Washington, DC — The National Association of County Behavioral Health and Developmental Disability Directors (NACBHDD) is exceptionally pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Stephen Leff as Senior Advisor to NACBHDD for Planning and Evaluation. Dr. Leff is Senior Vice President, Human Services Research Institute (HSRI), and Associate Professor in the Harvard Medical School Department of Psychiatry at the Cambridge Health Alliance (CHA).
“I can think of no better person to help us with these important functions at a time of crisis for Medicaid and a time of exceptional promise for National Health Reform”, said Dr. Ron Manderscheid, Executive Director of NACBHDD. Dr. Leff will work with NACBHDD to facilitate strategic planning and evaluation for county and local authorities.
Dr. Leff’s principal work has focused on mental health systems planning and evaluation. His interests include resource allocation and planning models for state, county, and local mental health agencies, as well as needs assessment, the measurement of cultural competency, evidence-based practices identification and implementation, workforce development, and consumer empowerment and recovery.
He has said, “Counties are a keystone component in care delivery, a central point at which planning, evaluation, and service delivery come together; all healthcare is local. I want to help counties achieve their full promise in accomplishing and leading system improvement.”
Dr. Leff is Director of The Evaluation Center@HSRI, which provides technical assistance for the evaluation of mental health systems change. The Evaluation Center has provided technical assistance to counties in the past, and will now bring new focus to responding to county planning and evaluation needs.
Dr. Leff has provided planning technical assistance to a number of counties and states, particularly ones involved in right to treatment and related lawsuits. His modeling has addressed costs, revenue maximization, and systemic impacts of implementing evidence-based practices. He is currently Principal Investigator for the cross-site evaluation of SAMHSA’s Mental Health Transformation State Incentive Grant Program.
In the past, Dr. Leff has been Principal or Co-principal Investigator for several other SAMHSA multi-site projects including the Managed Care for Vulnerable Populations Program and the National Employment Intervention Demonstration Program. He has also been Principal Investigator for several research grants funded by the National Institute of Mental Health. He has authored a number of published articles and technical reports, and he has served as a reviewer of research grant proposals and state mental health plans for NIMH and SAMHSA. At the Cambridge Health Alliance, Dr. Leff provides and coordinates training in evidence-based practices for psychiatry residents.
Dr. Leff is a clinical psychologist and was formerly Assistant Commissioner of Information Systems, Evaluation and Planning in the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health.
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