Richard Mollica

Last updated
Richard Francis Mollica
Born (1946-12-20) December 20, 1946 (age 77)
Bronx, New York, US
OccupationProfessor, researcher, writer, educator
NationalityAmerican
Alma mater Reed College
University of New Mexico School of Medicine
Yale School of Medicine
Yale Divinity School
SpouseKaren Carlson
Children2

Richard F. Mollica (born December 20, 1946) is an American academic and writer. He is the Professor of Psychiatry at the Harvard Medical School and Director of the Harvard Program in Refugee Trauma at Massachusetts General Hospital. [1] His research focuses on Psychological trauma and recovery. Mollica has published over 160 scientific manuscripts, [2] and has published Healing Invisible Wounds (2006) and Manifesto IV Healing a Violent World (2018). In 2022, he received the lifetime award from Harvard Medical School, [3] and in 2023, the Lux et Veritas Award from Yale Divinity School [4]

Contents

Mollica is considered a pioneer and founder of a new field of medicine Refugee Mental Health. [5] He started one of America's first refugee clinics in Boston in December 1981. [6]

The scientific and clinical work of Mollica and the Harvard Program in Refugee Trauma has served as a global model worldwide and has been replicated in many countries including the US, Australia, Canada, Italy, Bosnia Herzegovina, Haiti, and Ukraine. [7]

Early life

Mollica was born in South Bronx. [8] His grandparents were poor Italian immigrants. His mother was raised in a convent, and struggled with depression. His father was blind as a result of meningitis. Mollica's childhood was influenced by his love for books, and he excelled in mathematics and sciences at Brooklyn Technical High School. He further went to Reed College in Portland, Oregon, where he finished his basic education. [9]

After studying at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine and a neurology internship at the University of Toronto, Mollica went to Yale University in 1974 for his psychiatric residency and also attended the Yale Divinity School. [8] After the residency, Mollica joined Harvard as a psychiatrist. He later opened a refugee clinic.

Amongst his researches, he advocates integrating Trauma-informed care into primary healthcare, despite resistance from primary physicians due to time constraints and lack of training. He introduced into medicine and the human rights field the concept of the Trauma Story in 1988. [10] The Trauma Story is a key element in the Trauma-informed care of all patients who have survived traumatic life experiences.

Awards and honors

Selected publications

Books

Book chapters

Most cited papers

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Causes of mental disorders</span> Etiology of psychopathology

A mental disorder is an impairment of the mind disrupting normal thinking, feeling, mood, behavior, or social interactions, and accompanied by significant distress or dysfunction. The causes of mental disorders are very complex and vary depending on the particular disorder and the individual. Although the causes of most mental disorders are not fully understood, researchers have identified a variety of biological, psychological, and environmental factors that can contribute to the development or progression of mental disorders. Most mental disorders result in a combination of several different factors rather than just a single factor.

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a mental and behavioral disorder that develops from experiencing a traumatic event, such as sexual assault, warfare, traffic collisions, child abuse, domestic violence, or other threats on a person's life or well-being. Symptoms may include disturbing thoughts, feelings, or dreams related to the events, mental or physical distress to trauma-related cues, attempts to avoid trauma-related cues, alterations in the way a person thinks and feels, and an increase in the fight-or-flight response. These symptoms last for more than a month after the event and can include triggers such as misophonia. Young children are less likely to show distress, but instead may express their memories through play. A person with PTSD is at a higher risk of suicide and intentional self-harm.

Psychological trauma is an emotional response caused by severe distressing events that are outside the normal range of human experiences. It must be understood by the affected person as directly threatening the affected person or their loved ones generally with death, severe bodily injury, or sexual violence; indirect exposure, such as from watching television news, may be extremely distressing and can produce an involuntary and possibly overwhelming physiological stress response, but does not produce trauma per se. Examples of distressing events include violence, rape, or a terrorist attack.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Depression (mood)</span> State of low mood and aversion to activity

Depression is a mental state of low mood and aversion to activity. It affects about 3.5% of the global population, or about 280 million people of all ages. Depression affects a person's thoughts, behavior, feelings, and sense of well-being. Experiences that would normally bring a person pleasure or joy give reduced pleasure or joy, and the afflicted person often experiences a loss of motivation or interest in those activities.

Derek Summerfield is an honorary senior lecturer at London's Institute of Psychiatry and a member of the Executive Committee of Transcultural Special Interest Group at the Royal College of Psychiatry. He is also an Honorary Fellow of the Egyptian Psychiatric Association. He has published around 150 papers and has made other contributions in medical and social sciences literature.

In medicine and medical anthropology, a culture-bound syndrome, culture-specific syndrome, or folk illness is a combination of psychiatric and somatic symptoms that are considered to be a recognizable disease only within a specific society or culture. There are no known objective biochemical or structural alterations of body organs or functions, and the disease is not recognized in other cultures. The term culture-bound syndrome was included in the fourth version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders which also includes a list of the most common culture-bound conditions. Its counterpart in the framework of ICD-10 is the culture-specific disorders defined in Annex 2 of the Diagnostic criteria for research.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Complex post-traumatic stress disorder</span> Psychological disorder

Complex post-traumatic stress disorder is a stress-related mental disorder generally occurring in response to complex traumas, i.e., commonly prolonged or repetitive exposures to a series of traumatic events, within which individuals perceive little or no chance to escape.

Peer support occurs when people provide knowledge, experience, emotional, social or practical help to each other. It commonly refers to an initiative consisting of trained supporters, and can take a number of forms such as peer mentoring, reflective listening, or counseling. Peer support is also used to refer to initiatives where colleagues, members of self-help organizations and others meet, in person or online, as equals to give each other connection and support on a reciprocal basis.

The trauma model of mental disorders, or trauma model of psychopathology, emphasises the effects of physical, sexual and psychological trauma as key causal factors in the development of psychiatric disorders, including depression and anxiety as well as psychosis, whether the trauma is experienced in childhood or adulthood. It conceptualises people as having understandable reactions to traumatic events rather than suffering from mental illness.

Compassion fatigue is an evolving concept in the field of traumatology. The term has been used interchangeably with secondary traumatic stress (STS), which is sometimes simply described as the negative cost of caring. Secondary traumatic stress is the term commonly employed in academic literature, although recent assessments have identified certain distinctions between compassion fatigue and secondary traumatic stress (STS).

Cross-cultural psychiatry is a branch of psychiatry concerned with the cultural context of mental disorders and the challenges of addressing ethnic diversity in psychiatric services. It emerged as a coherent field from several strands of work, including surveys of the prevalence and form of disorders in different cultures or countries; the study of migrant populations and ethnic diversity within countries; and analysis of psychiatry itself as a cultural product.

Judith Lewis Herman is an American psychiatrist, researcher, teacher, and author who has focused on the understanding and treatment of incest and traumatic stress.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Psychiatry</span> Branch of medicine devoted to mental disorders

Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of deleterious mental conditions. These include various matters related to mood, behaviour, cognition, perceptions, and emotions.

Historical trauma or collective trauma refers to the cumulative emotional harm of an individual or generation caused by a traumatic experience or event.

PTSD or post-traumatic stress disorder, is a psychiatric disorder characterised by intrusive thoughts and memories, dreams or flashbacks of the event; avoidance of people, places and activities that remind the individual of the event; ongoing negative beliefs about oneself or the world, mood changes and persistent feelings of anger, guilt or fear; alterations in arousal such as increased irritability, angry outbursts, being hypervigilant, or having difficulty with concentration and sleep.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Transgenerational trauma</span> Psychological trauma

Transgenerational trauma is the psychological and physiological effects that the trauma experienced by people has on subsequent generations in that group. The primary mode of transmission is the shared family environment of the infant causing psychological, behavioral and social changes in the individual.

The Bellevue Program for Survivors of Torture (PSOT) was established in 1995 as joint project of Bellevue Hospital Center and the New York University School of Medicine to address the complex needs of torture survivors residing in the New York Metropolitan area. Since its founding, the Program continues to operate from Bellevue Hospital Center, located at 462 First Avenue CD723, New York City, NY 10016. The Program is the first and largest torture treatment center in the New York City area, providing multidisciplinary and comprehensive medical, mental health, legal, and social services to victims of torture and their families. PSOT's mission is to assist individuals subjected to torture and other human rights abuses to rebuild healthy, self-sufficient lives, and contribute to global efforts to end torture. Since its inception in 1995, PSOT has provided care to help rebuild the lives of more than 5,000 men, women, and children from over 100 countries.

Hispanic immigrants living in the United States have been found to have higher levels of exposure to trauma and lower mental health service utilization than the general population. Those who met the criteria for asylum and experience trauma before migrating are vulnerable to post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. Higher levels of trauma-related symptoms are associated with increased post-migration living difficulties. Despite the need for mental health services for Hispanic immigrants living in the United States, cultural and structural barriers make accessing treatment challenging.

Laurence J. Kirmayer is a Canadian psychiatrist and internationally recognized expert in culture and mental health. He is Distinguished James McGill Professor and Director of the Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry, McGill University. He is a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences and the Royal Society of Canada

Bonnie L. Green is a psychiatrist known for her research of trauma-related mental health needs of female primary care patients from lower-income households. She served as editor-in-chief of the Journal of Traumatic Stress from 1993 until 1997. She was president of the International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies from 2000 to 2001.

References

  1. "Richard Mollica, M.D." Massachusetts General Hospital .
  2. "Richard Francis Mollica, M.D." Harvard Catalyst .
  3. 1 2 "Equity, Social Justice, and Advocacy Award Past Recipients (2022)". Harvard Medical School Office For Diversity Inclusion And Community Partnership.
  4. 1 2 "Richard F. Mollica, M.D. '79 M.A.R." Yale Divinity School.
  5. Mineo, Liz (2021-12-01). "Helping traumatized refugees heal themselves". The Harvard Gazette. Med School Professor Richard Mollica's program has pioneered treatment, research for survivors over four decades
  6. Gisotti, Alessandro (2024-04-12). "The invisible and indelible wounds of war". L'Osservatore Romano. Vol. Fifty-seventh year, no. 15. pp. 6–7. In 1981, a young Italian-American psychiatrist founded the Harvard Program in Refugee Trauma, in Boston, a pioneering programme on the mental health care of survivors of mass violence and torture
  7. 1 2 Mollica, Richard (September 2022). Manifesto IV Healing a Violent World: The Will to Heal and Survive in an Apocalyptic World.
  8. 1 2 Yanks, Lauren (2024-03-20). "'Applied religion': M.D. alum pioneers care for traumatized refugees". Yale University.
  9. "Reed College Graduation Certificate" (PDF). Harvard Program in Refugee Trauma. Retrieved 2024-07-13.
  10. 1 2 Mollica, R. F.; Cardozo, B. Lopes; Osofsky, H. J.; Raphael, B.; Ager, A.; Salama, P. (2004-12-04). "Mental health in complex emergencies". Lancet. 364 (9450): 2058–2067. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(04)17519-3. ISSN   1474-547X. PMID   15582064.
  11. "Chester M. Pierce Human Rights Award Recipients 1992-2021" (PDF). American Psychiatric Association. Retrieved 2024-06-07.
  12. Mollica, Richard (August 2012). Trauma Story Assessment and Therapy: Journal for Field and Clinic. Lulu.com. ISBN   978-1-105-03506-7.
  13. Mollica, Richard (July 2012). Textbook of Global Mental Health: Trauma and Recovery, A Companion Guide for Field and Clinical Care of Traumatized People Worldwide. Lulu.com. ISBN   978-1105851087.
  14. Mollica R, Tor S (September 2011). Sun and Moon. ISBN   978-1105034701.
  15. Mollica, Richard (November 2018). A Manifesto. Healing a Violent World. Solis Press. ISBN   978-1910146347.
  16. Ochberg, Frank (February 1988). Post-Traumatic Therapy And Victims Of Violence. Routledge. pp. 295–314. ISBN   0876304900.
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  20. López-Calvo I, Ajosin M (November 2022). Refugees, Refuge, and Human Displacement. Anthem Press. pp. 179–194.
  21. Mollica, R. F.; Caspi-Yavin, Y.; Bollini, P.; Truong, T.; Tor, S.; Lavelle, J. (February 1992). "The Harvard Trauma Questionnaire. Validating a cross-cultural instrument for measuring torture, trauma, and posttraumatic stress disorder in Indochinese refugees". The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease. 180 (2): 111–116. doi:10.1097/00005053-199202000-00008. ISSN   0022-3018. PMID   1737972.
  22. Mollica, R. F.; Wyshak, G.; de Marneffe, D.; Khuon, F.; Lavelle, J. (April 1987). "Indochinese versions of the Hopkins Symptom Checklist-25: a screening instrument for the psychiatric care of refugees". The American Journal of Psychiatry. 144 (4): 497–500. doi:10.1176/ajp.144.4.497. ISSN   0002-953X. PMID   3565621.
  23. Mollica, R. F.; Sarajlic, N.; Chernoff, M.; Lavelle, J.; Vukovic, I. S.; Massagli, M. P. (2001-08-01). "Longitudinal study of psychiatric symptoms, disability, mortality, and emigration among Bosnian refugees". JAMA. 286 (5): 546–554. doi:10.1001/jama.286.5.546. ISSN   0098-7484. PMID   11476656.
  24. Shoeb, Marwa; Weinstein, Harvey; Mollica, Richard (September 2007). "The Harvard trauma questionnaire: adapting a cross-cultural instrument for measuring torture, trauma and posttraumatic stress disorder in Iraqi refugees". The International Journal of Social Psychiatry. 53 (5): 447–463. doi:10.1177/0020764007078362. ISSN   0020-7640. PMID   18018666.
  25. Mollica, R. F.; McInnes, K.; Sarajlić, N.; Lavelle, J.; Sarajlić, I.; Massagli, M. P. (1999-08-04). "Disability associated with psychiatric comorbidity and health status in Bosnian refugees living in Croatia". JAMA. 282 (5): 433–439. doi:10.1001/jama.282.5.433. ISSN   0098-7484. PMID   10442658.
  26. Mollica, R. F.; Donelan, K.; Tor, S.; Lavelle, J.; Elias, C.; Frankel, M.; Blendon, R. J. (1993-08-04). "The effect of trauma and confinement on functional health and mental health status of Cambodians living in Thailand-Cambodia border camps". JAMA. 270 (5): 581–586. doi:10.1001/jama.1993.03510050047025. ISSN   0098-7484. PMID   8331755.
  27. Mollica, R. F.; Wyshak, G.; Lavelle, J. (December 1987). "The psychosocial impact of war trauma and torture on Southeast Asian refugees". The American Journal of Psychiatry. 144 (12): 1567–1572. doi:10.1176/ajp.144.12.1567. ISSN   0002-953X. PMID   3688280.
  28. Mollica, R. F.; Poole, C.; Son, L.; Murray, C. C.; Tor, S. (August 1997). "Effects of war trauma on Cambodian refugee adolescents' functional health and mental health status". Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. 36 (8): 1098–1106. doi:10.1097/00004583-199708000-00017. ISSN   0890-8567. PMID   9256589.
  29. Mollica, Richard F.; Lyoo, In Kyoon; Chernoff, Miriam C.; Bui, Hoan X.; Lavelle, James; Yoon, Sujung J.; Kim, Jieun E.; Renshaw, Perry F. (November 2009). "Brain structural abnormalities and mental health sequelae in South Vietnamese ex-political detainees who survived traumatic head injury and torture". Archives of General Psychiatry. 66 (11): 1221–1232. doi:10.1001/archgenpsychiatry.2009.127. ISSN   1538-3636. PMID   19884610.
  30. Berthold, S. Megan; Mollica, Richard F.; Silove, Derrick; Tay, Alvin Kuowei; Lavelle, James; Lindert, Jutta (2019-06-01). "The HTQ-5: revision of the Harvard Trauma Questionnaire for measuring torture, trauma and DSM-5 PTSD symptoms in refugee populations". European Journal of Public Health. 29 (3): 468–474. doi:10.1093/eurpub/cky256. ISSN   1464-360X. PMID   30561573.
  31. 1 2 Goldfeld, A. E.; Mollica, R. F.; Pesavento, B. H.; Faraone, S. V. (1988-05-13). "The physical and psychological sequelae of torture. Symptomatology and diagnosis". JAMA. 259 (18): 2725–2729. doi:10.1001/jama.1988.03720180051032. ISSN   0098-7484. PMID   3282086.
  32. Tsujiuchi, Takuya; Yamaguchi, Maya; Masuda, Kazutaka; Tsuchida, Marisa; Inomata, Tadashi; Kumano, Hiroaki; Kikuchi, Yasushi; Augusterfer, Eugene F.; Mollica, Richard F. (2016). "High Prevalence of Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms in Relation to Social Factors in Affected Population One Year after the Fukushima Nuclear Disaster". PLOS ONE. 11 (3): e0151807. Bibcode:2016PLoSO..1151807T. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0151807 . ISSN   1932-6203. PMC   4803346 . PMID   27002324.
  33. Mollica RF, Streets FJ, Boscarino J, Redlich FC (March 1986). "A community study of formal pastoral counseling activities of the clergy. Am J Psychiatry". The American Journal of Psychiatry. 143 (3): 323–328. doi:10.1176/ajp.143.3.323. PMID   3953866.
  34. Mollica, Richard (1983-02-17). "From asylum to community. The threatened disintegration of public psychiatry". The New England Journal of Medicine. 308 (7): 367–373. doi:10.1056/NEJM198302173080705. PMID   6823241.
  35. Mollica, Richard (2004-07-01). "Surviving torture". The New England Journal of Medicine. 351 (1): 5–7. doi:10.1056/NEJMp048141. PMID   15229300.
  36. Mollica RF, Fernando DB, Augusterfer EF (2021-03-09). "Beyond Burnout: Responding to the COVID-19 Pandemic Challenges to Self-care". Current Psychiatry Reports. 23 (4): 21. doi:10.1007/s11920-021-01230-2. PMC   7942210 . PMID   33728512.
  37. Mollica RF, Fricchione GL (2021-12-18). "Mental and physical exhaustion of health-care practitioners". Lancet. 398 (10318): 2243–2244. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(21)02663-5. PMC   8676692 . PMID   34922665.
  38. Ekblad S, Mollica RF, Fors U, Pantziaras I, Lavelle J (2013-08-19). "Educational potential of a virtual patient system for caring for traumatized patients in primary care". BMC Medical Education. 13: 110. doi: 10.1186/1472-6920-13-110 . PMC   3765390 . PMID   23957962.
  39. Mollica RF, Blum JD, Redlich F (May 1980). "Equity and the psychiatric care of the black patient, 1950 to 1975". The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease. 168 (5): 279–286. doi:10.1097/00005053-198005000-00008. PMID   7365493.
  40. Borba CP, Gelaye B, Zayas L, Ulloa M, Lavelle J, Mollica RF, Henderson DC (April 2015). "Making strides towards better mental health care in Peru: Results from a primary care mental health training". International Journal of Clinical Psychiatry and Mental Health. 3 (1): 9–19. doi:10.12970/2310-8231.2015.03.01.3. PMC   4820320 . PMID   27054141.
  41. Mollica RF, Milic M (January 1986). "Social class and psychiatric practice: a revision of the Hollingshead and Redlich model". The American Journal of Psychiatry. 143 (1): 12–17. doi:10.1176/ajp.143.1.12. PMID   3942269.
  42. Bollini P, Mollica RF (October 1989). "Surviving without the asylum. An overview of the studies on the Italian reform movement". The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease. 177 (10): 607–615. doi:10.1097/00005053-198910000-00003. PMID   2677238.
  43. Mollica RF, Son L (June 1989). "Cultural dimensions in the evaluation and treatment of sexual trauma. An overview". The Psychiatric Clinics of North America. 12 (2): 363–379. doi:10.1016/S0193-953X(18)30437-4. PMID   2748443.
  44. Mollica, Richard (June 2000). "Waging a new kind of war. Invisible wounds". Scientific American. 282 (6): 54–57. doi:10.1038/scientificamerican0600-54. PMID   10862423.
  45. Redlich F, Mollica RF (February 1976). "Overview: Ethical issues in contemporary psychiatry". The American Journal of Psychiatry. 133 (2): 125–136. doi:10.1176/ajp.133.2.125. PMID   766649.
  46. Mollica RF, Fernando D (2020-11-14). "When racial trauma is a chief complaint among health-care staff". Lancet. 396 (10262): e84. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(20)32223-6. PMID   33125928.