NIH Record - National Institutes of Health

Senate Staffers Visit NIH to Discuss Mental Health

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Group poses together
Standing l to r: Rebecca Unruh (Sen. Pete Ricketts); Aaron Sanchez (Sen. Laphonza Butler); NIH OLPA senior analyst Diane Hill; NIH Associate Director Kate Klimczak; NICHD Deputy Director Dr. Alison Cernich; Cameron Morra (Sen. Thom Tillis); Avenevoli; Katie Brown (Sen. Susan Collins); Volkow; Maria Olson (Sen. Susan Collins); Pao; Nimit Jindal and Naomi Plasky (Senate HELP Committee). Seated (l to r): Nadia Laniyan (Sen. Cory Booker); Madison Polk (Sen. Raphael Warnock); Emilie Benson (Sen. Tina Smith); Rachel Fybel (Sen. Tina Smith); Ruth McDonald (Sen. Amy Klobuchar) and Zilly, the Children’s Inn at NIH therapy dog.

Photo:  Chia-Chi Charlie Chang

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Dr. Pine in lab coat stands in hallway outside CC pediatric unit talking to group lined up by wall, an aid wearing Dr. Seuss red and white striped hat stands opposite.
Dr. Daniel Pine (c) addresses the group in the hallway outside the CC’s Pediatric Unit.

Photo:  Chia-Chi Charlie Chang

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Woman sits under TMS machine with NIH staff standing nearby to assist
The delegation gets a TMS demo in Lisanby’s lab.

Photo:  Chia-Chi Charlie Chang

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Volkow speaks holding up hands, seated at boardroom table
NIDA Director Dr. Nora Volkow (r) discusses her research as NIMH Acting Director Dr. Shelli Avenevoli looks on.

Photo:  Chia-Chi Charlie Chang

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Pao sits talking in Board Room, her hands extended
Dr. Maryland Pao, (l) clinical director of NIMH, discusses her research.

Photo:  Chia-Chi Charlie Chang

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Brotman standing, talking with palm extended
NIMH's Dr. Melissa Brotman

Photo:  Chia-Chi Charlie Chang

Staff from the bipartisan Senate Mental Health Caucus toured several Clinical Center (CC) labs in July.

The delegation toured the CC’s outpatient pediatric unit where Dr. Daniel Pine, chief of the Section on Development and Affective Neuroscience, demonstrated novel treatments developed for pediatric mood and anxiety disorders. He also discussed his research on the connections among brain development, emotion regulation and risk for mood and anxiety disorders in children and adolescents.

In the Neuroscience and Novel Therapeutics Unit, lab chief Dr. Melissa Brotman discussed an exposure-based cognitive-behavioral research therapy developed for children and adolescents with severe irritability and other mood disorders. Brotman also shared ways she’s using mobile apps to assess children’s behavior.

In Brotman’s lab, the group heard from a patient and her family, a highlight of the visit. “It brought tears to my eyes to hear her story,” said one Hill staffer.

The group then visited the Noninvasive Neuromodulation Unit. There, Dr. Sarah Holly Lisanby, director, Division of Translational Research at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), demonstrated transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) therapy, a non-invasive procedure that uses magnetic fields to simulate nerve cells in the brain. This experimental therapy, developed at NIH, has been shown to rapidly improve symptoms of treatment-resistant depression.

During the visit, a lively exchange ensued in the CC’s Medical Boardroom after a roundtable discussion on youth mental health led by National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) Director Dr. Nora Volkow, NIMH Acting Director Dr. Shelli Avenevoli and National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) Deputy Director Dr. Alison Cernich.

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Associate Editor: Dana Talesnik
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Assistant Editor: Eric Bock
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Staff Writer: Amber Snyder
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