The Hassenfeld Child Health Innovation Institute (HCHII) has a new vision, new faculty, and new leadership. And thanks to the Hassenfeld Foundation, it also has significant new resources to support its work. The new Hassenfeld gift comes as newly appointed director Michael Silverstein M.D. MPH has drawn up the ambitious ten-year plan, Vision 2032.
Dr. Silverstein, George Hazard Crooker University Professor of Health Services, Policy, and Practice, came to Brown in 2021 on the heels of an illustrious career at Boston University School of Medicine, Boston Medical Center, and the US Preventive Services Task Force. His research focuses on mental health services for children and families, and the prevention of depression in at-risk mothers and mothers of vulnerable children.
The Hassenfeld Institute brings together Brown professors across medicine and public health, and “has a simple yet transformational goal,” he writes: “to eliminate health inequities in pregnancy and childhood for Rhode Island families within a decade.”
Focus on Mental Health
The path to realizing this goal begins with addressing family mental health and the related issues of substance use, food insecurity, and neighborhood safety. Mental health is also frequently linked to other vulnerabilities like preterm birth, chronic illness, and reproductive health. “It compounds nearly every other issue that prevents children from realizing their optimal health,” says Silverstein. “Rhode Island’s profound child mental health crisis demands an immediate statewide response.”
