Potential Research Mentors

Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research

Jordan Braciszewski, PhD

Dr. Jordan Braciszewski is a licensed clinical psychologist and Associate Research Scientist in the Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research at Henry Ford Health System. His research generally focuses on innovative means of improving access to mental health and substance use services, often using technology-driven approaches. He collaborates with partners in Pediatrics, Infectious Disease, Internal Medicine, and Psychiatry to implement digital health care into health care practice. He is currently PI or Site PI for several NIH and other federally-funded grants. Dr. Braciszewski is also Training Director for the Center’s T32 Post-Doctoral Training Program in Mental Health Services Research. Potential projects on which interns could collaborate include (1) technology-based screening, intervention, and referral to treatment in pediatric primary care, (2) technology-based screening, intervention, and referral to treatment in school-based health centers, and (3) technology-based suicide safety plans in pediatric primary care. 

Hongsheng Gui, PhD

Dr. Hongsheng Gui’s research focuses on identifying genetic biomarkers and gene x environment interactions involved in the development of neuropsychiatric diseases (e.g., schizophrenia, suicidality, and substance use disorders). Leveraging on accessible large-scale biobanking datasets (e.g., UK Biobank project, All of Us research program, and Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study), he conducts integrative omics analyses to link electronic health records with genomic data for earlier disease diagnosis and risk prediction. Dr Gui also leads or co-leads the pharmacogenomics analysis for typical drug response in treatment of mental health or physical health conditions. He is interested in reducing health disparities across diverse populations, through trans-ethnic genomics and health service research. To speed up precision psychiatry, Dr. Gui is currently working on following projects: 1) identify genetic determinants and its regulated immunological markers underlying development of suicidality in diverse populations; 2) construct improved predictive models that combine genomics and -omics risk scores together for suicide prediction; 3) reveal correlation and causation relationship between substance use or use disorders (e.g., opioid and alcohol) and suicide attempt using multivariate statistical tools from genetic epidemiology. More details can be found on his research lab website (guihonglab.org).

Geoffrey Kahn, PhD

Dr. Geoff Kahn is the first alum of the Center’s T32 Post-Doctoral Training Program in Mental Health Services Research and a new Assistant Scientist. He is a public health epidemiologist by training whose work focuses on suicide and self-harm prevention and the application of advanced quantitative methods to a broad range of topics. He has expertise in predictive modeling, machine learning, and methods for drawing causal inference from observational data. Future projects may include: 1) assessing use of individual blister packaging for medication as a means to reduce overdoses; 2) evaluating the adaptation of Henry Ford’s Zero Suicide framework for use in small community-serving organizations; 3) examining early childhood risk factors for adolescent suicide attempts; 4) exploring the role that changes in prognosis, treatment, and other time-varying factors play in suicide risk among cancer patients; and 5) updating a systematic review of medical aid in dying (aka physician-assisted suicide).

Elizabeth Lockhart, PhD

Dr. Elizabeth Lockhart’s research focuses on reducing health disparities for medically underserved populations, investigating mechanisms to increase access to care, and chronic disease prevention and care. More specifically, her program of research includes 1) integrating Community Health Workers in the healthcare system; and 2) Understanding and reducing inequities to sexual and reproductive health, namely HIV and HPV. Some of the research Dr. Lockhart has led or contributed to includes technology use among people with HIV, HPV vaccination facilitators and barriers among migrant farmworkers, and diabetes medication patient-provider decision making among underrepresented minorities. Recently, Dr. Lockhart’s research has expanded to explore innovative ways to reduce substance use (i.e. cigarettes, alcohol) and increase access to HIV prevention methods (i.e., preexposure prophylaxis). Research methodologies include multiphase optimization strategy (MOST), mixed methods, qualitative research, clinical trials, and implementation science. Dr. Lockhart is working on a study that aims to expand access to preexposure prophlyaxis in primary care and plans to expand her research portfolio by 1) understanding how patients want to share information with the health system and potentially receive services with regards to the social determinants of health; 2) creating efficient interventions for HIV prevention and care via MOST; and 3) evaluating implementation strategies for suicide prevention.

Amy Loree, PhD

Dr. Amy Loree is a licensed clinical psychologist and researcher whose work broadly focuses on addiction and women’s health. She is particularly interested in prevention, identification, and treatment of mental health and substance use disorders during the perinatal period and leveraging technology-based approaches to improve access to evidence-based care. She oversees several completed and ongoing projects including: 1) implementing technology-based screening and brief intervention (SBI/SBIRT) for alcohol in women’s health clinics; 2) evaluatingtelehealth-based integrated behavioral health programs in obstetric, primary care, and emergency department settings; 3) developing a digital health application to promote health behaviors in pregnancy; 4) examining approaches to implementing a preventive intervention for postpartum depression; 5) optimizing and evaluating a prenatal yoga intervention for preventing postpartum depression; 6) piloting an integrated clinic for perinatal people with substance use disorders and their families; and 7) scaling up implementation of maternal safety bundles in community settings.

Clinical options: An intern could gain direct clinical experience through providing individual and/or group psychotherapy to perinatal patients with mood and anxiety disorders, serving as a group facilitator on an intervention study, conducting interviews and risk assessments with research participants, and/or developing their own small pilot study where they could conduct face-to-face clinical work.

Lisa Matero, PhD, ABPP

Dr. Lisa Matero is a licensed and Board Certified Clinical Health Psychologist. Her research focuses on the bidirectional relationship between physical health and mental health, primarily within the areas of pain and obesity/bariatric surgery. Within these areas, she is interested in mental health, substance use, and physical health outcomes. Research methodologies include mixed methods, survey-based studies, electronic health record reviews, and development and evaluation of psychological interventions implemented in medical settings and/or technology via clinical trials. Dr. Matero also has an interest in health disparities and identifies ways to engage underserved patients in psychological interventions. She currently oversees multiple projects that received federal or foundation grant funding. Examples of current projects include 1) examining how lifestyle after bariatric surgery contributes to weight loss outcomes; 2) integrating a brief psychological intervention for chronic pain in primary care; 3) a longitudinal study of patients with pain initiating an opioid; 4) a technology-based intervention to reduce alcohol use after bariatric surgery; 5) evaluating utility of an objective alcohol measure as a part of pre-surgical evaluations; 6) identifying distal and proximal predictors of alcohol use after bariatric surgery using ecological momentary assessment, 7)implementation of Written Exposure Therapy for the treatment of PTSD across health care systems; and implementation of Written Exposure Therapy for the treatment of PTSD across health care systems; and 8) evaluating a coping skills training intervention for patients with COPD and their caregivers.

Clinical options: An intern could serve as a clinician on an intervention study, conduct interviews with participants, and/or develop their own small pilot study where they could conduct face-to-face clinical work.

Melissa Maye, PhD

Dr. Melissa Maye’s research focuses on increasing access to early interventions by leveraging health equity focused implementation science methods. Dr. Maye has several active and recently completed projects that interns could participate in at various stages, including: data collection, analysis, and manuscript writing. At present, Dr. Maye’s active research projects include an NICHD funded implementation study that aims to identify barriers and facilitators to equitable language access in neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) and a pilot study examining the use of a behavioral economics informed implementation strategy that was developed to increase access, equity, and accuracy of universal autism screening and referral across pediatric clinics. Interns working with Dr. Maye would have the opportunity to gain experience across the following topic areas: implementation science, clinical-academic partnered research, diversity and equity, neurodevelopment, neurodevelopmental disorders (e.g., autism, language delay), and NICU populations.

Clinical options: An intern could observe the Center for Autism and Developmental Disabilities (1x/month, Wednesdays) and/or conduct Follow-Up autism screening interviews through a funded study.

Arjun Teotia, PhD

Dr. Arjun Teotia is a health economist whose research integrates economics and public health to address critical issues related to substance use, suicide prevention, maternal and infant health, and public health insurance. His work applies econometric techniques and causal inference methods to both small and large datasets to assess the impact of health interventions on population outcomes, with a solid commitment to advancing health equity and reducing disparities. Dr. Teotia offers mentorship and hands-on experience in econometric modeling, causal inference, economic evaluation, and cost-effectiveness analysis. Interns working with Dr. Teotia will gain exposure to the intersection of economics and mental health, studying the behavioral and welfare impact of health interventions. Opportunities include analyzing large datasets, conducting cost-effectiveness studies, and collaborating on projects related to substance use prevention, suicide prevention, and maternal and infant health. Interns can also develop pilot projects focusing on economic and behavioral aspects of mental health interventions.

Ashlee Vance, PhD

Dr. Ashlee J. Vance is an Assistant Scientist in the Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research. She completed a postdoctoral fellowship with the National Clinician Scholars Program at the University of Michigan, with an emphasis on health policy and health services research, after finishing her doctorate in Nursing at Duke University School of Nursing, where she focused on longitudinal studies and parenting self-efficacy. She has clinical expertise as a neonatal nurse, with a BSN from Virginia Commonwealth University and a Master's in counseling from Western Michigan University. Her program of research focuses on parent and infant mental health, social drivers of care, and developmental outcomes, specifically in families with a medically complex infant. Dr. Vance has 2 funded projects: (1) a project focused on financial hardship and economic outcomes associated with NICU care and (2) a newly funded NIH R25 grant to develop a SDOH and health equity research training program. In addition to these projects, mentees would have the opportunity to work on data analysis using clinical EHR data, writing manuscripts, developing health-equity focused presentations, and qualitative and/or chart review data collection on healthcare interactions in the first year of life.

Alyssa Vanderziel, PhD

Dr. Alyssa Vanderziel is an Assistant Scientist in the Center for Health Policy and Health Services Research at Henry Ford Health. She earned her master’s and doctorate degree in epidemiology from Michigan State University, in addition to completing a one-year NIH-funded fellowship in psychiatric epidemiology. Dr. Vanderziel has expertise in research methods, data analysis, and observational studies. She currently serves as PI or co-I on several projects in the Center. Broadly, Dr. Vanderziel’s research interests focus on substance use and women’s health. She previously secured NIH funding to investigate the association between prenatal cannabis use and maternal & infant health outcomes. She also conducted a feasibility study to assess the recruitment and retention of pregnant patients who regularly used cannabis. Dr. Vanderziel’s current interests include (1) understanding how cannabis use during pregnancy is documented in the electronic health record, (2) messaging that pregnant patients receive about using cannabis during pregnancy, and (3) behavioral interventions to reduce maternal cannabis use.

Hsueh-Han Yeh, PhD

Dr. Hsueh-Han Yeh is a biostatistician and epidemiologist in health services research, with specific interests in developing and applying statistical methods in the areas of suicide prevention, substance use, mental health disorders, and precision medicine. She also possesses expertise in analyzing Electronic Health Record (EHR) data, which provides a great opportunity to enhance our understanding of underlying clinical symptoms, holds immense potential to transform healthcare research and decision-making, leading to more effective treatments and improved patient outcomes. Currently, she is actively involved in several projects, including: 1) examining disruptions in mental health service during the COVID-19 pandemic; 2) exploring the characteristics of callers to the hotline 988 which provides support for people in suicidal or mental health-related crises; and 3) investigating the clinical factors associated with suicide risk.