Horizons – Fall/Winter 2021

January 14, 2022

The fall/winter edition of Horizons features stories of hope and progress, apt themes for these times.

Our cover story spotlights the importance of developing clinician-researchers through a unique new fellowship that blends both worlds.

We also share how McLean’s efforts to deploy technology as a vehicle for progress is playing out to better serve patients. And how, with generous philanthropic support, technology has become a welcome and effective tool for treating older patients who struggle with memory issues or dementia.

Our third feature highlights how McLean changed the life of one patient and gave her hope. And how she expresses her gratitude through philanthropy.

We also share news that McLean is launching a new fundraising platform to help our supporters create their own philanthropic initiatives. And, we hear from a donor who is planning to use this platform to raise funds in gratitude for the care her loved one received at McLean.

Lastly, sometimes we get a wonderful surprise in the form of philanthropy—this time a major bequest to brain research that will engender both hope and progress for generations to come.

Horizons Fall 2021 cover

New Fellowship Helps Launch Research Careers of Young Investigators
Julianne Wilner Tirpak, PhD, an early career psychologist, understands that dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) is the gold-standard treatment for young people who struggle to manage their emotions, particularly those who exhibit self-harm or suicidal behaviors. As the inaugural recipient of a unique post-doctoral fellowship at McLean’s 3East program, Dr. Tirpak is developing a research study that she hopes will explore why these treatments work and through what mechanisms.

New Platform Simplifies Peer-to-Peer Fundraising
Michelle’s teenage son had struggled with depression for years before he came to McLean’s 3East residential program. At the core of 3East’s continuum of care is dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), an evidence-based treatment that teaches people to regulate emotions, tolerate distress, build interpersonal skills, manage attention, and develop self-awareness.

Telemedicine Is Here To Stay
Call it the great technology experiment of 2020-2021. In just days, McLean—along with most other mental health care providers—transitioned from delivering care almost entirely in person to treating a majority of patients via videoconferencing or phone.

Paying It Forward Through a Paycheck
Sue Callori needs only to glance at her arms to remember the tools she uses when the going gets tough. On her right arm her tattoos read: “Challenge your thoughts,” “Radical acceptance,” and “Distraction,” and on her left: “This too shall pass.”

Read more in the full issue:

A Surprise Gift Supports McLean’s Brain Bank

Sabina Berretta, MD, director of the Harvard Brain Tissue Resource Center—a centralized resource for the collection of human brain specimens for research—was surprised and overwhelmed to hear that an unknown donor had left a significant bequest in her will to the center, commonly known as the McLean Brain Bank.

The bequest, totaling more than $850,000, was an unexpected gift from the Denis Tat Barnes Trust.

Denis (Denny) Tat Barnes passed away in June 2020, leaving her estate in the hands of her trustee with specific instructions to distribute a portion to benefit the Brain Bank.

After learning about the hospital’s vision for this generous gift, Ms. Tat Barnes’ trustee was pleased to direct the donation so that just over half of the gift will be used to establish an endowment for the center and the remainder will support its near-term needs.

“This kind of bequest is transformational for McLean, and the estate’s flexibility shows trust in the hospital’s leadership,” said Berretta. “This endowment for the Brain Bank will ensure sustained support for researchers both at McLean and around the world who are working to uncover biological causes of brain disorders.”

Added Berretta: “I wish we knew Ms. Tat Barnes during her life, but her legacy will last forever.”

To learn more about how you might create a legacy at McLean through a planned gift, contact Keith Raho at 617.855.3421.

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