Dr. Pateña is the Director of U.S. Mental Health Programs where he is building on HealthRight’s two decades of global mental health experience to launch an innovative, low-cost, high-impact mental health program tailored to underserved populations in the United States. He has over 15 years of experience providing direct mental health care, conducting population mental health research, and implementing community-based mental health interventions in low-resourced settings. In recent years, his research has focused on the development, implementation, and evaluation of music-based and task-sharing mental health interventions to reduce stigma and improve mental health outcomes among Sickle Cell Disease populations in Nigeria and Ghana. Dr. Pateña brings a dual background in counseling psychology and public health, integrating clinical expertise with a prevention-oriented, community-centered approach. He was part of the inaugural Doctor of Public Health cohort at NYU School of Global Public Health (DrPH ’25), where his training focused on implementation science and public health leadership.