Archived Projects

Mohala na pua ui i ka wai o na kuahiwi: Hoʻouna Pono Implementation ​​​(Okamura, Carreira-Ching, Chertavian, Goshgarian-Miller, Liu, Palafu, Pascual, Primack, Thein, Yamane, Yoshizumi-Kim)
  • Funder: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (H79 SM086278); National Institute on Drug Abuse (DP1 DA016311 terminated 5/31/2025, reinstated 7/29/2025), National Institute of General Medical Sciences (U54 GM138062)
  • Estimated Completion Date: June 2029

The Mohala Na Pua project leverages the Hoʻouna Pono curriculum, a culturally grounded, teacher delivered, substance use prevention intervention for middle school youth. Hoʻouna Pono was developed on Hawaiʻi Island and has being updated for e-cigarrette/vape use by our partners at the University of Hawai‘i Cancer Center. The Mohala Na Pua project, in partnership with the Hawai‘i Department of Education and Compassionate Ko'olau, integrates design sprints to create community-led implementation strategies to spread Ho‘ouna Pono to the Windward District of O‘ahu.

Follow the project on Instagram and YouTube or contact Dr. Okamura with any questions!

Quality Care Initiative Program Evaluation (Chertavian, Okamura, Pascual, Palafu, Primack)
  • Funder: Quality Care Initiative 
  • Estimated Completion Date: Ongoing
  • University Partners: University of Oregon (Park), University of Iowa (Zhang), University of Pennsylvania (Wolk), Loma Linda University (Boustani), Arizona State University (Kim)

The Baker Center Implementation Research Division and Quality Care Initiative partner with collaborators at the University of Oregon and University of Iowa to explore learning collaborative implementation outcomes and effectiveness. Our goal is to synthesize agency, therapist, and youth outcome variables across implementation initiatives across the United States to answer multilevel questions around youth evidence-based practice implementation.  

Hawai‘i State Governor’s Office of Wellness and Resilience (Chertavian, Okamura, Palafu, Pascual, Primack)
  • Funder: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration Maui Wildfires Supplemental Funding (5 H79 SM082961-04)
  • Estimated Completion Date: February 2025

This one-year pilot project will support the Office of Wellness and Resilience in implementing and evaluating an ecological momentary assessment wellness app for behavioral health workers following the tragic August 2023 Maui wildfires. Our team will (a) participate in piloting and training of the wellness app, (b) develop a process for data use in supervision, (c) provide implementation recommendations based on user-data, and (d) evaluate the effectiveness of the wellness app in reducing burnout and vicarious trauma.

Hawaiʻi State Department of Health Child and Adolescent Mental Health Division – Data to Wisdom (Okamura, Carreira-Ching, Palafu, Pascual, Primack)
  • Funder: Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration (5 H79 SM082961-04) 
  • Estimated Completion Date: August 2024 

This multiyear project supports ongoing quality improvement initiatives within the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Division. Our team is focused on efforts related to (a) behavioral health workforce development, (b) supporting trauma-informed care implementation, (c) understanding organizational climate and the learning healthcare system, and (d) managing federal reporting and multimillion dollar per year budgets. 

Evaluating the Impact of Vape Access Sites: A Geospatial Analysis of the Windward School District  (Palafu, Carreira-Ching, Okamura)  
  • Funder: Hawaiʻi Pacific University Undergraduate Infrastructure Student Research Center, Team Science  
  • Estimated Completion Date: June 2024

Facilitating the implementation of a prevention/intervention program, such as Hoʻouna Pono, within a community requires attention to unique contextual factors. This project aims to support the greater goal of implementing Hoʻouna Pono in the Windward School District by evaluating the extent of youth exposure to Vape access sites (I.e., vape shops).  

The Brooklyn Parenting Center at Maimonides Hospital (Okamura, Pascual, Harris, Haupt)
  • Funder: Maimonides Hospital & Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (1 H79 FG000901-01) 
  • Estimated Completion Date: October 2023 

The Brooklyn Parenting Center is a targeted program to address maternal mental health, social determinants of health, and adverse childhood experiences in the first 1000 days of infant development. Our goal is to provide (a) consultation on the clinical workflow model within the prenatal, inpatient, and pediatric settings, (b) implementation consultation to address screening and intervention, and (c) support the evaluation design to ensure effective implementation and sustainability.