Secondary Mentors

SECONDARY MENTORS will provide additional mentorship to PRIDE trainees to develop further writing and academic skills, or because the primary mentor does not have a history of scholarship pertaining to health disparities and/or the mental health issues of Black or Latino populations. These mentors have not garnered significant research funding, but they have histories of securing NIH Level 1 K-Awards or Foundation grants, or they have established themselves as leaders in program development and/or scholarship pertaining to health disparities.

Kathryn Castle, PhD, has secured Departmental seed grant funding and foundation support to study the contributions of perceived discrimination and ethnic identity to risk for adverse psychosocial function in African American adolescents. At the request of the Rochester Kinship Caregiving Network, she has also co- developed a psychoeducational support group for grandmothers raising grandchildren due to addictions, incarceration or death. As one of our former T32 fellows who has conducted cutting-edge research and assumed a position of leadership in the Clinical Psychology Training Program, Dr. Castle will serve as an excellent role model for PRIDE trainees.

Catherine Cerulli, JD, PhD, recently received approval for a K01 Career Development Award to use the courts as a venue for identifying and engaging individuals with acute care needs, many of whom are never encountered in the traditional mental health care settings. Dr. Cerulli has a 12-year legal professional background and 22 years experience working in various capacities on the topic of intimate partner violence. The K01 will foster the integration of hypothesis-driven science into the workings of the civil courts and criminal justice system with respect to recognizing the co-incidence of mental health issues and partner violence.

Kenneth Conner, PsyD, MPH, is interested in the morbidity and mortality associated with both aggression and alcoholism. He has considerable experience conducting secondary analyses and has received two R03s. As a Level 1K-Awardee who has been enormously productive, he will also serve as an excellent role model for PRIDE trainees, particularly the clinical psychologists. In September 2005, he began to serve as the Associate Director of Clinical Training for Internship Programs, given his ability to bridge the worlds of clinical and research training.

Deborah A. King, PhD, is interested in family and intergenerational approaches to improving the mental health and well-being of older adults and their caregivers. With Dr. Lyness and colleagues, she is examining the impact of religiosity, social support and family relationships on depression in elderly primary care patients. As the Geropsychology Representative to Division 12 (Clinical Psychology) of the American Psychological Association she edited a special issue of the journal Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice that summarized the current evidence base for assessment and treatment of depression in older adults. As a member of the teaching and research faculty of the Center for Palliative Care and Clinical Ethics, she is involved in the implementation of a series of psychoeducational workshops for cancer survivors; the development and testing of a brief, observer-rated checklist of family interactions at the end of life; and a descriptive, chart review study of the types of ethical and medical-legal challenges posed by cases referred for both palliative care and ethics consults.

Steven Lamberti, MD, examines new treatment and rehabilitation approaches for adults with severe mental disorders, especially those at risk for repeated hospitalization, arrest and incarceration. He is particularly interested in the development of community-based interventions for preventing jail and hospital recidivism. Main outcomes in his programs of research are treatment adherence, rates of arrest and incarceration, and mental health service utilization. As a clinical researcher who has effectively engaged the community, Dr. Lamberti is an excellent role model for our trainees, particularly the medical students and residents.

Carol Podgorski, PhD, is a medical sociologist interested in health beliefs on provider practices and consumer behavior and family relationships as a component of senior wellness. Dr. Podgorski is the Program Director of the Healthy Living Program, a church/community-based initiative that that aims topromote healthy behaviors to prevent and delay disability from chronic disease. The cornerstone of the HLP is the Congregation Healthy Heart Action Partnership (CHHAP), a 27-member coalition of African American churches. The program offers structured physical activity and a health promotion curriculum (modeled after the Chronic Disease Self-Management Program at Stanford University) to help participants make healthy lifestyle changes, working in a group setting through the stages of change. The HLSP has recently been honored as a recipient of the Secretary’s Innovation in Prevention Awards, a U.S. Department of Health and Human Services initiative.

Silvia Sörensen, PhD, is a gerontologist with K01 funding from the NIA to examine Preparation for Future Care, defined as thoughts and actions aimed at deciding where, when, how, and from whom care will be obtained and at optimizing the type of care received. Current work includes an R03-funded study to examine the association of PFC with cognitive functioning and problem solving in older African-Americans and Whites. As Director of the Aging Well Initiative skilled in community based participatory research, she is a valuable resource for many trainees and faculty who are interested in conducting research on health disparities.

Nancy Talbot, PhD, has received an R01 to develop a program of treatment research on depressed women with early sexual abuse and other lifetime traumas. As Director of the Department of Psychiatry’s Psychotherapy Institute, she has developed a program of continuing education that informs community based health care providers about the latest developments in intervention research. A clinical scientist engaged in community education activities, Dr. Talbot is an excellent role model for R25 trainees.