MIRECC / CoE

Biography

Dr. Gregory P. Beehler is a licensed psychologist and the Associate Director for Research at the VA Center for Integrated Healthcare in Buffalo, NY. He received his MA in applied medical anthropology and PhD in counseling psychology from the University at Buffalo. He completed his pre-doctoral internship in clinical health psychology at the VA Western New York Healthcare System. He is also a research associate professor in the Department of Community Health and Health Behavior in the School of Public Health and Health Professions at the University at Buffalo.

Research Interests: 

Dr. Beehler’s research interests are in integrated care and health psychology. His primary area of interest is the development and evaluation of brief behavioral interventions for chronic pain, pain-related comorbidities, and cancer survivorship. He is the developer of Brief Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Chronic Pain (Brief CBT-CP), a 6-session treatment developed for integrated care providers. He has been leading the implementation of Brief CBT-CP in VA care settings since 2022. He has additional research interests focused on improving the implementation of primary care-mental health integration and is the creator of the Primary Care Behavioral Health Provider Adherence Questionnaire v. 2 (PPAQ-2), a validated assessment of integrated care fidelity. Trained in grounded theory and related techniques, he also has expertise in applying qualitative and mixed methods approaches in research and evaluation.

Mentorship

Why do I mentor? “I have personally benefitted from being mentored by a variety of prior and current mentors both inside and outside of the VA. I therefore feel that mentorship is an essential component of personal and professional development. My hope is that the individuals I mentor will use their experiences to further achieve their goals while contributing to the well-being of others. In my role at VA, I hope to give back by supporting the development of clinicians and researchers who focus on the health of Veterans.”

How do I go about mentoring? “To a degree, my style as a mentor changes with the needs and goals of each mentee. Early on, I work collaboratively with mentees to identify what they are looking for from their training and mentorship experience. To reach these goals, I ensure that we have dedicated time for supervision that we modify as needed, typically to accommodate the mentee’s growing level of independence. In the past, some mentees have benefitted from periods of more ‘hands-on’ instruction in new areas, such as qualitative methods, that they have transferred to their subsequent positions. Importantly, I aim to cultivate mentoring relationships that are honest, supportive, and constructive.”

Areas I tend to Emphasize within Mentorship:

• Experience with day-to-day conduct of research
• Exposure to studies that employ a variety of methodologies, including RCTs and qualitative mixed-methods approaches
• Scientific and professional writing skills for manuscripts and grant applications
• Developing competency in the delivery of clinical interventions in the context of research studies
• Conducting research that considers the needs of multiple stakeholders to ensure clinical and cultural relevance
• Development of professional milestones and long-term goals
• Participation in professional conferences and seminars
• Contributing to/leading team-based approaches to research
• Finding work-life balance

Accomplishments of Previous Students Mentored by me:

• Publications and presentations
• Awarded pilot grants
• Increased collaboration and professional network

Accepting New Mentees

As part of the Post-Doctoral Fellowship Program, I am currently accepting new mentees.

Brief CBT-CP and PPAQ-2

Brief Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Chronic Pain (Brief CBT-CP; Beehler, et al., 2021.)

Brief CBT-CP was developed to address the need for a brief, focused non-pharmacological intervention for chronic pain in primary care. This protocol was designed for delivery by Primary Care-Mental Health Integration (PCMHI) providers but can be used by other qualified behavioral health providers who are looking to address chronic pain earlier in the trajectory of care with a brief protocol. The goals of Brief CBT-CP are to reduce pain-related functional limitations and improve pain self-efficacy. Secondarily, this protocol aims to reduce self-report ratings of pain. Brief CBT-CP includes modules addressing education and goal setting, activities and pacing, relaxation training, cognitive coping, and relapse prevention. 

Click here (VA access only) to download the Brief CBT-CP therapist manual, patient guidebook, and additional resources.

Click here (outside of VA) to learn more about CBT at VA and download the Brief CBT-CP therapist manual and patient guidebook.

Primary Care Behavioral Health Care Provider Adherence Questionnaire-2 (PPAQ-2)

The PPAQ-2 is a self-report instrument completed by integrated behavioral health providers to assess adherence to key features of integrated care health services delivery. The instrument can be used to assess features of the Primary Care Behavioral Health (PCBH) and/or Collaborative Care Management (CCM) models. The PPAQ-2 uses a 5-point, Likert-type response scale ranging from "never" to "always." When used as a self-assessment, integrated care providers can evaluate their usual clinical practices across multiple domains of practice described in detail in the User Guide.

Special note: When developing the PPAQ-2, several items were removed from the original PCBH components of the PPAQ. Please see the User Guide for complete information regarding changes to the PCBH items in the PPAQ-2.

The PPAQ-2 User Guide and Self-Report Form are available upon request from gregory.beehler@va.gov. These resources are free to use for personal reference, training, or quality improvement activities. Please contact us to discuss options if you would like to use the PPAQ-2 in research.

PPAQ-2 References

• Beehler, G. P., Funderburk, J. S., Possemato, K., & Vair, C. (2013). Developing a measure of provider adherence to improve the implementation of behavioral health services in primary care: A Delphi study. Implementation Science, 8, 19.
• Beehler, G. P., Funderburk, J. S., Possemato, K., & Dollar, K. (2013). Psychometric assessment of the Primary Care Behavioral Health Provider Adherence Questionnaire (PPAQ). Translational Behavioral Medicine, 3, 379-391.
• Beehler, G. P., Funderburk, J. S., King, P., Wade, M., & Possemato, K. (2015). Using the Primary Care Behavioral Health Provider Adherence Questionnaire (PPAQ) to identify practice patterns. Translational Behavioral Medicine, 5, 384-392.
• Beehler, G. P., & Lilienthal, K. R. (2017). Provider perceptions of an integrated primary care quality improvement strategy: The PPAQ Toolkit. Psychological Services, 14, 50-56.
• Beehler, G. P., Funderburk, J. S., King, P. R., Possemato, K., Maddoux, J. A., Goldstein, W. R., & Wade, M. (2020). Validation of an expanded measure of integrated care provider fidelity: PPAQ-2. Journal of Clinical Psychology in Medical Settings, 27, 158-172.