Dr. Robert McCarron shares UCI program success with Congressional committee

Dr. Robert McCarron, director of education at the Susan Samueli Integrative Health Institute, was invited to speak on an expert panel convened by the California Senate & Assembly Select Committee on Mental Health & Addiction. The joint informational hearing, held Feb. 26 in Sacramento, included three panels, with participants providing insights into progress in workforce development, updates on existing programs and pilots and the promise of new breakthroughs in mental health treatment. McCarron, who directs the UCI Train New Trainers Primary Care Fellowships, a year-long clinical education program, was a member of the Progress in Workforce Development panel.  “We are a national leader in training primary care and other healthcare providers to complete quick and targeted psychiatric exams or substance use screening and pain-related disorders, and when to refer patients to a behavioral health specialist,” McCarron said. “Our faculty are multi-specialty physicians who practice in primary care and psychiatry or addiction medicine.” The committee was chaired by Sen. Scott Wiener and-Assemblymember Dr. Corey Jackson. McCarron’s co-panelists were Dr. Janet Coffman, co-associate director at UCSF Institute for Health Policy Studies, and Mayra Angeles, Vision y Compromiso behavioral health programs manager.