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This column describes a partnership between the Maryland Mental Hygiene Administration (MHA) and the Division of Psychiatric Services Research, Department of Psychiatry, University of Maryland School of Medicine, that has implemented several evidence-based and emerging practices, such as supported employment, family psychoeducation, assertive community treatment, treatment for co-occurring mental and substance use disorders, and services for transition-age youths. The public-academic partnership has also created a separate center that employs a variety of approaches and tools to evaluate implementation fidelity and the quality and outcomes of services. These data are used by the legislature and by the governor and his executive staff to develop new policies and improvement strategies and monitor priority initiatives.

The Practice Research Network (PRN) in Maryland is a Interventions and Practice Research Infrastructure Support Project supported by NIMH that extends the historically close collaborative relationship between the University of Maryland Department of Psychiatry and the State Mental Hygiene Administration. This project focuses on the relationship between University-based investigators and participants in the Public Mental Health System using the local mental health authorities which are known as Core Service Agencies as the point of contact. Project staff serve as liaisons among the various components of the system. The PRN has succeeded in identifying a broader range of research subjects by establishing contacts with provider agencies and stakeholder groups. It has also focused on addressing some of the myths and fears about research by meeting with consumer and family groups and by arranging for investigators to present their research projects to stakeholders. This approach to developing a statewide network in support of mental health research can serve as a model for other state and university partnerships.

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