MD – Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY
Residency – Psychiatry, UCLA Semel Institute, Los Angeles, CA

Biography: Dr. Nichole Goodsmith, is a psychiatrist focused on improving equity and access to high-quality mental health care for vulnerable and historically marginalized populations. She has a particular interest in the unique needs of women with serious mental illness, such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, and of women Veterans with mental illness. In her research, she seeks to explore, implement, and evaluate systems-level interventions to address those needs, using qualitative research methods and implementation science approaches. 

As a Scholar, Dr. Goodsmith’s main research project was entitled, “Addressing the reproductive needs of women with mental illness in Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health outpatient clinics: Stakeholder perspectives.” A partnership with Drs. Emily Dossett and Rebecca Gitlin at the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health (LAC DMH), with mentorship from Drs. Kristina Cordasco (VA), Alison Hamilton (VA), and Kenneth Wells (UCLA), this project used a qualitative approach to deepen our understanding of the reproductive needs of women with mental illness, and the barriers and facilitators to discussing and addressing those needs in the outpatient mental health setting. This work is being used by LAC DMH to develop provider training and clinical interventions to improve care for women patients, and will also be shared through several scholarly manuscripts, which are currently in preparation. 

Dr. Goodsmith had a productive fellowship, with seven peer-reviewed scholarly manuscripts published or in press, including four first-author manuscripts. Additionally, she authored two book chapters which are currently in press. Highlights of projects she led include “Addressing the Urgent Housing Needs of Vulnerable Women in the Era of COVID-19: The Los Angeles County Experience,” published in Psychiatric Services and co-authored with mentors Drs. Roya Ijadi-Maghsoodi (UCLA) and Emily Dossett (USC); “Implementation of a Community-Partnered Research Suicide-Risk Management Protocol: Case Study From Community Partners in Care,” published in Psychiatric Services with mentors Drs. Kenneth Wells and Bowen Chung (UCLA); “Computerized Conjoint Analysis of the Weight Treatment Preferences of Individuals With Schizophrenia,” published in Psychiatric Services with mentors Drs. Alexander Young (UCLA) and Alison Hamilton (VA);  and “Community-Partnered Development of a Digital Mental Health Resource Website in Response to COVID-19,” in press at Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved, with mentor Dr. Kenneth Wells, as well as co-fellows Drs. Moore, Siddiq, and Barceló.  

Dr. Goodsmith co-authored several manuscripts focused on equity in residency education, including “Reimagining Merit and Representation: Promoting Equity and Reducing Bias in GME Through Holistic Review” and “Equity in Progress: Development of Health Equity Curricula in Three Psychiatry Residency Programs,” both published in Academic Psychiatry. 

Clinically, she worked as an attending psychiatrist at the West Los Angeles VA Women’s Clinic, providing mental health care to women Veterans with a range of diagnoses. Through NCSP, she assisted and co-taught the Community Partnered Participatory Research course (HPM 266) through UCLA Fielding School of Public Health Department of Health Policy and Management, with mentor Dr. Kenneth Wells. She was active in teaching resident physicians in the UCLA and Greater Los Angeles VA psychiatry residency programs, with lectures including “Mental Illness and Criminal Justice: Public Policy in California,” “Reproductive Justice and Mental Health,” and “Addressing Pregnancy in Mental Health Treatment.” She was invited to serve as a member of the Core Faculty for the VA Women’s Mental Health Mini-Residency program, a virtual training for VA mental health providers nationwide. Additionally, she facilitated breakout groups at two community conferences. 

Following NCSP, Dr. Goodsmith began a full-time position at the Greater Los Angeles VA, with a faculty appointment in the UCLA Semel Institute Department of Psychiatry. In this role, she will continue to provide clinical care for women Veterans, and further her research on improving care and outcomes for women with serious mental illness and other vulnerable populations.