Gregory E. Simon, MD, MPH
“We bring a practical approach to mental health research, working to break down barriers between research and real-world health care.”
Gregory E. Simon, MD, MPH
Senior Investigator, Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute
Psychiatrist, Washington Permanente Medical Group
Professor, Department of Health Systems Science, Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine
Research Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington
Biography
Greg Simon, MD, MPH, is a psychiatrist and senior investigator well-known for his extensive research on practical approaches to improving mental health care. He seeks to develop and evaluate effective real-world strategies that support better mental health and wellness. Current areas of emphasis include identifying and assessing suicide risk, improving care for treatment-resistant depression, and reducing racial and ethnic disparities in mental health care.
Dr. Simon leads the Mental Health Research Network (MHRN), a consortium of research centers affiliated with 13 large health systems across the United States, including Kaiser Permanente Washington. This network, originally funded through a cooperative agreement with the National Institute of Mental Health, aims to improve the efficiency, relevance, and impact of mental health clinical and health services research. The MHRN is exploring a broad range of issues—including suicide prevention, improving heart health in people with serious mental illness, using electronic medical records to improve follow-up care for depression, and understanding the causes of racial and ethnic disparities in mental health care.
Dr. Simon and his MHRN colleagues have conducted several large studies across MHRN health systems, including:
- A pragmatic trial in four health systems examining the effect of systematic outreach programs to prevent suicide attempt among people at high risk.
- Using electronic health records from seven health systems to develop and validate machine learning models to identify people at high risk of suicidal behavior.
- A pragmatic trial in two health systems evaluating electronic health record tools to reduce risk of cardiovascular disease in people with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.
- A rigorous evaluation of Zero Suicide care improvement programs in six health systems
- Developing measures to assess quality of care for depression in two health systems.
Dr. Simon sits on the editorial board for the journal General Hospital Psychiatry, and co-chairs the National Academy of Medicine’s Forum on Drug Discovery, Development and Translation.. Dr. Simon has practiced adult psychiatry in Kaiser Permanente Washington's Mental Health and Wellness Service since 1990. He is also a professor in the department of Health Systems Science at the Bernard J Tyson Kaiser Permanente School of Medicine and an adjunct professor inPsychiatry and Behavioral Dciences at the University of Washington.
Research interests and experience
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Mental Health
Depression; bipolar disorder; suicide prevention; self-management; treatment adherence
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Chronic Illness Management
Comorbidity of mental health conditions with obesity, diabetes, heart disease, and substance use disorders.
Recent publications
Zatzick D, Tuzzio L, Chambers D, Suls J, Darnell D, Coronado G, DeBar L, Green B, Huang S, Jarvik J, Septimus E, Simon G, Vazquez M. Dissemination and implementation: conceptualizing the challenge. In: Rethinking Clinical Trials: A Living Textbook of Pragmatic Clinical Trials. Bethesda, MD: NIH Health Care Systems Research Collaboratory. DOI: 10.28929/072. PubMed
Prabhakar D, Peterson EL, Hu Y, Rossom RC, Lynch FL, Lu CY, Waitzfelder BE, Owen-Smith AA, Williams LK, Beck A, Simon GE, Ahmedani BK. Dermatologic conditions and risk of suicide: a case-control study. Psychosomatics. 2017 Aug 4. pii: S0033-3182(17)30177-9. doi: 10.1016/j.psym.2017.08.001. [Epub ahead of print]. PubMed
Boggs JM, Simon GE, Ahmedani BK, Peterson E, Hubley S, Beck A. The association of firearm suicide with mental illness, substance use conditions, and previous suicide attempts. Ann Intern Med. 2017 Aug 15;167(4):287-288. doi: 10.7326/L17-0111. Epub 2017 Jul 4. PubMed
Grote NK, Simon GE, Russo J, Lohr MJ, Carson K, Katon W. Incremental benefit-cost of MOMCare: collaborative care for perinatal depression among economically disadvantaged women. Psychiatr Serv. 2017 Jul 3:appips201600411. doi: 10.1176/appi.ps.201600411. [Epub ahead of print]. PubMed
Ahmedani BK, Peterson EL, Hu Y, Rossom RC, Lynch F, Lu CY, Waitzfelder BE, Owen-Smith AA, Hubley S, Prabhakar D, Williams LK, Zeld N, Mutter E, Beck A, Tolsma D, Simon GE. Major physical health conditions and risk of suicide. Am J Prev Med. 2017 Jun 7. pii: S0749-3797(17)30222-2. doi: 10.1016/j.amepre.2017.04.001. [Epub ahead of print]. PubMed
Simon GE, Shortreed SM, Johnson E, Beck A, Coleman KJ, Rossom RC, Whiteside US, Operskalski BH, Penfold RB. Between-visit changes in suicidal ideation and risk of subsequent suicide attempt. Depress Anxiety. 2017 Sep;34(9):794-800. doi: 10.1002/da.22623. Epub 2017 Apr 25. PubMed
Wu JJ, Penfold RB, Primatesta P, Fox TK, Stewart C, Reddy SP, Egeberg A, Liu J, Simon G. The risk of depression, suicidal ideation, and suicide attempt in patients with psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, or ankylosing spondylitis. Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol. 2017 Jul;31(7):1168-1175. doi: 10.1111/jdv.14175. Epub 2017 Apr 21. PubMed
Penfold RB, Stewart C, Simon GE, Shortreed SM, Johnson E, Rossom RC, Operskalski B, Beck A. Antidepressant use by youth with minimal or mild depression: evidence from 3 health systems. Pediatr Qual Saf. 2017;2(2). pii: e017. Epub 2017 Mar 22. PubMed
Rossom RC, Coleman KJ, Ahmedani BK, Beck A, Johnson E, Oliver M, Simon GE. Suicidal ideation reported on the PHQ9 and risk of suicidal behavior across age groups. J Affect Disord. 2017 Mar 16;215:77-84. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2017.03.037. [Epub ahead of print]. PubMed
Richesson RL, Green BB, Laws R, Puro J, Kahn MG, Bauck M, Smerek M, Van Eaton EG , Zozus M, Hammond WE, Stephens KA, Simon G. Pragmatic (trial) informatics: a perspective from the NIH Health Care Systems Research Collaboratory. J Am Med Inform Assoc. 2017 Mar 14. doi: 10.1093/jamia/ocx016. [Epub ahead of print]. PubMed
Research
Suicide attempts decreased after adding suicide care to primary care
Safety planning and risk screening improved outcomes for adult patients.
Research
Can machine learning help treat depression more effectively?
A new grant funds modeling work to make personalized treatment possible.
Research
Understanding adoption of Lock to Live, a decision aid supporting suicide prevention
KPWHRI research finds ways to increase use of a firearm safety tool.
Research
A medication that can relieve symptoms of psychosis is underused
Study finds that many patients who might benefit from clozapine don’t receive it.
Research
Improving and advancing mental health care
KPWHRI researchers are contributing to better mental health care for people nationwide.
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