation Research and Training Center Grant for our Learning and Working Center. The mission of the L&W RRTC is to use the tools of research and knowledge translation to help ensure that policies, programs, and supports for youth and young adults with serious mental health conditions (SMHCs) build the strong cornerstones that support successful long-term adult work lives. This third cycle of the L&W RRTC will conduct a coordinated and comprehensive set of activities. Read more
HERE
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New Young Adult Blog Post @ Transitions ACR Website
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Getting Back on Track after the Holidays
In it they suggest we give ourself 4 challenges. They are all good and cause you to reflect on how you are gearing up for the new year. Challenge Number 4: ME TIME.
"
The holidays are great for spending time with our loved ones, but come January, I need some time for myself."
Read more of our latest blog post
HERE.
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iSPARC is a Massachusetts Department of Mental Health (DMH) Center of Excellence for Public Mental Health Services and Implementation Research that aims to improve the mental and behavioral health of all citizens of Massachusetts and beyond. iSPARC is committed to transferring knowledge and insights gained through rigorous research to improve the lives of people with lived mental health experience.
We conduct Participatory Action Research, an all-inclusive approach that ensures that every aspect of our research incorporates the voices of those with lived mental health experience.
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