Decision analysis for clinical and non-clinical use of psychedelics
Stefano M. Bertozzi, Professor
Public Health
Applications for Spring 2024 are closed for this project.
Psychiatric disorders including PTSD; and alcohol use disorder and other addictions are responsible for a large portion of both the global burden and US burden of disease. Current therapies help a significant portion of people suffering from these disorders. Nevertheless, many patients do not respond adequately or cannot tolerate the side-effects accompanying ongoing medical therapies
such as SSRIs. Novel therapies incorporating psychedelics show substantial early promise for these major mental health conditions. In brief, a new generation of psychedelic-assisted therapies may be effective not only in managing these serious conditions, but often resolving them. This huge clinical promise raises many questions of economics. What are the costs, per person and for society? What are the savings from averted illness? What are the net costs and cost-effectiveness? A new UCB / UCSF initiative, the Global Initiative for Psychedelic Science Economics (GIPSE) is working to address these questions. To do so, a wide variety of data must be identified, extracted, and organized to be used in the various economic models being developed by GIPSE and its collaborators.
GIPSE is a joint UCB / UCSF network of health economists and health services researchers dedicated to achieving the potential of psychedelic therapies for high-priority mental health conditions. Through the application of policy-relevant economic analyses, GIPSE seeks to enhance
clinical outcomes, and efficiency of service delivery, and increase access to these promising therapies for everyone who can benefit.
Role: Interns can expect to be assigned to one or more of the following projects and activities:
• Work on an ongoing systematic review of the health effects of psychedelic use in non-clinical (naturalistic) settings. This project will occupy most of the interns’ time.
• Research to identify appropriate inputs for cost-effectiveness models for various psychedelic agents with the potential for treating depression, opioid use disorder, and other conditions.
• Background research to support the development of R01 applications for NIH funding including the potential for psychedelic therapies to address tobacco, alcohol and other substance use disorders, depression, and PTSD.
Qualifications: 1. Interest and enthusiasm for research related to the potential of the emerging psychedelic-assisted therapies.
2. Experience in conducting literature reviews is an advantage.
3. Knowledge of cost-effectiveness methods is an advantage. 4. Courses in epidemiology, statistics, research design data management, econometrics are an advantage.
Day-to-day supervisor for this project: Elliot Marseille, MPP, DrPH, Staff Researcher, Staff Researcher
Hours: to be negotiated
Off-Campus Research Site: Off-campus (remote). In-person meetings to extent possible.
Related website: https://cghdde.berkeley.edu/projects/global-initiative-psychedelic-science-economics-gipse
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