Research, innovation, strategy and impact

I am a researcher, consultant, and initiative leader in mental health, AI, resilience, and innovation. For more than two decades, I have worked at the intersection of research, public systems, technology, and the field.

Not to be confused with other researchers of the same name. My work is in community mental health, digital mental health, disability inclusion, first-responder resilience, and responsible AI.

A central part of my work is guiding health and welfare organizations in building research and innovation strategies, developing and evaluating services, measuring outcomes, and embedding new technologies responsibly and evidence-based. I am particularly interested in how a good idea becomes something that actually works within a complex system and improves people’s lives.

In recent years I have focused much on the connection between AI and health. I was a partner in establishing the Initiative for Responsible AI in Medicine at Tel Aviv University, and today I am a researcher in the initiative and a Research Fellow at the AI.Health4All Center at the University of Illinois Chicago. I am also a Director at Clear Sky, which works to promote technologies in mental health.

Over the years I have also worked extensively in rehabilitation, disability, and inclusion, including as Chief Scientist and board member at Beit Ekstein and as founder of the Research and Development unit of the Shekulo Tov Group. Alongside my professional work, I chair Caregivers Israel, serve on the professional committee of Sahar, and as a volunteer with the Israel Police I founded and command the National Resilience Unit for Police Volunteers.

I hold an MA and PhD in Community Mental Health from the University of Haifa, publish and review studies and research proposals in Israel and abroad, and also advise the Digital Health Division at the Ministry of Health on strategy, policy, and responsible adoption of technologies in mental health.

The thread connecting most of my work is the attempt to bridge research, policy, technology, and the field, to turn knowledge into real change in systems and in people’s lives.