VIRTUAL SYMPOSIUM

The Future of Mental Health: Measurement, Treatment and Therapies
Nov 2-3, 2020

Mental health disorders, unlike disorders in other fields of medicine, have been typically defined in terms of symptoms as underlying etiology and biology are poorly understood. With new research tools, the field of mental health is now undergoing significant evolution in the way disorders are understood and treated. This symposium brings together speakers working at the cutting edge of understanding and treating mental health disorders from measurement and definition of disorders to linking of symptoms to underlying physiology and biology and developing new treatments.

PRELIMINARY PROGRAM

The program will have 2 sessions on each day that will consist of 2-3 speakers and a panel discussion as follows.

Session 1: Measurement and Assessment in Mental Health

How is mental health status measured and determined? This foundational aspect of mental health comes with many challenges that impact how we think of and treat mental health disorders. Here we present talks outlining some of the challenges in the field along with potential solutions.

Moderated Panel: The Future of Mental Health Measurement

Session 2: Brain Physiology to Behavior

Understanding the aspects of brain physiology that inform our moods and behaviors and how to manipulate them is key to treatment of various behavioral health challenges. This session will cover new diagnostic approaches as well as treatment methods such as Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation and Neurofeedback that work to detect or alter key aspects of brain physiology.

Moderated Panel: Understanding the feedback loop from Brain to Behavior: what aspects of brain activity matter?

Session 3: The Challenges of Psychiatric Drugs

The search for psychiatric drugs has been a difficult one and there have been few advances over the past decade. This session focuses on some of the challenges around existing and novel psychiatric drugs from understanding their pharmacology, efficacy and safety to the placebo effect.

Moderated Panel: The future of psychiatric drugs

Session 4: Digital Tools for Preventive Care

From apps to online therapy, digital tools are gaining traction as ways to detect, manage and treat mental health challenges. What does this landscape look like and how will it shape the future of mental wellbeing?

Moderated Panel: The role of digital applications in managing mental wellbeing

Please note that this is a partial list of speakers. We are continuing to confirm speakers, so please check back for updates.

Dr. Amit Etkin
CEO, Alto Neuroscience and Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford University

Dr. Amit Etkin, is both a neuroscientist and psychiatrist, with experience ranging from molecular biology through machine learning and human clinical trials. The overarching aim of the Dr. Etkin’s work has been understanding the neural basis of emotional disorders and their treatment, and leveraging this knowledge to better understand how the brain works and to develop novel treatment interventions. Alto builds on this work in order to advance precision psychiatry with respect to actionable, real-world, clinical and commercial outcomes.

Dr. Eiko Fried
Assistant Professor in Clinical Psychology, Leiden University

Dr. Eiko Fried’s broad interests are the measurement, modeling, and ontology of mental disorders. Apart from that, he is interested in improving psychological science through open science practices; studying individual symptoms of mental disorders; and bringing complexity science to mental health research. He has a PhD in Clinical Psychology from Free University Berlin.

Dr. Ekaterina Malievskaia
Chief Innovation Officer and Co‑founder, COMPASS Pathways plc

Dr Ekaterina Malievskaia leads Research and Development at COMPASS. She is a trained physician and has worked in private practice, academic medicine and public health for more than 15 years. She was a Clinical Instructor of Medicine at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, as well as a Research Professor at City University of New York. She founded COMPASS Pathways in 2016, having experienced at first hand the challenges in accessing evidence-based and effective mental health care for a family member.

Scientia Professor Helen Christensen
Director & Chief Scientist, Black Dog Institute and Professor of Mental Health at UNSW

Scientia Professor Helen Christensen (AO) is Chief Investigator for the Centre for Research Excellence in Suicide Prevention, National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) Elizabeth Blackman Fellow in Public Health. Her works focuses on digital phenotyping and digital applications to deliver evidence-based interventions for the prevention and treatment of depression, anxiety, suicide, and self-harm.

Dr. Jennifer Newson
Lead Scientist, Cognitive and Mental Health Assessment, Sapien Labs

Dr. Newson leads the development of cognitive and mental health tools at Sapien Labs. She is particularly interested in cross-disorder paradigms and the relationship between cognition and other mental attributes. She has worked previously on attention and memory and led the EEG lab at fragrance company Givaudan. She has a PhD in Cognitive Neuroscience from Oxford University.

Dr. Mitul Mehta
Professor of Neuroimaging & Psychopharmacology, Kings College London

Dr. Mehta heads the Neuropharmacology Group in the Department of Neuroimaging at King’s College London where he is also Deputy Lead for the Neuroimaging Theme of the NIHR-Maudsley Biomedical Research Centre for Mental Health and Director of the IoPPN Centre for Innovative Therapeutics . His work is focused on on pharmacological neuroimaging and early stage clinical trials for psychiatric drugs.

Dr. Neil Leibowitz
Chief Medical Officer, Talk Space

Dr. Neil Leibowitz oversees the quality of care provided by therapists and psychiatrists on the Talkspace platform. He was previously a Senior Behavioral Health Medical Director at United Healthcare and faculty member at the Albert Einstein School of Medicine. Dr. Leibowitz also taught Health Law at St. Francis College and is on the board of VIP Community Services, a large FQHC in the Bronx. He received his MD from New York Medical College and his JD from the New York University School of Law.

Dr. Oren Shriki
Principal Investigator, Computational Psychiatry Lab, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev

Dr. Shriki heads the Computational Psychiatry Lab and serves as the head of the Dept. of Cognitive and Brain Sciences at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Israel. His lab applies mathematical analyses and machine learning to EEG to develop neuromarkers of clinical disorders and novel approaches to brain computer interfaces and neurofeedback. He has a PhD in computational neuroscience from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

Theresa Nguyen, LCSW
Chief Program Officer and Vice President of Research and Innovation, Mental Health America

Theresa Nguyen’s focus at Mental Health America is on improving access to mental health care through data and digital based innovations. She also oversees MHA’s research, exploring the integration of peers into research, the use of technology to support people in the earliest stages of recovery, and how large scale data provides insight into gaps in supports systems across the country. She is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker with over 15 years of experience as a clinician, educator and advocate.

Vladimir Miscovic
Senior Research Scientist, Google X

Dr. Miskovic’s research spans the identification of correlates of mental disorders to the interplay of emotion, attention and motivation. He uses electrophysiological and behavioral methods to examine the ways in which human perceptual systems tune to basic affective properties in order to selectively focus attention. He has also studied the changes in cortical activity across development.

Dr. Yukiko Uchida
Professor of Social and Cultural Psychology, Kyoto University

Dr. Yukiko Uchida is based at the Kokoro Research Center, Kyoto University. As a cultural psychologist, she studies the psychological mechanisms behind the experience of emotions like happiness. Her cross-cultural studies also examine how a participation in meaningful cultural practices fosters these psychological processes. Uchida is a 2019-20 Berggruen fellow at CASBS.

Dr. Uma Vaidyanathan
Research & Innovation Manager, RDoC Unit, NIH/NIMH

Dr. Uma Vaidyanathan is part of the RDoC initiative to advance precision mental health at the NIMH. Her research focuses on fusing behavioral neuroscience, programming, and statistics to map the boundaries of normal and abnormal human behavior, and the philosophy of science and measurement issues underlying this work. She also serves as a member of the Wellcome Trust’s Mental Health Priority Area’s Strategic Advisory Board.

Dr. Stephen Schueller
Associate Professor of Psychological Science and Informatics, UC Irvine

Dr. Schueller is a clinical psychologist and mental health service researcher whose work focuses on making mental health resources more available and accessible, especially through the use of technology. This includes the development, evaluation, and implementation of web- and mobile-based interventions. He also serves as the Executive Director of One Mind PsyberGuide, a project the aims to empower consumers to make informed choices around digital mental health products.

Dr. Tara Thiagarajan
Founder and Chief Scientist, Sapien Labs

Dr. Thiagarajan’s research focuses on understanding structures of brain activity in EEG and their relationship to mental and cognitive outcomes. She has expertise in complex systems and signal processing and has worked across a wide range of areas of neuroscience from molecular, cellular and neural network physiology in cell cultures, rodents and monkeys to human ECoG and EEG. She has also previously worked in the pharmaceutical industry developing frameworks for strategic scientific management of R&D.

November 2, 2020 

*Note that US daylight savings ends and EST takes effect Nov 1  

 

Session 1: Measurement and Assessment in Mental Health

 

7:30am – 7:55am EST 

Measurement Matters: Why Challenges to Assessing Mental Health Problems Pose a Substantial Barrier to Clinical Progress 

Dr. Eiko Fried, Assistant Professor in Clinical PsychologyLeiden University 

7:55am – 8:20am EST  Culture, Health, and Well-being: A Perspective from Cultural Psychology
Dr. Yukiko UchidaProfessor of Social and Cultural Psychology, Kyoto University 
8:20am – 8:45am EST 

The Heterogeneity of Mental Health Assessment 

Dr. Jennifer Newson, Lead Scientist, Cognitive and Mental HealthSapien Labs 

8:45am – 9:00am EST  Break 
9:00am – 9:45am EST 

Panel Discussion:  The Future of Mental Health Measurement 

Moderated by Dr. Uma Vaidyanathan, Research and Innovation Manager, RDoC Unit NIH/NIMH 

 

Session 2: Brain Physiology to Behavior

 

11:00am – 11:25am EST 

Living on the Edge: OCritical Brain Dynamics as a Framework for Assessing and Regulating Brain Function 

Dr. Oren ShrikiPrincipal Investigator, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev 

11:25am – 11:50am EST 

Grounding Psychiatry in Scalable Brain-Based Biomarkers 

Dr. Amit EtkinCEO, Alto Neuroscience and Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University 

11:50am – 12:15pm EST 

Technology Enabled Multi-Modal Assessment for Mental Health 

Dr. Vladimir MiskovicSenior Research Scientist, Google X 

12:15pm – 12:30pm EST  Break 
12:30pm – 1:15pm EST 

Panel DiscussionUnderstanding the Feedback Loop from Brain to Behavior: What Aspects of Brain Activity Matter? 

Moderated by Dr. Tara Thiagarajan, Chief Scientist Sapien Labs 

 

Session 3: Digital Tools for Preventive Care

 

4:00pm – 4:25pm EST 

2020: The Year of Adoption for Digital Mental Health – Lessons learned for 2021 and Beyond 

Dr. Neil Leibowitz, Chief Medical Officer, Talkspace 

4:25pm – 4:50pm EST 

Equity & COVID Insights from Online Screening 

Theresa Nguyen, Chief Program Officer and Vice President of Research and Innovation, Mental Health America 

4:50pm – 5:15pm EST 

Using Smartphone Technologies to Detect and Deliver Mental Health Interventions: Where WAre and Where WNeed to Go 

Dr. Helen Christensen, Director & Chief Scientist, Black Dog Institute 

5:15pm – 5:30pm EST  Break 
5:30pm – 6:15pm EST  Panel DiscussionThe Role of Digital Applications in Managing Mental Wellbeing
Moderated by Dr. Stephen Schueller, Associate Professor, School of Social Ecology, UC Irvine 

November 3, 2020 

 

Session 3: Digital Tools for Preventive Care (Replay)

Please note that this will be a replay of the session from the previous evening for our attendees in different time zones 

8:00am – 8:25am EST 

2020: The Year of Adoption for Digital Mental Health – Lessons learned for 2021 and Beyond 

Dr. Neil Leibowitz, Chief Medical Officer, Talkspace 

8:25am – 8:50am EST 

Equity & COVID Insights from Online Screening 

Theresa Nguyen, LCSW, Chief Program Officer and Vice President of Research and Innovation, Mental Health America 

8:50am – 9:15am EST 

Using Smartphone Technologies to Detect and Deliver Mental Health Interventions: Where WAre and Where WNeed to Go 

Scientia Professor Helen Christensen, Director & Chief Scientist, Black Dog Institute 

9:15am – 9:30am EST  Break 
9:30am – 10:15am EST 

Panel Discussion:  The Role of Digital Applications in Managing Mental Wellbeing 

Moderated by Dr. Stephen Schueller 

 

Session 4: The Challenges of Psychiatric Drugs

 

11:00am – 11:25am EST 

Academic Collaboration with the Pharmaceutical Industry to Validate Critical Theories in the Drug Development Pathway: Advantages and pitfalls 

Dr. Mitul Mehta, Professor of Neuroimaging & Psychopharmacology, Kings College London 

11:25am – 11:50am EST  The Promise of Psychedelic Therapy
Dr. Ekaterina Malievskaya, Chief Innovation Officer and Cofounder, Compass Pathways plc 
11:50am – 12:05pm EST  Break 
12:05pm – 12:50pm EST 

Panel DiscussionThe Future of Psychiatric Drugs 

Moderated by Dr. Tara Thiagarajan, Chief Scientist Sapien Labs 

 

Session 1: Measurement and Assessment in Mental Health (Replay)

Please note that this will be a replay of the session from the previous for our attendees in different time zones 

2:00pm – 2:25pm EST 

Measurement Matters: Why Challenges to Assessing Mental Health Problems Pose a Substantial Barrier to Clinical Progress 

Dr. Eiko Fried, Assistant Professor in Clinical PsychologyLeiden University 

2:25am – 2:50am EST  Culture, Health, and Well-being: A Perspective from Cultural Psychology
Dr. Yukiko Uchida, Professor of Social and Cultural Psychology, Kyoto University 
2:50pm – 3:15pm EST 

The Heterogeneity of Mental Health Assessment 

Dr. Jennifer Newson, Lead Scientist, Cognitive and Mental HealthSapien Labs 

3:15pm – 3:30pm EST  Break 
3:30pm – 3:45pm EST 

Panel Discussion:  The Future of Mental Health Measurement 

Moderated by Dr. Uma Vaidyanathan, Research and Innovation Manager, RDoC Unit NIH/NIMH 

November 5, 2020 

 

Session 2: Brain Physiology to Behavior (Replay)

Please note that this will be a replay of the session from Nov 2 morning for our attendees in different time zones 

7:00pm – 7:25pm EST 

Living on the Edge: On Critical Brain Dynamics as a Framework for Assessing and Regulating Brain Function 

Dr. Oren Shriki, Principal Investigator, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev 

7:25am – 7:50am EST 

Grounding Psychiatry in Scalable Brain-Based Biomarkers 

Dr. Amit Etkin, CEO, Alto Neuroscience and Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University 

7:50pm – 8:15pm EST 

Technology Enabled Multi-Modal Assessment for Mental Health 

Dr. Vladimir Miskovic, Senior Research Scientist, Google X 

8:15pm – 8:30pm EST  Break 
8:30pm – 9:15pm EST 

Panel Discussion:  Understanding the Feedback Loop from Brain to Behavior: What Aspects of Brain Activity Matter? 

Moderated by Dr. Tara Thiagarajan, Chief Scientist Sapien Labs 

November 6, 2020 

 

Session 4: The Challenges of Psychiatric Drugs (Replay)

Please note that this will be a replay of the session from Nov 3 morning for our attendees in different time zones 

7:00pm – 7:25pm EST 

Academic Collaboration with the Pharmaceutical Industry to Validate Critical Theories in the Drug Development Pathway: Advantages and pitfalls 

Dr. Mitul Mehta, Professor of Neuroimaging & Psychopharmacology, King’s College London 

7:25pm – 7:50pm EST 

The Promise of Psychedelic Therapy 

Dr. Ekaterina Malievskaya, Chief Innovation Officer and Co‑founder, COMPASS Pathways 

7:50pm – 8:05pm EST  Break 
8:05pm – 8:50pm EST 

Panel Discussion:  The Future of Psychiatric Drugs 

Moderated by Dr. Tara Thiagarajan, Chief Scientist Sapien Labs