Current K12 Scholars
Name | Department | Institution | Degree | Research Focus | Mentor |
Meghan Costello | Psychiatry | MGH | M.A. | Meghan aims to study social mechanisms of progression to SUD in adolescents and her K12 project will investigate how participation in behavioral and pharmacotherapy treatment for nicotine vaping cessation impacts changes in peer network structure and the density of vape use among participants’ peers, focusing on relationships between vaping reduction intervention efforts and adolescents’ social context. She will continue to serve as a clinician in the West End Clinic. | Randi Schuster, PhD (mentor), Eden Evins, MD, MPH (co-mentor) |
Geneva Jonathan | Psychiatry | MGH | PhD | Geneva completed her psychology internship at MGH in July, is working with Sabine Wilhelm in the MGH Center for Digital Mental Health to learn eHealth intervention development and has a longstanding interest to improve the health of people with serious mental illness. Her K12 project aims to develop and integrate substance use modules for an existing depression-focused smartphone application, Mindset by Koa Health, to support individuals with co-occurring MDD and SUD. | Eden Evins, MD, MPH (Mentor), Sabine Wilhelm, PhD (Co-Mentor) |
Nubia Angelina Mayorga | Psychiatry | MGH | PhD | Angie aims to adapt and develop an acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) manual for a Latinx dual-diagnosis population that includes a nuanced and culturally tailored approach to decreasing experiential avoidance (EA). She then aims to pilot test the feasibility and acceptability of the culturally adapted ACT and EA content and evaluate if this intervention reduces EA, SUD symptoms (consumption, craving, coping) and psychiatric symptoms. | Margarita Alegria, PhD (mentor), Jenny Zhen-Duan, PhD (Co-Mentor) |
John J. Chiosi | Division of General Internal Medicine | MGH | MD, MPH | John aims to use a multimorbidity model of multiple drug- and infection-related complications to estimate the clinical and economic impact of the stimulant use disorder syndemic, identify the benefits and costs of interventions impacting multiple complications simultaneously, and determine how these interventions could be most effectively and efficiently deployed. | Kenneth Freedberg, MD, MSc (Mentor), Andrea L. Ciaranello, MD, MPH (co-mentor) |
Previous K12 Scholars
Name | Department | Institution | Degree | Research Focus | Mentor |
Pediatrics | MGH for Children | MD, MSc | Improving pharmacotherapy engagement and retention among pregnant and parenting women with Opioid Use Disorder (OUD). | John Kelly, PhD (mentor), Elsie Taveras, MD, MPH (co-mentor), Timothy Wilens, MD (co-mentor) | |
Psychiatry | MGH | PhD | Pilot study of a transdiagnostic, emotion-focused group intervention for young adults with substance use disorders and emotional distress. | Eden Evins, MD, MPH | |
Pediatrics | MGH for Children | MD, MPH | Potential value of early neuroimaging biomarkers for improving treatment and outcome in opioid-exposed neonates. | Jodi Gilman, PhD | |
Division of General Internal Medicine | MGH | MD, MPH | Feasibility of enrolling a population of individuals with OUD and SBI in a prospective cohort, observing clinical and SUD outcomes in the cohort, and exploring the potential to use OUD to improve outcomes in this population. | Nancy Rigotti, MD (primary mentor), Travis Baggett, MD, MPH (co-mentor) | |
Psychiatry | MGH | MD | Integrated smoking cessation treatment for smokers with serious mental illness. | Eden Evins, MD, MPH (mentor), Elyse Park, PhD (co-mentor), Nancy Rigotti, MD (co-mentor) |