NMHIC in the News

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Nov 13, 2020

A foundation started by the parents of a Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting victim is closing and being reborn as a program at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora.

Aug 13, 2020

We are excited to announce our co-development with iRel8 - iRelate; an international leader in app-based peer support. We believe iRel8 has the potential to be the worldwide leader in making peer support available to people in communities around the world, developed jointly with Microsoft, iRel8 is available in 54 languages and provides anonymous support to people 24/7/365 in a confidential and safe mobile app.

Jul 25, 2019

“The National Mental Health Innovation Center (NMHIC) and Oxford VR (OVR) have announced a strategic partnership and the launch of multiple pilots using VR therapy treatment programs to advance mental health outcomes. The collaboration will involve testing of Oxford’s VR’s suite of automated evidence-based treatment programs, which use leading-edge virtual reality (VR) technology to treat mental health conditions such as fear of heights, social anxiety, depression and OCD and psychosis.

Jul 17, 2018

“The Alaska DOC is planning on implementing VR sessions to help offenders cope with the state’s long and dark winters. The DOC has joined with a Colorado-based research organization, National Mental Health Innovation Center, to informally study the pilot program. Matt Vogl, president of the center, says he is optimistic that VR will be beneficial to inmates, citing existing research. “We have to try new things and try them aggressively,” Vogl said. “I don’t think tech will solve all the problems, and there are a lot of unanswered questions, but if we can put one more tool in the tool box, we might as well…” (Full story.)

Jul 9, 2018

“Alaska has one of the highest recidivism rates in the country, with more than two-thirds of inmates who leave prison returning within three years. It’s an ongoing problem the Alaska Dept. of Corrections has long sought to solve. Now, the DOC is partnering with the University of Colorado to try something new — training inmates in the skills they’ll need to succeed in life outside of prison using virtual reality. (Full story / video.)

Jul 2, 2018

Jun 28, 2018

The health and safety of students at CU is a top priority, and with suicide rates on the rise nationally and in Colorado, the Board of Regents last week heard from Matt Vogl, executive director at the National Mental Health Innovation Center at the CU Anschutz Medical Campus, about what can be done to better support the community.

Jun 25, 2018

Valley Settlement Project, a program that empowers immigrant families in the valley, has partnered with researchers at CU Boulder to spearhead a new program that helps women experiencing postpartum depression.

Apr 26, 2018

With the growing number of high-profile, mass-casualty incidents, and an unmet mental health care need for the community protectors, the threat is only rising. Using VR as an integral tool, ResponderStrong™, together with the National Mental Health Innovation Center at CU Anschutz, aims to reverse the deadly trend.

Apr 19, 2018

Whether transporting anxious patients from hospital beds to sunny beaches, testing operating-room staff with explosive fires, or treating first-responders for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), researchers on the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus are launching pilot programs aimed at bringing virtual reality (VR) to the forefront of medicine.

Apr 5, 2018

They are topics that can be difficult to discuss: Mental illness and drug abuse. But the sometimes taboo topics were front and center during a discussion at the University of Colorado.

Apr 4, 2018

Police, fire, dispatch and EMS, they have probably among the highest stress of any occupation out there,” said Matt Vogl, executive director at the National Mental Health Innovation Center at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus.

Apr 3, 2018

NMHIC is developing a virtual reality training program for first responders to prevent the stresses of the job.

Apr 3, 2018

The biggest killers of police officers and firefighters in Colorado is suicide. Rhonda Kelly, who spent 17 years as a firefighter and paramedic in Aurora, tells Colorado Matters about a new survey that reveals a serious lack of access to mental healthcare and a lot of stigma around getting help for these first responders. She's now the project manager for ResponderStrong, a partnership with the National Mental Health Innovation Center at the CU Anschutz Medical Campus, which conducted the survey.

Mar 27, 2018

First responders in Colorado say they need better access to mental health resources. The findings are part of a report from the National Mental Health Innovation Center at University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus, in partnership with Responder Strong.

Jan 14, 2018

A person experiencing a manic episode can be irritable or agitated for several days. Their behavior is hyper and excitable. They have feelings of grandiosity and no need for sleep, said Debra Boeldt, a psychologist at CU Anschutz’s National Mental Health Innovation Center. ‘Their mind is just going all over the place and being easily distracted.

Jan 12, 2018

Medical care is no longer confined to the doctor’s office. Or even, sometimes, to an actual doctor. That iPhone in your pocket now has the capability to diagnose your cough, answer insurance questions, and get you pregnant…or at least help the process along. Digital health (think: smartphones, social networks, and internet applications that provide patients with health information and better access to physicians) encompasses everything from Fitbits to electronic medical records to telehealth—and the trend is booming in Colorado.

Dec 19, 2017

Anna Hanel stopped on the Echo Lake trail, sat down on a rock, and told her husband and Ivy, her infant daughter, to just leave her there. “I don’t want to deal with this,” she said, meaning every word. Hanel knew the signs of depression, and on that mountain near Idaho Springs, she recognized that her depression had gotten out of hand. Even so, for Hanel, like many moms, recovering from postpartum depression proved as much of an uphill battle as that 2015 hike.

Oct 11, 2017

When paramedic Daniel Crampton was diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder, his therapist suggested something untenable: “Maybe you should get out of that line of work.” Crampton had sought counseling after being called to the sites of five emergencies involving children within six months, witnessing a string of tragedies (four deaths and one resuscitation) that earned him the nickname "Pediatric Dan" among his colleagues. Crampton couldn't shake the memories. The therapist’s advice, while well-meaning, was desperately out of touch; for emergency responders like Crampton, their identities and work tangle inextricably, so quitting is a last resort.

Sep 26, 2017

Matt Vogl prepared to torpedo his career in public health. A former standup comic, he had told many stories on stage, but this one — uncharacteristically typed out, with a picture of his two sons attached — was the most painful and personal. Vogl looked down at the photo of his boys, then looked out at the 500 people in the audience at the Denver Art Museum, including colleagues, bosses and benefactors of the Helen and Arthur E. Johnson Depression Center as well as its umbrella organization, the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus. And he started talking about how close he’d come to suicide.