Patricia Arean

Patricia Arean, PhD is a Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) School of Medicine, with affiliations at the UCSF Weill Institute for Neurosciences. Her research focuses on digital mental health interventions, particularly for depression treatment in older adults.

Dr. Arean's research interests include:

• Digital mental health applications and their effectiveness
• Late-life depression and geriatric psychiatry
• Mobile health technology for mental health care
• Psychotherapy adaptation for older adults
• Implementation of evidence-based mental health practices

Her recent publications demonstrate a strong focus on digital mental health interventions, particularly examining the effectiveness of mobile applications and message-based therapies for depression treatment. Her work often addresses specific populations including older adults, essential workers, and Hispanic and Latino communities. Dr. Arean's research has increasingly focused on real-world implementation of digital mental health tools, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, with significant contributions to establishing standards for smartphone applications in mental health care.

Dr. Arean has received numerous NIH grants as Principal Investigator, including:

• Enhancing Engagement with Digital Mental Health Care (R01MH125179)
• Using Search Engine Data for Detection and Early Intervention in Suicide Prevention (R01MH123484)
• UW ALACRITY Center for Psychosocial Interventions Research (P50MH115837)
• Strategic and Plasticity Interventions for Late Life Depression in Community Settings (K24MH074717)

She has made significant contributions to the field through her development of "Engage" therapy, a behavioral activation approach for late-life depression, and has been instrumental in shaping policy discussions around value-based insurance design for mental health services.