Job Description

The student intern will work under the supervision of a faculty member on the State of Mental Health Research Report for Policymaker Audiences.

The goal of this project is to develop a policy paper that will summarize the burden of mental illness in the U.S., the need for new therapies, and the importance of both public and private investment in bringing new therapies to market. The report will describe some of the barriers that contribute to the slow R&D of novel psychiatric drugs, and potential policy solutions that may help to accelerate the pipeline for innovative drugs going forward.

The report will:

• Summarize the current prevalence of mental illness in the U.S., overall and by specific disease (i.e., depression, anxiety, bipolar). The report will also summarize how these rates are projected to change in the future, and how prevalence and trends vary by sociodemographic characteristics (e.g., race/ethnicity, income, age, gender) to demonstrate where the greatest burden of illness lies in the U.S.

• Describe the health care and societal costs associated with specific mental health disorders in the U.S. This includes costs associated with productivity loss, caregiving, criminal justice, and social services.

• Provide an overview of the classes of drugs currently available to treat mental health disorders.

• Describe the unmet need among patients with mental health disorders, overall and by sociodemographic subgroups when available. This includes the approximate percentage of patients with mental illness that are untreated, and the approximate percentage (as available) of patients that have achieved partial but not complete remission from their illness.

• Characterize the psychiatric drugs that are currently in the development pipeline. Where information is available, the report will describe how these new drugs compare to drugs currently available for select mental health disorders, including novel mechanisms and benefits that differentiate them.

• Describe the current landscape of public and private investment in R&D for mental illness, and how investment in both sectors has changed over time. As part of this, the report will describe the profiles of companies that are currently investing in treatments for mental health.

• Compare R&D in mental health to other diseases with a large burden of illness (i.e. cancer).

• Describe what investment in mental health R&D is projected to look like in the future, and how that may be shaped by current or future policies.

• Describe possible strategies for collaboration between private industry, government and academia to advance R&D for mental illness. Describe collaborative strategies used successfully in other countries, and how similar collaborations may benefit R&D in the U.S.

• Describe the past, current, and possible future barriers to the development and approval of novel psychiatric drugs. The report will describe potential policy measures that could be used to accelerate investment in therapies for mental health. As appropriate, the report will also highlight policies that may further hamper investment in this area..

RESPONSIBILITIES

The summer fellow will work on the project under the mentorship of Tara Lavelle, who is an Assistant Professor at the Center for Evaluation of Value and Risk in Health at Tufts Medical Center. In collaboration with Dr. Lavelle, the summer fellow will be expected to:

1. Conduct searches of both the peer reviewed literature as well as the grey literature. Searchers of the peer reviewed literature will include the following databases: Ovid MEDLINE, Embase, Web of Science, Econ Lit, Psych Info, Social Science Database, and Sociological abstracts. Searches of the grey literature will include the following databases: Campbell Collaboration, Grey Literature Report (up to 2016 only due to its discontinuation), IDEAS/RePEc, and Policy File Index.

In addition, to identify possible evidence not contained in peer reviewed or grey literature databases, the summer fellow will search: disease specific advocacy and research websites (i.e. National Alliance on Mental Illness, Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance, Mental Health America, Schizophrenia Research Forum, One Mind), policy and think-tank websites (i.e., RAND, Mathematica), and federal government websites (i.e., FDA and NIH).

1. Characterize psychiatric drugs that are currently in the pipeline: The summer fellow will conduct a searches of the NIH clinicaltrial.gov website for active clinical trials in the U.S. of pharmaceutical interventions for adults with mental health disorders. The summer fellow will compare drugs currently being studied to drugs currently on the market in terms of their mechanisms of action and benefits.
2. Conduct a series of semi-structured interviews with subject matter experts (SMEs). The project team will identify the appropriate SMEs in academia, industry, government (i.e., NIH and FDA), think tanks, and patient advocacy organizations that will provide important insight into the research questions. The summer fellow will develop a list of questions to discuss with each SME, and conduct interviews under mentorship of Dr. Lavelle.

DELIVERABLES:

1. The team will work together to develop a report on the background, methods, and results of the study, in a format that is suitable for policymaker audiences. The summer fellow will be expected to draft substantial portions of the report. The team will work together to produce the final report.

2. Slides summarizing the report

Qualifications

JOB KNOWLEDGE & SKILLS

• Proficient with Microsoft Word, PowerPoint and Excel computer applications

• Excellent and meticulous organizational and technical skills are of the utmost importance as are documentation skills, and interpersonal and communication skills

• Ability to work independently, under supervision and as a part of a team is required.

• Consistently applies the corporate values of respect, honesty and fairness and the constant pursuit of excellence in improving the health status of the people of the region through the provision of customer-friendly, geographically accessible and high-value services within the environment of a comprehensive integrated academic health care system.

• Maintains collaborative, team relationships with peers and colleagues in order to effectively contribute to the working groups achievement of goals, and to help foster a positive work environment

• Performs other similar and related duties as required or directed

EDUCATIONAL REQUIREMENTS

• Currently enrolled in a bachelor’s degree program or higher.

WORKING CONDITIONS/PHYSICAL DEMANDS:

• Typical clinical and administrative office setting.

• Must be able to perform all essential functions of this position with reasonable accommodation if disabled.

Additional Information

AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES STATEMENT:

Must be able to perform all essential functions of this position with reasonable accommodation if disabled.

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed. They are not intended to be construed as an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties and skills required of personnel so classified. Tufts Medical Center reserves the right to modify position duties at any time, to reflect process improvements and business necessity.

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.

AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES STATEMENT:

Must be able to perform all essential functions of this position with reasonable accommodation if disabled.

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed. They are not intended to be construed, as an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties and skills required of personnel so classified. Tufts Medical Center reserves the right to modify position duties at any time, to reflect process improvements and business necessity.

All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.