Diana E. Clarke, PhD, MSc
Managing Director of Research & Senior Research Statistician/Epidemiologist,
Division of Research, American Psychiatric Association Foundation;
Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Mental Health,
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
Candidacy Statement:
My interest in suicide and suicide prevention is personal and professional. I have lost friends to suicide and supported friends, colleagues, and family members who have struggled with suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Over the years, I have worked independently and collaboratively on research and advocacy efforts to prevent suicide. I developed these efforts through the networking and support afforded by my IASR membership, which started in 2012. Assuming the role of President would empower me to give back to an organization that has significantly contributed to my personal and professional growth.
As President, I will promote the growth and diversity among IASR membership by active recruitment of underrepresented and minoritized groups such as Blacks and other people of color, gender and sexual minoritized persons, as well as researchers from countries other than North America. I will advocate for special interest groups within the organization to facilitate diversification of the membership. These efforts will be a continuation of my work as the IASR member-at-large over the past two years. Additionally, I will work to expand our partnerships with other organizations to encourage collaborative approaches to suicide prevention research.
Education: I completed my MSc and PhD at University of Toronto in epidemiology and postdoctoral training in psychiatric epidemiology at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health (JHBSPH).
Career Summary:
I have spent my professional career as a researcher, educator, and advocate for issues related to mental and substance use disorders as well as suicide prevention. I have led a wide range of statistical, epidemiologic, and psychiatric research efforts at the American Psychiatric Association (APA), while continuing my role as an adjunct assistant professor and mentor at JHBSPH. Throughout my career, my professional activities have focused on: 1) improving our understanding of the underlying causes of mental and substance use disorders as well as suicide; 2) enhancing patient-centered care through the development of user-friendly electronic platforms that encourage patient (and caregiver) engagement; 3) boosting the quality of mental health care; and 4) addressing disparities in mental health care services.
I am deeply concerned about the growing problem of health disparities in patients with mental disorders as well as diversity disparities in our mental health care workforce. I am committed to building the research base to better clarify differential pathways to suicide and suicidal behaviors across ethno-racial or minoritized populations. In addition, I have worked hard to diversify the clinician–scientist workforce across mental health. Over the past 15 years, I have mentored the research career development of undergraduate and graduate research fellows, with a focus on strengthening the presence marginalized groups in the suicide prevention and clinician workforce.
My dedication to suicide research is reflected in my numerous professional memberships and service activities. I have served in an advisory role for the RAND Corporation, the Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute, National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), and the Canadian Commission on Suicide Research. I am also a founding member of the Friends of NIMH, an advocacy group for ongoing research funding for NIMH, including research on diversity, disparities, and suicide.
Professional activities relevant to this position:
My research efforts have identified modifiable risk and protective (resilience) factors that can positively impact the lives of individuals, across different age, gender, and race/ethnic groups, who are living with mental illnesses and disabilities. My current and previous research studies examined early life adversities, personality characteristics, and the development of mental disorders and suicide risk in teens and young adults. These efforts are strongly influenced by my training in epidemiology, aging, and biostatistics and my past clinical experience as a crisis worker, psychotherapist, and clinical research coordinator.
At APA, I have spearheaded the development and testing of diagnostic criteria for the Fifth Edition of Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5). I collaborated with the DSM-5 Mood Disorder Study Group on Suicide to advocate for the inclusion of suicidal thoughts and behaviors as associated features in all mental disorder diagnoses and as an included domain in the DSM-5 Cross-cutting measure. This assessment tool is now required inclusion in all research proposals to NIMH.
As the Managing Director of Research in the Division of Research at APA, I directed a joint effort between APA and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to develop, test, and implement quality measures on suicide safety planning and on the monitoring of suicidal thoughts and behaviors among adults with mental disorders. Work is currently underway to expand these quality measures to include adolescents. I also co-led the development of APA’s national mental health registry (PsychPRO) and, in doing so, implemented suicide assessment and safety planning to facilitate longitudinal data collection the effectiveness of suicide safety in routine clinical care.
Major Research Interests:
My research has focused on the following areas: 1) suicide risk and associated disparities; 2) behavioral health quality measures, including suicide planning and prevention; 3) enhancing patient-centered care; 4) improving quality of care in mental health and suicide risk assessment. Keywords: suicide prevention; behavioral health quality improvement; health disparities.
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