Dr. Ashok Malla is a Professor of Psychiatry at McGill University, with an adjunct appointment in Epidemiology and Biostatistics. He holds a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Early Psychosis and Early Intervention in Youth Mental Health and is a recipient of an honorary doctorate from l’Université de Montréal (2015). He has founded two leading Prevention and Early intervention Programs for Psychoses (PEPP) in Montréal and London, Ontario and, more recently the Canadian Consortium of Early Intervention Programs for Psychosis. He has led many clinical research projects investigating the neurobiological, psychosocial, and cross-cultural aspects of multidimensional outcomes in early phase of psychotic disorders and early intervention. His research work in early intervention in psychosis has been centred on the objective of improving outcome for young patients with psychosis. He has been leading two global mental health projects: understanding differences in outcome in first episode psychosis in India and Canada, and application of a low-cost lay health worker model of mental health service delivery in rural parts of conflict-ridden Kashmir, India.

Currently, Dr Malla leads a $25M, national research project on the transformation of youth mental health services (ACCESS Open Minds), under the Strategy for Patient Oriented Research (SPOR) of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), informed by his previous work in early psychosis. He has published more than 325 peer-reviewed articles, held numerous peer-reviewed research grants, supervised many graduate and post-doctoral students, residents and fellows, has been an advisor on program development and research in early intervention in psychotic disorders in several countries. He has worked tirelessly as an advocate for high quality care for the seriously mentally ill. He is also an editor of Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology.