Stephani Louise Hatch is an American sociologist who is a psychiatric epidemiologist at the

Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience The Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience (IoPPN) is a research institution dedicated to discovering what causes mental illness and diseases of the brain. In addition, its aim is to help identify new treatments for them and way ...

. Her research consider urban mental health and inequality in mental health provision.

Early life and education

Hatch studied psychology at

Indiana University Bloomington Indiana University Bloomington (IU Bloomington, Indiana University, IU, or simply Indiana) is a public university, public research university in Bloomington, Indiana. It is the flagship university, flagship campus of Indiana University and, with ...

. She was a graduate student at

Georgia State University Georgia State University (Georgia State, State, or GSU) is a Public university, public research university in Atlanta, Atlanta, Georgia. Founded in 1913, it is one of the University System of Georgia's four research universities. It is also the ...

, where she studied women's pharmaceutical treatment challenges. She completed her doctoral research at the

University of Maryland, College Park The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of Mary ...

, where she continued her work on drug use in inner city women. Her early research was supported by a

National Institute of Mental Health The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) is one of 27 institutes and centers that make up the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The NIH, in turn, is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and is the prima ...

(NIMH) fellowship. After graduating, Hatch joined

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

as a postdoctoral fellow.

Research and career

In 2006, Hatch joined the faculty at

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

, where she was made Professor in 2019. At King's College, Hatch has studied urban mental health, health inequalities and disparities in how people access mental health support. As part of these efforts, Hatch leads the HERON network. She leads the

Wellcome Trust The Wellcome Trust is a charitable foundation focused on health research based in London, in the United Kingdom. It was established in 1936 with legacies from the pharmaceutical magnate Henry Wellcome (founder of one of the predecessors of Glaxo ...

programme ''Tackling Inequalities and Discrimination Experiences in health Services (TIDES)'', which looks at the prevalence and impact of discrimination by healthcare providers, and how their behaviour perpetuates health inequalities. TIDES evaluates how various protected characteristics (socioeconomic status, gender, ethnicity, migration status) create barriers between patients and their healthcare systems. In a study of almost 34,000 adults, Hatch showed that only one hour of exercise a week was enough to prevent depression. Hatch created the HYPE (improving the Health of Young PeoplE) Project. HYPE, which is supported by the

Maudsley Hospital The Maudsley Hospital is a British psychiatric hospital in south London. The Maudsley is the largest mental health training institution in the UK. It is part of South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, and works in partnership with the In ...

. HYPE looks to improve young people's access to community-based and online mental and physical health related information. Throughout the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, HYPE expanded to evaluate how social distancing, isolation and ongoing lockdowns impacted the lives of young adults. Hatch also looked at the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on adult mental health, showing that the lockdown and associated uncertainty resulted in the deterioration of mental health. Hatch investigated racial discrimination within the

National Health Service The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...

. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Hatch worked with the NHS Check Study to understand the mental health and employment experiences of Black and minority ethnic NHS staff. She was supported by

UK Research and Innovation UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) is a non-departmental public body of the Government of the United Kingdom that directs research and innovation funding, funded through the science budget of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Str ...

(UKRI) to launch a research programme into the experiences of healthcare workers of colour before and during the pandemic.

Selected publications

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hatch, Stephani Living people Year of birth missing (living people) American psychiatrists Academics of King's College London University System of Maryland alumni African-American academics 21st-century African-American people