By Erin Jester
The University of Florida is known for many world-class academic programs, but one is truly in a class of its own.
The UF College of Public Health and Health Professions is home to the only Certificate in Psychiatric Epidemiology in the world.
The 12-credit certificate was established about eight years ago as a joint program between PHHP’s Department of Epidemiology and the UF College of Medicine’s Department of Psychiatry.
Psychiatric epidemiology is the bridge between mental health and epidemiology. Psychiatric epidemiologists examine patterns of psychological conditions, their causes and outcomes. They focus on trends rather than individuals, which can inform what interventions will provide the greatest benefit for communities.
If there has been a rise in depression or substance use in a community or region, for example, a psychiatric epidemiologist might study factors contributing to those increases to find out who is affected and why. In addition to creating effective care plans for complex public health issues, researchers can then recommend policy changes that could help address those issues at the source.
“It’s so important because the knowledge of mental health and behavioral health really does need to be integrated across health sciences for us to be able to do a good job treating and preventing disease,” said Catherine Striley, Ph.D., an associate professor in the Department of Epidemiology who co-directs the certificate in psychiatric epidemiology program with Ashley Malin, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the same department.
“Our health is not just physical,” Striley said. “Mental wellbeing is needed for our health.”
Psychiatric epidemiology as a discipline is relatively new, and the number of people in the world who identify themselves as psychiatric epidemiologists is small, but growing, Malin and Striley said.
Malin holds a Ph.D. in clinical psychology and focused on the impacts of fluoride exposure on ADHD prevalence during her doctoral work. Malin said she and many of her cohorts eventually pursued environmental and psychiatric epidemiology in their careers.
“There’s a lot more interest in that field [lately],” she said. “Psychiatric epidemiologists provide a unique lens to understand the broader context.”
Striley, who holds a Ph.D. in social work, decided to further her knowledge of population health with a Master of Psychiatric Epidemiology degree from the Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, a program she later co-directed.
When Striley came to UF, she and other faculty began to discuss how to bring more focus to the area. Creating a certificate program made the most sense, she said.
A concentration in psychiatric epidemiology is available to students pursuing a Ph.D. in epidemiology, and students in other health programs such as nursing and psychology may also take those courses. However, the certificate program is only open to people who are not already enrolled in a degree program.
Striley said the certificate mostly caters to people who already have an advanced degree in epidemiology or mental or behavioral health but haven’t had much training in the other field. Others have pursued the certificate after completing a bachelor’s degree in an unrelated program, as a precursor to an advanced degree in health care.
Since the courses are offered completely online, Striley said the certificate is ideal for those who already have a master’s degree or Ph.D. but would like to strengthen their knowledge of psychiatric epidemiology. With working professionals in mind, the culminating project for the certificate usually takes place in the student’s workplace.
“A plus of it not being a whole degree is there isn’t that four-year commitment, and it does look impressive on a CV,” Malin said. “Especially from UF.”
For more information, visit the program overview page.