Research Education in Disaster Mental Health: Role of Disaster Mental Health Providers

Principal Investigator: Monica Matthieu, PhD, PI
Funder:  National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
Timeframe: 07/07-06/09
Affiliation: Center of Mental Health Services Research (CMHSR)

Project Staff:  Monica Matthieu, PhD, PI

                        Fran Norris, PI

Project Contact:   Monica Matthieu

                              mmatthieu@wustl.edu

                              (314) 935-9516
                             
                                         
Project Update as of 07/08/08:

Description:

The long-term goal of this application is to improve the quality and utility of disaster mental health research so that victims of disasters are better understood and served. The educational goals of the proposed project are to inform, instruct, advise, and mentor disaster researchers. Each educational goal is addressed by two educational strategies denoted as proactive and reactive, depending upon whether the research education is offered before (i.e., independent of) or after a focal event. The informational goal is met by creating a specialized website on which comprehensive and up-to-date information on the state of the art in disaster research is easily, readily, and consistently available to the scientific community and other interested parties. The instructional goal is met by creating and piloting educational materials to be used in graduate/professional seminars and post disaster research workshops, including a comprehensive textbook and a CD-ROM series of master lectures. The advisement goal is met by providing consultation to individual investigators seeking specific methodological or practical advice about conducting or proposing to conduct disaster mental health research. The mentoring goal is met by implementing a grant program for 16 promising individuals (over the course of the project) who develop interest and show aptitude in careers in disaster mental health research. Ten aspects of this mentoring program are described: (1) faculty orientation and training; (2) mentee's submission of research prospectus; (3) mentor selection; (4) mentee orientation/scholarship development; (5) mentoring/application development; (6) "science to practice" consultation/collaboration development; (7) ongoing monitoring; (8) problem resolution/reassignment (when applicable); (9) group meetings; and (10) commencement. The program's faculty is composed of a nationwide panel of experts who represent a range of disciplinary perspectives, research skills, cultural understandings, and real-world experiences. A smaller group of specialized consultants helps the program to bridge the worlds of research and practice. To evaluate the impact of the program, methods drawn from the fields of education, communication, and information science are used. These include criterion based evaluations, consumer surveys, and quasi-experimental designs, among other approaches.