As a 2021 SCi intern, I served in the office of Representative Adrian Madaro as a science advisor to the Joint Committee on Mental Health, Substance Use and Recovery. My work focused primarily on children and youth mental health policy, and contributed to the Addressing Barriers to Care (ABC) Act, which was signed into law on August 10, 2022. This work mattered deeply to the office, to advocates, and to constituents across the Commonwealth because persistent gaps in mental health care disproportionately affect young people. Justice-involved and incarcerated youth are particularly vulnerable, as they experience far higher rates of mental health disorders than their peers, yet rarely receive services while detained. Lack of care can worsen their symptoms, increasing their risk of continued involvement with the criminal justice system into adulthood.

 

Much of my internship involved assessing and refining legislative language for the ABC Act. I met with advocates, helped prepare Representative Madaro for meetings and hearings, and assisted with redrafting portions of the bill as it moved through the legislative process. I was also tasked with identifying “low-hanging fruit” in children’s mental health policy, which led to work on involuntary outpatient commitments, printing the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline phone number on all student IDs, and reducing suspensions and expulsions, which correlate to mental health issues. These priorities ultimately shaped the ABC Act, whose final language includes strong protections against expulsions, especially from preschools, where exclusion can have especially lasting harm. Thinking through what was absent from the bill and how to systematically identify those gaps was one of the most challenging and intellectually engaging aspects of my work.

 

Throughout the internship, I was somewhat surprised that my most valuable skill as a team member was my ability to evaluate scientific studies and reports based on their methodologies. Many of the studies and documents I reviewed were well outside my area of expertise, but I was able to assess whether the authors were asking good scientific questions, using reasonable methods to reveal the most pertinent findings, or overstating their claims. A skill I was developing during my PhD – doing quick but thorough literature searches and reviews and synthesizing findings – proved invaluable, and the internship further strengthened my ability to clearly communicate relevant results clearly to non-scientific audiences.

 

This skill became especially pertinent as I spent significant time reviewing Department of Corrections reports, including the Falcon Report, which was commissioned to assess the use of restrictive housing (i.e., solitary confinement) and associated programs in correctional facilities. I approached the report as if I were peer-reviewing a scientific paper: evaluating data sources, statistical choices, and ethical considerations. What emerged was troubling: the report relied heavily on poorly documented qualitative data, lacked transparency regarding participant selection, and did not detail consent procedures for interacting with inmates, serious omissions given the legal and ethical vulnerability of the population. Further, while the Falcon report framed Mental Health Watch as “out of scope,” by only addressing other forms of restrictive housing, it inadvertently left individuals with mental health conditions at risk of solitary confinement by another name.  

 

While it was fascinating to apply my scientific training to this context, it was also discouraging to see the poor quality of data treatment and questionable reporting in a document that had already precipitated major policy changes. The stakes are high, as these reports shape real decisions with real consequences. Briefing Representative Madaro on these issues and discussing how the evidence aligned with his policy agenda underscored for me the importance of embedding scientific expertise directly in the policymaking process, especially when reforms have profound implications for human rights and mental health. Ultimately, Representative Madaro was able to address these problems in the ABC Act, by introducing strengthened referral and transfer procedures for Mental Health Watch.

 

This internship fundamentally changed how I view my role as a scientist. During a PhD program, it’s easy to lose sight of the value of your skills. Through this experience, I regained that perspective. I learned that my ability to parse scientific data and communicate it succinctly and effectively to people in positions of power is an important and transferable skill. While I ultimately pursued an academic path, the internship continues to shape my work. I now use the skills I gained to guide my advocacy in both academia and my broader community. As a current assistant professor, studying auditory perception, I mentor students who often ask what they can do with a scientific degree. Being able to point to the policy route and to help scientists see how their work can translate into public impact has been one of the most lasting and meaningful outcomes of my internship experience.

 

-Malinda McPherson-McNato
Assistant Professor
Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences
Purdue University