Holen Hirsh (she/her) | Vice President | hhirsh@omni.org

Dr. Holen Hirsh is a Vice President at OMNI Institute, a member of the Executive Management Team, and serves in a senior project leadership and oversight capacity with a focus on Behavioral and Community Health. Dr. Hirsh’s 20-year career in applied social science consulting has centered driving systems-level change in the behavioral health ecosystem, improving access to care in the substance use disorder (SUD) system, and improving outcomes for people with behavioral health needs.

Dr. Hirsh has spearheaded OMNI’s growing practice working with co-response models at the intersection of behavioral health and justice system. She has partnered with counties and community foundations across Colorado to assess community-level behavioral health needs, and led the development of community-informed and comprehensive recommendations for public health systems change.

Dr. Hirsh also has significant experience directing longitudinal outcomes evaluations of SUD treatment providers to understand the relationship between treatment and recovery, including as the principal investigator on the National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers’ (NAATP) multi-site Outcomes Pilot Program.

Dr. Hirsh leads OMNI’s internal Reporting Best Practice Team, which sets the standards for best-in-class reporting at scale across the organization.

Prior to joining OMNI, Dr. Hirsh worked in business consulting before completing her doctorate in Social Psychology, where her research focused on stereotyping, prejudice, and implicit bias. Outside of OMNI Institute, she loves spending her time outdoors in her home community of Frisco, CO, skiing, mountain biking, and exploring mountain trails with her daughters and spouse.

“I was drawn to OMNI because of the opportunity to apply my social science research background to social justice issues. I love our clients, their work, and their drive to make positive social change every day. I feel honored to work side by side with so many passionate people.”

CONTENT EXPERTISE

Substance Use Disorder Treatment

EDUCATION

University of Colorado, Boulder
Ph.D., Social Psychology

Bryn Mawr College
B.A., Psychology & French

+ Selected Publications

  1. OMNI Institute (2022). Background and Considerations for Developing a Behavioral Health Roadmap for Boulder County. Submitted to Boulder County Community Services. Access: https://omni.org/bcph-roadmap-background
  2. OMNI Institute (2021). 2021 Colorado Statewide Coordinated Statement of Need: HIV AIDS Prevention and Care. Submitted to Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment and Denver Department of Public Health and Environment. Access: omni.org/co-statement-of-need-hiv
  3. OMNI Institute (2020). Behavioral Health Needs Assessment: Clear Creek County, CO. Access: https://omni.org/clear-creek-needs-assessment
  4. OMNI Institute (2020). COVID-19 Impact on Addiction Treatment and Recovery Survey Results. Denver, Colorado. Access: https://omni.org/covid-19-survey-results
  5. OMNI Institute (2020). Weld County: Summary of the Status of Health and Education. Submitted to the Weld Trust, Greely, Colorado. Access: http://omni.org/Weld-County-Education-Health-Report
  6. OMNI Institute (2019). Best Practices for Treating Mental Health and Substance Use Disorders. Submitted to Boulder County Public Health, Boulder, Colorado. Access: https://omni.org/lit-review-bh-best-practices
  7. OMNI Institute (2019). Recommendations for a Coordinated Behavioral Health System in Boulder County. Submitted to Boulder County Public Health, Boulder, Colorado. Access: https://omni.org/bcbh-recommendations
  8. Hirsh, H.K., Wheeler, N., Gelman, K., Swan, J. (2019). NAATP Addiction Treatment Outcomes Measurement Toolkit & Final Report. Submitted to the National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers, Denver, Colorado. Access: https://www.naatp.org/sites/naatp.org/files/NAATP_Newsletter_Outcomes_FINAL.pdf
  9. Hirsh, H.K., Richmond, M.K., Pampel, F.C., Jones, S.S., Molieri, A.C., & Jones, J. (2018). Results from a randomized controlled trial of the Motheread/Fatheread early literacy intervention: Evidence of impact in a rural community. Early Education and Development. doi: 10.1080/10409289.2018.1544813.
  10. Hahn, A., Judd, C.M., Hirsh, H.K., & Blair, I.V. (2014). Awareness of implicit attitudes. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 143(3), 1369–1392.
  11. Auxier, A.M., Hirsh, H.K., & Warman, M.K. (2013) Behavioral Health in Federally Qualified Health Centers: What Practitioners and Researchers Need to Know. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 44, 391–397.
  12. Blair, I.V., Steiner, J.F., Fairclough, D., Hanratty, R., Price, D.W., Hirsh, H.K., Wright, L.A., Bronsert, M., Karimkhani, E., Magid, J.A., Havranek, E.P. (2013). Providers’ Implicit Ethnic/Racial Biases Predict Patient Evaluations by African American but not Latino Patients. Annals of Family Medicine, 11(1), 2–4
  13. Blair, I.V., Havranek, E.P., Price, D.W., Hanratty, R., Fairclough, D., Farley, T., Hirsh, H.K., Steiner, J.F. (2013). An assessment of biases against Latinos and African Americans among primary care providers and community members. American Journal of Public Health, 103(1), 92–98.

+ Selected Presentations

  1. Peters, A., & Hirsh, H.K. (2020, December). Data Driven Recovery: Transforming the Field Through Collaborative Science. Presentation at the West Coast Symposium of Addictive Disorders, Virtual.
  2. Hirsh, H.K. (2020, November). Emerging Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Substance Use Disorder Treatment. Colorado Consortium for Prescription Drug Abuse Prevention Virtual Research Session, Virtual.
  3. Hirsh, H.K., Matlin, K, Wheeler, N.M., Maskus, E. (2020, August). Using Data Visualization to Tell Your Public Health Story. Workshop at the Public Health in the Rockies Conference, Virtual.
  4. Griffin, E., & Hirsh, H.K. Emerging Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Prevention and Treatment Fields. (2020, August). Presentation at the National Prevention Network Conference and Public Health in the Rockies Conference, Virtual. 5.Hirsh, H.K., Finken, J. Hobelman, G. (2019, May). Outcomes Measures and Treatment Philosophy: Tracking Patient Progress and Monitoring Outcomes. Quality Assurance Session Presentation at the National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers Leadership Conference, Washington, D.C.
  5. Hirsh, H.K., Wheeler, N.M., Loes, M. (2019, May). NAATP Addiction Outcomes Measurement Toolkit. General Session Presentation at the National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers Leadership Conference, Washington, D.C.
  6. Hirsh, H.K., Swan, J., Kester, C., Gelman, K.P. (2018, May). The NAATP Pilot Program 2015 – 2018. Presentation at the National Association of Addiction Treatment Providers Leadership Conference, Denver, CO.
  7. Crawford, K., & Hirsh, H.K. (2016, September). Collaborating with Clinical and Community Partners to Improve Cardiovascular Health Equity in the Black/African American Community. Presentation at the Public Health in the Rockies Conference in Breckenridge, CO.
  8. Hirsh, H.K., Jones, J., Smiles, K.F., Molieri, A., & Richmond, M. (2014, October). Evaluating a Community-Based Colorado Early Literacy Program Using an Experimental Design. Presentation at the American Evaluation Association Annual Meeting, Denver, CO.
  9. Hirsh, H.K. & Love, E. (2014, September). Developing Infrastructure for Adolescent Marijuana Prevention Efforts: The Critical Role of Systematic Screening and Brief Intervention. Presentation at the Public Health in the Rockies Conference in Fort Collins, CO.
  10. Love, E. & Hirsh, H.K. (2014, May). Colorado’s Marijuana Policy Experiment: Perspectives from Adolescents and Parents. Poster presented at The Society for Prevention Research Annual Meeting, Washington, D.C.
  11. Hyman, D., Van Boven, L., Katz, H.E., Visscher, D., & Hemmelgarn, C. (2011, July). “I am concerned” — Reassurance, response and risk mitigation. Presentation at the Communication and Response to Family Concern Conference, The Children's Hospital of Colorado, Aurora, CO.
  12. Katz, H.E., Gehris, M., and Hess, C. (2011, April). Mediator Bias — The Myth and the Reality. Presentation at the American Bar Association 13th Annual Section of Dispute Resolution Spring Conference, Denver, CO.
  13. Katz, H.E., & Blair, I.V. (2011, January). The Association Between Healthcare Providers’ Ethnic/Racial Attitudes and Hypertension Control. Presentation at the Health Research in Personality and Social Psychology Pre-conference at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology Annual Meeting, San Antonio, TX.
  14. Katz, H.E., Blair, I.V., & Wilson, J.L. (2011, January). Implicit Evaluation of Multiple Categories. Poster presented at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology Annual Meeting, San Antonio, TX.
  15. Farley, T., & Katz, H.E. (2010, September). The Association Between Ethnic/Racial Attitudes and Hypertension Control. Presentation at the Engaging Communities in Education and Research: From Engagement to Linkages, Vail, CO.
  16. Katz, H.E., & Blair, I.V. (2010, January). Age and Race Bias: Combined Forces? Presentation at the Health Research in Personality and Social Psychology Pre-conference at the Society for Personality and Social Psychology Annual Meeting, Las Vegas, NV.

+ Certifications & Training

  • Colorado Collaboratory on Equitable Evaluation (2.0), Denver, CO (2019- 2020) - Colorado Immersion Training in Community Engagement and Community Based Participatory Research, Urban African American Track, Colorado Clinical and Translational Science Institute, Denver, CO (2011)
  • NIH Conference on the Science of Research on Discrimination and Health, Bethesda, MD (2011)
  • National Cancer Institute, Methodological and Conceptual Issues in Conducting Research on Racial/Ethnic Discrimination in Health Care Delivery, Technical Workshop, Bethesda, MD (2008)

+ Awards & Service

  • Summit County Preschool, Board Member (2021 - present)
  • NAATP Foundation for Recovery Science and Education, Board Member (2020-Present)
  • Colorado Providers Association, Board Member (2020-Present)
  • Family Star Montessori School, Health Services Advisory Council Member (2019-2020)
  • OMNI Institute Service Award for exceptional contributions across the areas of work performance, client recognition, and internal contributions, OMNI Institute (2016)
  • Summer Fellowship for Outstanding Graduate Students, Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Colorado Boulder (2011)