Annual Report 2011: Beyond 200 Years... Beyond Belmont Hill

McLean Hospital continues a 200-year tradition of going beyond the usual approaches of care in order to improve the lives of people and their families affected by psychiatric illness. Whether researching the deepest parts of the brain for a clue to a cure, making specialized psychiatric care more accessible in New England, serving patients across the United States, or helping people half a world away in Abu Dhabi, McLean’s tradition of providing compassionate care endures.

We had many achievements and much progress to celebrate in 2011, including marking a truly significant milestone—our bicentennial. While the celebration of our 200th anniversary provided an opportunity for us to reflect on our past accomplishments and service, it has also provided us with a renewed sense of excitement and progress as we look to the future in which McLean continues to be the world leader in psychiatric care, research and education.

Our unwavering focus on the fundamental mission to improve the lives of people with psychiatric illness and their families led us to the development of a strategic plan several years ago. Guided by that road map, we continue to build centers of excellence and innovation that integrate clinical care, research, and education to accelerate the translation of science to ever-better care for our patients.

Expanding The Focus: Initiative Sets the Foundation for Integrated Approach to Mental Health and Well-Being of Girls and Women
Over the last decade, research has underscored how gender is often one important determinant of risk, prevalence, presentation, course, and treatment of mental illnesses.

Implementing Change, Advancing Care
The initiation of a hospital-wide, multidisciplinary approach to the mental health and well-being of girls and women that will lead toward the establishment of the Division of Women’s Mental Health and Gender Biology.

Seeing Beyond The Data: McLean-Led National Study Informs Clinical Care Methods
The National Institute of Drug Abuse’s first large-scale study to address treatment of prescription opioid addiction, led by Roger Weiss, MD, chief of McLean’s Division of Alcohol, Drugs, and Addiction. The results have led to approaches that dramatically improve each individual’s likelihood of not relapsing.

Responsibility and Privilege: McLean Faculty Serving as Journal Editors Influence the Field
The Archives of General Psychiatry (Archives) made quite a stir in July of 2011 when it published a twins study suggesting that autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has both genetic heritability and a significant environmental component.

Leading Beyond McLean: Faculty Sit at the Helm of National Organizations
​Read about McLean’s faculty who are advancing psychiatry research and clinical care through their roles as editors for prestigious scholarly journals and their leadership in national and international psychiatric associations.

Expanded Services Enhance Care
Our newly established Nancy and Richard Simches Division of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry which is expanding access and enhancing the quality of care in order to provide the most effective treatment for each young person who comes to us for help.

Abu Dhabi: Meeting the Health Care Challenges a Half a World Away
The collaboration of an interdisciplinary team from McLean with the National Rehabilitation Center in Abu Dhabi to expand much-needed substance abuse treatment in the United Arab Emirates.

Right Care, Right Place: Bringing Mental Health Care to the Community
From its main campus in Belmont, serving the mental health needs of the communities of Massachusetts has long been a part of the mission of McLean Hospital. Since 2000, it has expanded its commitment to improve access to care through its Community Hospital Psychiatric Services Program.

Bridging Distances: Patricia and James Poitras Fund McLean’s Novel Research Study with MIT
Longtime McLean and MIT donors Pat and Jim Poitras are supporting an innovative study bringing together the two research powerhouses to investigate the brain abnormalities at the root of obsessive compulsive disorder.