Invest visitor: Joemer Maravilla

In the “INVEST visitors” series, we present visiting professors and fellows who have arrived at the flagship INVEST. This time we are introducing Research Fellow Joemer Maravilla.

I am a Research Fellow on adolescent mental health at the Queensland Centre for Mental Health Research, The University of Queensland – Australia. I am an adjunct faculty at Far Eastern University – Philippines and an affiliate of the Australian Centre for Research Excellence for Global Adolescent Health, the Global Burden of Disease group, and the Australian Centre for Research Excellence for Children and Families over the Life Course. I am also an officer of the Emerging Professionals Network of the International Association for Adolescent Health.

My research focuses on adolescent health, psychiatric epidemiology, and health services research. I apply pragmatic approaches in epidemiology to identify social determinants and protective factors of mental health in diverse settings and disadvantaged populations.

Why did you want to visit INVEST?

INVEST will further strengthen the academic relationship of UTU with the University of Queensland. I hope to facilitate a two-way learning environment between Finland and Australia to answer critical public health and clinical research questions to reduce the burden of youth mental disorders. I also aim to share my experience in adolescent health epidemiology and social psychiatry with academics at UTU.

What do you expect/hope to reach during your visit to INVEST?

I hope to build stronger connections with experts based at UTU and explore new areas of research in global adolescent mental health. I look forward to initiating plans with UTU researchers and co-fellows in INVEST for a cross-national investigation of key risks and protective factors, critical to promoting positive mental health and well-being among young people in Australia, Finland, and other parts of the globe.