Susan Collins
Professor
Ph.D. Syracuse University, 2003
Contact Information
Email: susan.collins@wsu.edu
Spokane Office (Primary): 103 E. Spokane Falls Blvd, Office 414C
Phone: (206) 832-7885
Classes Taught
I am teaching the clinical and community class in the spring semester.
Research Interests
- Substance use assessment and treatment development and evaluation
- Community-based participatory research
- Methods in clinical psychology
- Harm reduction interventions for people who use substances
“I am a licensed clinical psychologist and Professor in the Department of Psychology at Washington State University. I also hold affiliate faculty positions in both the Department of Psychology and the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the University of Washington where I also codirect of the Harm Reduction Research and Treatment (HaRRT) Center at UW Medicine’s Harborview Medical Center. I have been involved in substance use research, assessment and treatment for over 2 decades and have disseminated this work in over 60 book chapters, abstracts and peer-reviewed articles. Using a community-based participatory research approach, I work with multidisciplinary research and clinical teams, community-based agencies, traditional Native health professionals, and people who use substances to codevelop, evaluate and implement interventions that aim to reduce substance-related harm and improve quality of life for people who use substances and their communities. I am also a mother, a wife, a sister and a daughter embedded within families affected by the intergenerational experience of trauma, addictive behaviors and substance use disorder. I attended my first 12-step meeting when I was 16, and my families’ and my own lived experiences drive my desire to reduce the stigma of addictive behaviors and meet people where they are at in all aspects of my work.”
Recent Publications:
Collins, S. E., Nelson, L. A., Stanton, J., Mayberry, N., Ubay, T., Taylor, E. M., . . . the HaRT-S Community Advisory Board. (in press). Harm reduction treatment for smoking (HaRT-S): Findings from a single-arm pilot study with smokers experiencing chronic homelessness. Substance Abuse.
Collins, S. E., Clifasefi, S. L., Nelson, L. A., Stanton, J., Goldstein, S. C., Taylor, E. M., . . . Jackson, T. R. (2019). Randomized controlled trial of Harm Reduction Treatment for Alcohol (HaRT-A) for people experiencing homelessness and alcohol use disorder. International Journal of Drug Policy, 67, 24-33.
Collins, S. E., Clifasefi, S. L., Stanton, J., The LEAP Advisory Board, Straits, K. J. E., Gil-Kashiwabara, E., Rodriguez Espinosa, P., Nicasio, A. V., Andrasik, M. P., Hawes, S. M., Miller, K. A., Nelson, L. A., Orfaly, V. E., Duran, B. M., & Wallerstein, N. (2018). Community-based participatory research (CBPR): Towards equitable involvement of community in psychology research. American Psychologist, 73, 884-898.
Collins, S. E., Orfaly, V. E., Wu, T., Chang, S., Hardy, R. V., Nash, A., Jones, M. B., Mares, L., Taylor, E. M., Nelson, L. A., & Clifasefi, S. L. (2018). Content analysis of homeless smokers’ perspectives on established and alternative smoking interventions. International Journal of Drug Policy, 51, 10-17.
Grazioli, V. S., Collins, S. E., Paroz, S., Graap, C., & Daeppen JB. (2017). Six-month outcomes among socially marginalized alcohol and drug users attending a drop-in center allowing alcohol consumption. International journal on drug policy, 41, 65-73.
Collins, S. E., Clifasefi, S. L. & Lonczak, H. (2017). Seattle’s Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD): Program effects on recidivism. Evaluation and Program Planning, 64, 49-56. doi: 1016/j.evalprogplan.2017.05.008
Clifasefi, S. L., Collins, S. E., Torres, N. I., Grazioli, V. S., & Mackelprang, J. L. (2016). Housing First, but what comes second? A qualitative study of resident, staff and management perspectives on single-site Housing First program enhancement. Journal of Community Psychology, 44, 845-855.
Collins, S. E., Jones, C. B., Hoffmann, G., Nelson, L. A., Hawes, S. A., Grazioli, V. S., Mackelprang, J. S., Holttum, J., Kaese, G., Lenert, J., Herndon, P., & Clifasefi, S. L. (2016). In their own words: Content analysis identifying pathways to recovery among homeless individuals with alcohol use disorders. International Journal of Drug Policy, 27, 89-96.
Collins, S. E., Duncan, M. H., Smart, B. F., Saxon, A. J., Malone, D. K., Jackson, T. R., & Ries, R. K. (2015). Extended-release naltrexone and harm reduction counseling for chronically homeless people with alcohol dependence. Substance Abuse, 36, 21-33. doi: 1080/08897077.2014.904838
Collins, S. E., Clifasefi, S. L., Dana, E. A., Andrasik, M. P., Stahl, N. E., Kirouac, M., et al. (2012). Where harm reduction meets Housing First: Exploring alcohol’s role in a project-based Housing First setting. International Journal of Drug Policy, 23, 111-119. doi: 1016/j.drugpo.2011.07.010.
Collins, S. E., Malone, D. K., Clifasefi, S. L., Ginzler, J. A., Garner, M. D., Burlingham, B., et al. (2012). Project-based Housing First for chronically homeless individuals with alcohol problems: Within-subjects analyses of two-year alcohol-use trajectories. American Journal of Public Health, 102, 511-519. doi: 10.2105/AJPH.2011.300403
