Friday, November 17, University of Pittsburgh School of Social Work Professor Shaun Eack will be honored with the Gerard E. Hogarty Excellence in Schizophrenia Research Memorial Award at this year's annual Pittsburgh Schizophrenia Conference. The longest running (40th year) schizophrenia conference in the country focuses on advances in schizophrenia research and treatment which are reviewed by experts in the field. The Gerard E. Hogarty Excellence in Schizophrenia Research Memorial Award is named after Dr. Eack’s late mentor, whose work and legacy he has continued to advance throughout his career.
Professor Gerard Hogarty was a faculty member of the University of Pittsburgh Department of Psychiatry and a member of the UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital for more than 30 years. He was a scholar and clinician whose career was dedicated to improving the lives of persons with schizophrenia through rigorous research establishing the important role of antipsychotic medication and psychosocial treatment to reduce the risk of relapse and improve functioning. Professor Hogarty developed and tested four novel psychosocial treatment approaches (Major Role Therapy, Family Psychoeducation, Personal Therapy, and Cognitive Enhancement Therapy).
Professor Hogarty passed away in 2006, but his work has continued to inspire a new generation of researchers-including Dr. Eack-to continue his work in the development of psychosocial treatments. Says Dr. Eack, “Professor Hogarty’s work is an exemplar of research rigor effectively directed toward impact. His advances in schizophrenia treatment drive many of the services that are pillars of evidence-based practice with this population today.”
Professor Hogarty’s career in clinical research led to major advancements in the treatment of individuals with schizophrenia and his work continues to be recognized both nationally and internationally. “Jerry was an amazing person,” shares his widow, Susan Hogarty. “So knowledgeable in the field. He learned from studies that he led, let that knowledge inform his next steps, and then continued with his research…He always continued to learn from his findings to discover how he could make the treatments better.”
Professor Hogarty’s development of Cognitive Enhancement Therapy (CET) was revolutionary in the field of schizophrenia research. Mrs. Hogarty describes his work as a labor of love, with Professor Hogarty reading extensively about schizophrenia as well as work in other fields, building on his past studies, and recognizing that even with the benefits of antipsychotic medication, many patients still struggled with attention, memory, and problem-solving skills, as well as social cognition. These challenges had a huge impact on their quality of life, which is something Professor Hogarty cared deeply about. CET targets these difficulties in a very innovative way.
Dr. Eack explains the influence of Professor Hogarty on his own work with CET, “His work on the psychosocial treatment of schizophrenia pushed the boundaries beyond what the field thought was possible for recovery from this condition. His work, as an MSW, also helped to put social work on the map as a rigorous profession that can make high impact advances to the field of mental health. My work is a continuation of Professor Hogarty's legacy, as I have continued advancing the treatments he developed and worked toward their greater implementation in community settings.”
Susan Hogarty agrees that Dr. Eack has indeed helped to continue the important work of her late husband, “Shaun has gone on to do a number of CET studies. Shaun has done a wonderful job carrying on Jerry’s legacy, moving forward CET in such a positive way. I think that Jerry would be so pleased with the work he has done. Jerry waited his whole career to find someone to carry on his work in schizophrenia and it’s Shaun. Shaun came to Pittsburgh to work with Jerry and has gone on to do remarkable things.”
Dr. Eack will receive the award Friday, November 17th at 1pm. The conference runs from 8:30am-5pm and can be attended virtually. More information can be found here.