OPAL 2 Projects

OPAL 2 consists one signature project and three exploratory projects.

  1. Identifying Risk Factors and Treatment Strategies for Dementia in Schizophrenia (The OPAL Signature Project)
    This project builds upon work conducted during the first Center period that identified extremely high rates of dementia diagnoses among individuals with schizophrenia, and by OPAL investigators who focus on addressing problems with cognition. The project will use 16 years of national data from the Center for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) to identify potentially actionable risk factors for dementia among people diagnosed with schizophrenia and compare the safety and effectiveness of treatment strategies after diagnosis of dementia. Using an iterative process and expert and stakeholder input, we will build upon our findings to adapt a Cognitive Health Toolkit that provides evidence-based assessment and management recommendations and tools.   
  2. Improving Assessment of Psychosis and Engagement in Treatment of BIPOC Individuals (Exploratory Project 1)
    This project tests a novel person-centered approach to assessment and treatment initiation for BIPOC individuals with psychotic symptoms in community mental health clinics that incorporates an adapted version of the Cultural Formulation Interview to reduce misdiagnosis of schizophrenia and improve treatment engagement.  
  3. Flexible ACT: A Pilot Feasibility Trial (Exploratory Project 2)
    This project builds on work done in Europe to adapt and test the feasibility and preliminary effectiveness of Flexible Assertive Community Treatment (ACT), which will allow ACT teams to allocate resources according to the individual needs of participants, improving efficiency and outcomes.   
  4. Mobil Health-aided Measurement-based Care for Schizophrenia (Exploratory Project 3)
    This project tests a mobile health (mHealth) application that we have adapted to help prescribers deliver measurement-based care to individuals with first-episode psychosis with the goal of promoting shared decision-making and greater personalization of medication regimens, leading to better treatment satisfaction and reduced symptoms and side effects.