A new research center, supported by an $11.5 million grant from the National Institutes of Health, has been established to advance the use of artificial intelligence in treating post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The Center for Responsible and Effective AI Technology Enhancement of Treatments for PTSD (CREATE) will focus on developing AI tools to support mental health professionals and patients.
The center is co-directed by Shannon Wiltsey Stirman, professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Stanford University School of Medicine, and Johannes Eichstaedt, faculty fellow at the Institute for Human-Centered AI and assistant professor (research) of psychology in the School of Humanities and Sciences. Their goal is to create innovative ways to deliver evidence-based psychotherapies for PTSD.
PTSD affects about 7% of people in the United States. Many individuals with PTSD do not have access to effective treatments, particularly those living in rural areas or relying on public mental health services that are often under-resourced.
“Many mental health agencies don’t have the resources to support their staff and get trained on new treatments, which means patients don’t have the help they need,” said Wiltsey Stirman. “We want to provide more support so that the reach and quality of care will meaningfully improve.”
The CREATE Center plans to develop large language models (LLMs) designed specifically for mental health applications. These include tools that can assist therapists learning new treatments, support patients practicing skills between sessions, help teams implement new practices, and offer consultation on complex cases. All tools will be built with attention to patient safety, privacy, and effectiveness.
The project brings together researchers from several institutions: Stanford University; Veterans Affairs National Center for PTSD; Palo Alto Veterans Institute for Research; Vanderbilt University; Rush University; University of Pennsylvania; University of Texas Health Sciences Center–San Antonio; New York University; and Dartmouth. The team’s expertise covers clinical psychology, computer science, ethics, biostatistics, economics, implementation science, and tailored PTSD treatments.
Responsible development is a central part of CREATE’s mission. The team has already created frameworks for designing and evaluating mental health LLMs. The aim is not to replace human therapists but to provide additional support.
“Large language models are not ready to act as stand-alone therapists, but there’s a lot of potential to provide support to humans to improve care for patients,” Eichstaedt said.
The center is working closely with mental health professionals and people who have experienced PTSD. This includes partnerships with Veterans Affairs colleagues, a clinician training institute, and a veteran community initiative in Philadelphia that will help test AI models and give feedback.
“We plan to have close involvement with people who live with PTSD or treat those with the disorder – their voices are essential to helping us develop effective models,” Wiltsey Stirman said.
“CREATE’s goal is to make it easier for patients to get more and better care, and reduce the societal burden of PTSD,” added Eichstaedt. “With the funding from NIH and our strong team of experts across fields, I expect CREATE to be the beginning of many efforts to improve mental health with AI, for many mental health conditions.”
