Drake Awarded for Supportive Work With Seriously Mentally Ill

Robert E. Drake, M.D., Ph.D. (center), is photographed with Anthony Lehman, M.D. (left), and Howard Goldman, M.D., after being presented the American Psychiatric Foundation's 2008 Alexander Gralnick Award for Research in Schizophrenia. Lehman, who presented the award, is chair of the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Maryland School of Medicine, where Goldman is a professor of psychiatry; Goldman is also editor of the APA journal Psychiatric Services.

Drake received the award at a lecture he delivered at APA's Institute on Psychiatric Services in Chicago. Drake is the Andrew Thomson Professor of Psychiatry and Community and Family Medicine at Dartmouth Medical School and director of the Dartmouth Psychiatric Research Center.

Drake, whose lecture was titled “The Future of Supported Employment,” has been a pioneer in promoting innovative services for people with serious mental disorders, especially vocational programs that promote competitive employment. He has been a national leader in efforts to disseminate evidence-based practices. His research focuses on co-occurring disorders, vocational rehabilitation, health services research, and evidence-based practices. He directs four national studies of quality improvement and has written 15 books and more than 380 papers.

The Gralnick award acknowledges research achievements in the treatment of schizophrenia, emphasizing early diagnosis and treatment and psychosocial aspects of the disease process. ▪